Kilkenny Ridge Race
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Kilkenny Ridge Race
Kilkenny Ridge Race is a set of trail events held in September on the Kilkenny Ridge Trail in Stark, New Hampshire, with the gathering based at South Pond Recreational Area. The courses run on long, remote ridgelines and are unmarked and unmanned; runners must use provided GPS tracks and maps available at bib pickup to navigate.
Distances
- 50 Mile - follows the Kilkenny Ridge Trail end-to-end, about 15,000 ft total elevation gain.
- 25 Mile - follows the Kilkenny Ridge Trail, approximately 7,500 ft gain.
- 25K - about 15.3 miles with roughly 4,048 ft gain.
Aid stations include backcountry sites with limited food and water (for example Willard Notch and Unknown Pond) and more complete offerings at the turnaround and finish; the finish aid includes grilled food options. Long stretches between aids require water filtering when needed.
Mandatory gear is required and checked at bib pickup; missing required items leads to disqualification. Core requirements include water, minimum calories (400 calories for the 25K; 500 calories for the longer distances), a windbreaker or rain shell, a space or emergency foil blanket, and a water filter. The longer distances also require a headlamp with extra batteries, a winter hat, and gloves.
Logistics note that parking is at South Pond with shuttle service to start areas when applicable; vehicles cannot be left at remote start points. Crews are allowed at the Jefferson Inn turnaround and the South Pond finish but not at the Starr King Trailhead. Pacers are not permitted. Entry requires prior mountain trail experience: the 50 mile field expects a recent 50k or similar mountain effort; the 25 mile field expects a challenging 20 mile trail race; the 25K expects experience with hilly technical runs of at least 10 miles. Visit the organization's website for the most recent information.
