This was my first time participating in the Summer Trail Fest Ultra at Sleepy Hollow State Park in Laingsburg, Michigan. The race offers a 5-mile distance, a half-marathon, a 50K, and rucking options. But I was here for their brand-new, inaugural 50-mile distance. Summer is not my favorite season to do an ultramarathon in, but when you’re training for a 100-miler in the fall, you have to push through the heat of the summer miles. And the best way to do those long runs is to turn them into a training race, and so at 5:55 a.m. on Saturday morning, I stepped up to the start line of the very first STFU 50-miler.
My goals for this race were simple. Finish, practice nutrition (especially when tired), practice getting in and out of aid stations efficiently, and have some fun.
Summer Trail Fest Ultra 50 Mile Course
All race distances started and finished at the South Pavilion at the beach area in Sleepy Hollow State Park. Aside from the 5-mile, the looped course was fairly similar for all distances. The 50-mile distance was made up of two loops.
- The Small Loop – The race kicked off with a short 3-mile loop to cover the extra distance needed for a full 50.
- The Big Loop – After the initial loop, the remainder of the 50 miles consisted of three laps of the 15.5-mile loop.
The course itself was primarily trail but also included larger sections of old, paved road, and even some horse trails.
The First 3 Miles
At 6 a.m., we left the beach behind and headed out onto the course. First up was the small loop.
The first mile was on pavement, following primarily an old, unused paved road. From here, we hopped on our first single-track section. The next mile was spent on a smooth, well-maintained, and well-marked trail through fully covered woods.
From there, we followed a slightly muddy horse trail to the Equestrian Camp and up a dirt road back to the main park road. We ran this section for a short time before cutting back onto the trails.
Up until this point, we were following the big loop course. Instead of turning left at the aid station to continue the loop, we turned right to head back to the start line and complete the small loop.
The small loop was actually just the first 3ish miles of the big loop. The only difference was at a specific junction where, instead of turning left to go back on the trails, we took a right that routed us right back to the start line. From here, we headed back out on the course to complete the first of the main loop.
The Big Loop
After completing the small loop, we passed through Aid Station 6 and headed back out. Now we were on the main course. We would complete this loop 3 times in total.
We followed the route as a small loop until we reached the junction. This time, instead of turning right to go back to the beach, we went left into an aid station and back onto the trails.
From this point on, there was no more pavement on the loop. The rest of the loop was singletrack, winding through woods and fields.
The next 13 miles were a mix of forest trails and open, grassy fields, and mostly flat terrain.
My least favorite parts of the course were easily the grassy field sections. Not only do I dislike running on grass, but these fields were wide open with zero shade. As the day progressed and the sun crept higher, these stretches really started to wear on me due to the heat and extra effort required to push through them. And they were frequent.
On the flip side, my favorite section of the course was the island. The trail looped around a small island sitting just offshore in Lake Ovid. Because the path follows the outer edge of the island, I was almost always right next to the water. Winding through beautiful, large trees, it easily offered some of the best views in the entire park.
As we moved into the southern portion of the course and started heading back north toward the loop finish, the trail became noticeably more rooty in certain spots. While I wouldn’t consider it technical, hitting those sections was a great reminder to pick up your feet.
Aid Stations
There were 6 aid stations total on the loop. Each one offered similar selections and a few special items. All aid stations offered huma gels, water, and tailwind.
- Aid Station 1 | miles 5.4, 20.9 & 36.5 | offered PB&J, trail mix, fruit cups, chips
- Aid Station 2 | miles 7.9, 23.4 & 39 | offered quesadilla, bean and cheese burritos, pretzels, pickles, jelly beans
- Aid Station 3 | mile 12.1, 27.6 & 43.3 | Pierogies with salt, Peanut butter crackers, cheese crackers, fruit cups
- Aid Station 4 | 15.7, 31.2 & 46.9 | Hummus wraps, candy, fig bars, salt tablets, Coke
- Aid Station 5 | miles 17.4, 32.9 & 28.7 | Self serve with only the basics
- Aid Station 6 | miles 3, 18.6 & 34.1 | Bananas, watermelon, potato chips, Oreo cookies, pickles, veggie burgers, baked beans, burgers, hotdogs
Like in my previous races, I didn’t spend a lot of time at the aid stations. Instead, I relied on my crew and used the items I’ve used in training. However, on loops 2 and 3, I stopped at each aid station and used them as cooling stations. I filled my bandanas and hat with ice and poured cold ice water over my head and arms.
The aid station workers at this particular race were also amazing. They seemed to step up and go beyond what I’ve seen other volunteers do at races.
What I’ve Learned
This race wasn’t about running for a PR. It wasn’t about racing at all, really. It was about experimenting, building mental toughness, practicing aid station and crewing, and providing a heavy amount of training miles in a race setting.
So what did I learn?
Start Cooling Early. I waited until I was already overheating to start managing the temperature. I wish I had started using ice and cold water from the very beginning of the race.
Ice Bandana. The ice bandana made a huge difference. This was my first time actually using one, and that, along with ice cubes on my chest and back, really made the heat more tolerable.
Sun protection. I re-applied sunscreen on every loop to help not only prevent sunburn and protect my skin but also as a way to help protect my energy levels as well.
Keep it cold. My crew kept my liquid bottles in a cooler for as long as possible and met me at aid stations along the way when I started to struggle with the heat to provide me with fresh, icy cold bottles and large ice cubes.
And what strategies continued to work well?
Prioritize Electrolytes. Not only did I keep my Gnarly Fuel 2.0 in both of my hydration flasks, but I also took salt tablets periodically.
Eat Consistantly. As the heat increased, I knew fueling would become a challenge. I planned on switching to more liquid calories and gels as an alternative to what I originally had. I also started eating right from the start. That way, if the heat did affect my ability to get calories in, I had at least something on board.
Intervals. With this particular course lacking elevation, I knew that it would be easy for me to go too hard at the beginning and blow up mid-race. I chose to stick with intervals in order to keep my pace in check and have enough left at the end of the race. This worked very well for the first 30 miles, but once the heat started to dig in, I struggled to stay on pace. I should have brought an interval timer with me to help take off the mental load of when I was supposed to run and when I was supposed to walk.
The Race Organization – Trivium Racing
Trivium Racing manages an impressive slate of endurance events. Their focus is to bring more personal and friendly races that engage participants, spectators, and economies in new ways. They believe that athletic events are about bringing communities together.
Their carefully crafted Michigan Running and Rucking Series challenges athletes to test their grit across diverse road and trail terrain, ranging from 5Ks to 100-mile ultramarathons. Their Winter Trail Fest – Eastside and Winter Trail Fest – Westside are favorites of mine each year. This year, I will also be participating in their 100-mile event, Wolverine State, in October.
For more information and upcoming events, visit Trivium Racing.
Overall
Summer Trail Fest Ultra is a good experience for anyone looking to dip their toes into trail running or simply looking to enjoy an easy day in the woods. While it isn’t a race I see myself repeating, I’m glad I did it. It provided a great environment for me to test out strategies, work through mental challenges, and most importantly, deliver some invaluable lessons that I’ll be carrying with me into training as I prepare to tackle my first 100-mile race.
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