There’s miles and miles of unraced wilderness surrounding the backdrop of the beautiful Paintsville Lake in eastern Kentucky – can’t wait for you to see where we grew up!
Here’s what’s in store:
A navigation-based race featuring adventure hikes with three “distances” to choose from: 6 Hour | 12 Hour | 2 Day Stage Race
Bluegrass and homecookin’ | Lots and lots of well-placed checkpoints (set on top of the coolest features) | Free camping | Gear transport and logistical support | A thoughtfully designed course with sensical maps and race instructions | Point-to-Point style routes | Legit hometown hospitality
“You know I hate to ask so late But the moment’s finally come And there won’t be time to change your mind Can you run?” – The SteelDrivers
LOCATION: Paintsville Lake State Park, Map
DATE: Starts Saturday, June 15 at 7am
SCHEDULE: See each of the options below for specifics
REGISTER: Choose the distance you’d like to race during registration. Open to Solos and Teams
6 Hour – $50 | 12 Hour – $110 | 2 Day – $210 Registration deadline is June 8
This a great way to get into the sport! It’ll be a looping stroll from the Start/Finish so you’ll be able to tackle as much, or as little, of the route as you’d like. Navigation will be a bit easier as well.
Minimum Distance = 1 mile
IF you’re near Paintsville the weekend prior to the race, we’ll be hosting a free Navigation Clinic in conjunction with the Johnson County Trail Days weekend celebration. More details coming soon, but you can register for the free clinic using the same registration link (even if you’re not racing).
* Still confirming the post-race for this one, but it’ll likely be a meet & eat on your own at Sloops Restaurants (at the Finish).
A full day of tramping along the “easy” side of the Lake! You’ll end up at a campground to enjoy homecookin’, a bonfire, bluegrass music and share the tales with both your fellow 12 hour hikers and those on the 2 day epic. It’ll be some well-earned camaraderie and entertainment. After the festivities, we’ll transport you back to the Start on Saturday night.
Minimum Distance ~20 miles
This is the full-on ramble! You’ll get to visit areas unseen since homesteads dotted the landscape. It’ll be challenging – don’t underestimate the effort it will take to basically circumnavigate Paintsville Lake on foot. You’ll end up at a midcamp, and rendezvous with the 12hr folks to enjoy homecookin’, a bonfire, bluegrass music and rest up before you take on the easier second day. Primitive camping is included. In addition, we’ll transport most of your camp gear so you can travel light.
Minimum Distances: Day 1 ~26 miles | Day 2 ~ 18 miles
||| Click here for the full details on the 2 Day Event |||
A Few More General Details and Resources
Look for these to be updated soon: MANDATORY GEAR | RULES | ROSTER | RACER COMMUNICATION | RESULTS | PHOTOS
LODGING: Accommodations in Paintsville. Options from camping (including right at the Start) to hotels.
THINGS TO DO: Besides hike your shoes off, Explore Paintsville for the rich music heritage, including the Country Music Highway. There’s also the Mountain Homeplace which you’ll hopefully get to see during the race, and lots of places to eat.
NEW TO THE SPORT? If this is your first adventure race type of event, here’s what to expect in 5 steps:
- We’ll send out a Racer Communication the week before the start with the things we’d like you to know.
- You’ll show up raceday and receive a map, race instructions, and a passport. The map will have a bunch of checkpoints plotted on it – these checkpoints correspond to orange&white flags we’ve hung in the woods.
- You’ll go out in aforementioned woods and find as many of these checkpoints you can in the allotted time. This is verified by “punching” the passport with a unique punch hanging from the checkpoint flags.
- This is accomplished by navigating – using the map and a compass (aka orienteering). Use of GPS, smartphones, etc is prohibited. By the way, a few people run, most speed hike, a few saunter. Typically, only a handful of teams are able to visit all of the checkpoints (aka clearing the course).
- You’re probably getting the impression that this information is pretty vague. Correct. By Design. Part of the adventure is baked-in with the unknown. You’ll do fine, train up & show up Saturday morning. Have a fun time finding checkpoints in the woods. Simple.
A Short Origin Story
This race is called the Homeplace Ramble, because it’s where we grew up! Although it has always been our backyard, we never knew just how much wilderness there was to explore. Not until the folks from the Johnson County Trail Town started hosting group hikes to showcase the area – and we got started talkin’. Miles and miles of Wildlife Management Area encompass the lake, making it a perfect place for a new race. We can’t wait to let you loose on this perfect-find of an adventure!
