A new trail running event debuting on Massachusetts’ South Shore in November will feature a 4-mile race, an 8-hour race, and a backyard ultra (kind of).
The Fall Frolic Trail Race will take place at Wompatuck State Park in Hingham, Massachusetts on Saturday, November 7.
The event is the first autumn trail race organized by TA Fitness, which also puts on the Spring Fever Trail Run—featuring a similar 8-hour format—each April in Wompatuck. TA Fitness is an obstacle-focused gym in Weymouth, Massachusetts where members train on the same types of obstacles found on the television show American Ninja Warrior and at Tough Mudder and Spartan races.
The Fall Frolic will follow a 4-mile loop through the wooded park. Runners can sign up to take on the one-loop, 4-mile race, or they can tackle the 8-hour race and do as many loops as they can before time runs out.
Another option at Fall Frolic is competitors can test out the backyard ultra format. Organizers said runner who choose this format will try to complete one loop each hour.
However, any runner who doesn’t make the 1-hour cutoff isn’t “out.” They can then switch to the regular 8-hour race and continue running, making it a more forgiving version of the backyard format and perhaps just the right first experience for backyard rookies.
Organizers said it’s a way for runners to figure out backyard pacing, fueling, recovery, and just how much time they actually want to leave themselvs between loops without the pressure of getting sent home because they were 37 seconds late.
