A gloriously beautiful morning, a salute to an OG dirtbagger and sizzling performances highlighted the 15th annual McKay Hollow Madness Saturday at Monte Sano State Park.
Jeffrey Gibisch of Huntsville and Amelia Harrison of New Market took top honors in the 25K.
Gibisch finished in 2:27:38, winning by a little more than two minutes over Dylan Glass of Gurley, who crossed in 2:29:53. Josh Cornett of Madison was third in 2:36:40.
Harrison finished sixth overall in 3:07:26. Gabriella Martines of Huntsville was second (11th) in 3:14:26 and Catherine Toriello of Huntsville was third (18th) in 3:28:56.
Runners started at the John Scoble Pavilion in the park, headed down Bankhead and dived into the woods on Sinks Trail. Others on the route included Stone Cuts, Mountain Mist, Goat, Warpath Ridge, South Plateau and McKay Hollow.
Runners shared the course until the bottom of McKay Hollow Trail at the creek. There, the 12K stompers headed up Death Trail to the overlook, then along North Plateau to South Plateau and back to the finish. The 25K runners took Natural Well to Arrowhead out to Trough Springs and back to Death Trail and then to the finish.
The 25K had 55 finishers.
Madness 12K
J.D. Shattuck of Huntsville smoked the 12K course, winning handily in 1:22:10. That was faster than his 2024 winning time by 28 seconds. He also was third in 2023.
Jake Wilson of Owens Cross Roads was second in 1:30:25, and Thomas Joslin of Yorkville, N.Y., was third in 1:37:26.
Danielle Fowler of Kenockee, Mich., won the women’s crown, finishing fifth in 1:38:20. Meghan Sottolano of Huntsville was second (8th) in 1:44:02, and MaryAnn Koch of Huntsville was third (10th) in 1:47:12.
The field had 49 finishers from seven states including New York, Michigan and Colorado. The event was put on by the Huntsville Track Club and sponsored by Running Lane.
Salute to Graham
A handful of runners wore yellow Saturday to celebrate and honor Graham Gallemore of Huntsville, a longtime trail and road running veteran. Gallemore, 82, sustained a stroke recently and is receiving care at Huntsville Hospital.
Gallemore always wears a yellow shirt and cap, or vest if it’s cold. Distinctive and hard to miss, he’s a friend to many in the local running community. Gallemore’s numerous accomplishments would be hard to list. Among them are double-digit Mountain Mist finishes, Oak Mountain 50K, Mount Cheaha 50K, Bighorn Mountain 50K, Strolling Jim 40, Eagle Ridge Half, Wild Thangs Summer Series, Cotton Row 10K, Rocket City Marathon and many others.
Gallemore is one of only two people, along with Chad Woods of Huntsville, to have finished all 10 Grand Viduta 3-Day Stage Races. Along with being a fierce competitor, Gallemore is a friend, mentor and inspiration to many.
Huntsville Track Club provided yellow wrist bands to McKay Hollow runners, and a group photo was taken before the race. Throughout the state park woods, which are starting to leaf out, blazes of yellow could be seen dashing along the trails all morning.
See all of the 25K results here and 12K results here.
MAIN PHOTO: John Jeffrey (left) and Michael Butler top out on Death Trail before the final jaunt to the finish line Saturday morning in the McKay Hollow Madness 25K at Monte Sano State Park.
