The third annual Lookout Mountain 50-mile and 10K Trail Race, scheduled for Dec. 18, is growing in notoriety and numbers with 80 percent more participants this year.
“The trails are very well-established, but are very technical with rocks, roots and a lot of climbing,” said Jonathan Mobley, Rock/Creek Trail Series race director and Wild Trails director. “There is about 6,300 feet of climbing in this race. We’ll have people going all the way from a seven-minute mile up to a 17-minute mile.”
Participants in the 2009 Lookout Montain 50 mile Trail Race line up for the start at Covenant College.Online registration for the Lookout Mountain 50-mile race ends Dec. 13. However, Mobley said runners participating in the 10K can register up to the day of the event.
The Lookout Mountain race is the last of eight in the Rock/Creek Trail Series, promoting the sport of trail running and showcasing trail systems in Chattanooga.
The 10K starts and finishes on trails within Covenant College’s property. The 50-mile race leads runners from Covenant to Cravens House, down the mountain to Reflection Riding, back up the mountain, through the Lula Lake Land Trust before finishing at Covenant.
“There could be ice,” Mobley said. “There could be snow even, but we do our best to monitor the participants as they come through the aid stations. It’s also the runners’ responsibility to wear appropriate performance wear to keep as warm and dry as possible.”
The revenue raised from the trail series races benefits Wild Trails, a nonprofit organization supporting trail building, preservation and awareness.
This winter, Wild Trails will support other trail-oriented groups and organizations in Chattanooga with five $2,000 grants.
Proposals are due by Dec. 15 at wildtrails.org.