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The Reverse Ring

The Winter Massanutten Trail Circuit Run
February 22-23, 2014

Entry for the 2014 Reverse Ring will open in the last week of January. Watch this space for the link to the online entry. 

This late February tradition is back again to haunt a handful or two of trail runners this year – the Reverse Ring. 2014 will be the ninth running of this semi-invitational event. The Reverse Ring is a roughly 71-mile counter-clockwise circuit of the Massanutten Trail, and it will be held in 2014 on February 22-23. The “semi-invitational” label means that there is only one requirement to get in: a runner must have successfully completed a fall running of The Ring and be a member of the “Fellowship of The Ring.” Very simple - and an absolute requirement. (List of Fellowship Members) 

Those eligible to run (see first paragraph) should enter by February 19, 2014. If you have questions about the run, e-mail Mike Bur (mjcbur@hushmail.com) or Quatro Hubbard (quatro.hubbard@gmail.com). We will also be looking for a small handful of volunteers to help on race weekend, so if you would like to come out and play for a few hours please let us know.

2013 Entrants

Entrants list

2013 Volunteers

Mike Bur
Quatro Hubbard
Brian Schmidt - Woodstock Tower
Hillary Peabody - Edinburg Gap
Tom Simonds - Moreland Gap
Stephanie Wilson - Crisman Hollow
Kathy & Bob Fabia - Camp Roosevelt
Bill Wandell - Veach Gap/Roving Aid
Caroline Williams - Signal Knob (finish)

The Details for 2014

The Reverse Ring is a Fat Ass run – there is no entry fee required, there will be no awards. It should also be noted that any whiners will be heckled unmercifully. Actually, everyone will be heckled unmercifully, but as you have all run The Ring, you should be fully aware of that already. As the Reverse Ring runners are all members of the Fellowship of The Ring already, we are confident that there will be no wimps or whiners in the group. Again, the ONLY qualification needed to run the Reverse Ring is a previous completion of The Ring. Some things in life just are what they are. If you can't do it this year, just go do what you need to do to run this in the future: finish The Ring next Fall. Those who have completed the Reverse Ring in the past are of course welcome to return for future Reverse Rings.

The run will start at 6 AM on Saturday February 22 at the northern end of the Signal Knob parking lot (the Massanutten trailhead). Note the early start time - yes you will need a light for at least the first half hour of the climb up Signal Knob.  Since all of the runners will be repeat offenders, there is no need for additional directions here, other than the reminder of the single directive needed to run the Reverse Ring: follow the orange blazes.  Stay On Orange.

Each runner will be allowed a single, sturdy, well-marked drop bag, which will be collected prior to the start in the parking lot. By well-marked, we mean your name should be clearly emblazoned on the outside of the bag where we can easily see it.  Please try to keep the size of your bag within reason! We will shuttle that single bag around the course for you. There will be aid available to the runners over much of the course – see the checkpoint list below.

There are two cutoffs for runners in the Reverse Ring:

The first is at the Moreland Gap aid station, 30.4 miles into the run. Runners need to arrive by 3:30 PM in order to continue on the full course. That means that a runner who starts at 6 AM will have 9 1/2 hours to go those 30.4 miles in order to continue. Runners who come in after this time can elect to be driven to Camp Roosevelt and continue their run from there.

The second cutoff is at the Camp Roosevelt aid station. Runners who wish to continue with the possibility of an official finish will need to arrive at the aid station no later than 9:30 PM.  This gives the runner another 6 hours to go less than 16 additional miles from Moreland Gap.

For runners who think that they may need more time on the course or who are concerned about making the cutoffs, there is an early start option. Contact Mike and Quatro to discuss this if you are interested.

Check Points on the Ring

  • Woodstock Tower 14.2
  • Edinburg Gap 22.4
  • Moreland Gap 30.4
  • Crisman Road 36.8
  • Camp Roosevelt 46.1
  • Veach Gap 62.4 (unmanned)
  • Finish 71.1

The access road to Powells Fort Camp is closed at this time of year, so there likely will not be aid at that point along the Massanutten Trail. If someone is willing to do it, we may have a volunteer hike or bike his or her way into that area to provide some aid and note your arrival time at Powells Fort Camp. Otherwise, the first aid runners should anticipate will be after 14.2 miles at the Woodstock Road crossing. The same situation will apply to the traditional halfway point on the orange trail, the Crisman Road crossing aid station, as the runners descend from the Kerns Mountain section of the trail. Crisman Road is closed at this time of year, and aid will only be available if volunteers can hike it in from the end of the paved section of that road. If not, runners will be doing the 15.5-mile section from Moreland Gap to Camp Roosevelt without aid. And of course, the notorious 25-mile long night section along the east ridge of the Massanuttens, from Camp Roosevelt to the finish back in the Signal Knob parking lot, has not had formal aid in the past. We plan to once again pitch a tent at the junction of the Veach Gap Trail and the Massanutten Trail, about 8.7 miles from the finish. There will be aid in the tent, and it will provide shelter in case any is needed during the night-time hours up on the east ridge of the Massanuttens.  There will also be a clipboard for a self-reported arrival time at this un-manned aid point.

Directions to the start at Signal Knob

From the DC Beltway (I-495) take 1-66 West approx. 60 miles to US 340 south (Exit 6, - the second Front Royal exit). Follow US 340 south 1.1 miles to the traffic light at VA Route 55. Turn right onto VA 55 and follow it west for 5.2 miles to Waterlick. Turn left (south) onto VA Route 678. Follow VA 678 1.8 miles into George Washington National Forest, and a total of 3.4 miles to the marked entrance of the Signal Knob parking lot, located on the right-hand side of the road. Plenty of parking spaces are available in this lot. Map

Prior Results

Photos

Masters of the Ring

2005
Mike Bur
Quatro Hubbard

2006
Mike Broderick
Bob Combs
Mike Dobies
Margie Hughes
Barb Isom
Vicki Kendall
Bill Losey
Kerry Owens
Deb Pero
Graham Zollman

2008
Jim Harris
Debbie Shaffer
David Snipes
John Straub
Bill Wandell

2009
Keith Knipling
Greg Loomis
David Garman
Jen Jacobs
Bill Wandell
Mark Mckennett

2011
Dan Rose
Zsuzsanna Carlson
Bob Anderson
Kim Love-Ottobre
Ernesto Casarez
Cam Baker

2012
Randy Brown
Kari Brown
Jeff Best
Jeff Gura

2013
Kent Gallup
Ken Wolters
Alex Papadopoulos
Jack Kurisky
Matt Smythe
Larry Huffman
Yukiko Nishide
Hiroyuki Nishide
Gary Lukacs
Paul Crickard

Posted by Quatro Hubbard
Jan 26, 3:24 pm