This year I decided to go ahead and register for the entire Snow Cheap Winter Trail Race Series, and the first race took place tonight at Cobbs Hill Park in Rochester, NY. It was a very comfortable 46 degrees fahrenheit, and although there was no snow – despite the name of the race series – it was a beautiful night to run some trails.
Tonight’s course was a single lap through the park, first making our way around the big hill before ascending into the single-track trails. There were some easy, grassy flat sections and some technical trail sections with rocks, roots and logs. Running these types of trails at night, with only the light of your headlamp, definitely makes it a bit more challenging. However that’s part of the fun of this race series.
What also makes this trail race series so fun is the unpredictability of each course. Sometimes the folks at Fleet Feet Sports Rochester like to keep things interesting, as tonight’s race took runners up and down a giant (and I mean huge) leaf pile in the parking lot of the park just before the finish line. You can’t help but laugh when you’re climbing up a massive pile of rotting leaves (oh, the smell!) on your way to the finish.
The post-race party was casual and fun, with raffles for exciting prizes like baby carrots and marshmallows! This event does not take itself seriously, so runners should be prepared with headlamps and a sense of humor. I’m looking forward to the five remaining races this winter – keep your fingers crossed for some snow soon!
Have you ever tried a low-key trail race like this before? Would you? Tell me about it in the comments below!
Keep exploring,
Alli Mincher 
These races sound familiar to the cross country winter race series our club puts in no matter the weather. And we do get some doozies of weather extremes in Calgary. They are a blast though.
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Sounds fun!
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Sounds like fun! I probably would try it! 🙂
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Are all the races so much fun?
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All of the ones I’ve been to! I’ll be sure to write about any disappointing experiences but this series is a blast!
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I wouldn’t want to run at night because I need my glasses at night but I would definitely want to try daytime races like this. Fun races are the best. How many races are in the series?
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There’s a total of 6 races in the series. There’s a similar series in the summer called “Dirt Cheap” and those are nice because they are in the evening but there’s still plenty of daylight! No headlamps required! 🙂
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Haha, great name! I would do that! Looking forward to read about your next 5 races. Have fun!
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Thanks!!
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