The Course
mud, sand, mosquitoes
The Hills
oh, just a few – check the difficulty ratings for each leg
The Scenery
morning mist and beautiful sunsets – check the scenery rating for each leg
The Rivers
AuSable – not too deep and not too swift
Manistee – not too deep but pretty swift
THE BEACH
sun, sand, waves and sometimes a surprise along the way …
THE UNEXPECTED
deer, elk, bear, even a horse; getting lost
Are you up for the challenge?
Three days of running over hills, through sand, mud and water.
There is a trek trough a swamp and a river crossing. You will experience the beauty of Michigan like you never have before - up close and personal. The course will take runners through state and national forests, over remote trails and roads, through sandy ruts and, of course, over a few hills! All roads runnable but not always driveable. Alternate auto detours will be given for those roads where cars cannot get through. You will experience the beauty of the Great Lakes State first-hand while competing at the same time against other teams and building a bond with your own team members.
Stick Man (Bob Baril) and King Louie (Nick Papas)
Most of the Relay preparation and all the mapping of the course are under the direction of these two dedicated people
In their Toyota 4-runner, they go out in the worst and best of weather to map and often run the legs to be sure they are indeed, "do-able". Much of the past courses were scouted by their buddies "Punch" and "Big Jim" Fitch that have since passed away. The memorial trophies are named in their honor. Stick Man's new GPS system helps make sure the route and distance traveled are accurate (really it is so they don't get lost in the woods after dark on mapping weekends). Of course, the goal of King Louie and Stick Man is to make the course as tough as possible by being sure there are lots of hills, turns, swamps, ruts, washboard, tall weeds, dust and "brain baker" legs included in the three days of running. After all, what fun would it be if it were just flat roads and shade all the way??