With a super array of road and trail events scheduled this weekend, Tropical Storm Isaias could become a hurricane and throw a wet, windy wrench into the mix.
Race directors are watching the forecasts, which have Isaias possibly becoming a Cat 1 or 2 hurricane by the time it makes landfall late Friday night or early Saturday morning. Models have it blowing northward pretty quickly with potential for flooding rain, tornadoes and structure/tree damage. Depending on which forecast you follow, they sort of go like this for the rest of the week:
Thursday: Mostly sunny and very warm.
Friday: Plenty of sunshine.
Saturday: Tropical Storm! Stay calm! Prepare! Be aware! Ahhgggghhhhh!
Sunday: Sunny with slight chance of rain rain here or there.
The latter could include “… here or there, as you pick up PeePaw’s shed that blowed over and all’a them limbs out there.” It’ll be a mess no matter where it hits or blows through. But the rain will be good for the state.
The Monte Sano 15K on Saturday morning in the Monte Sano neighborhoods is a Road Runners Club of America Southern Region 15K championship. The race is put on by the Huntsville Track Club. Runners hit the streets on a winding, gently hilly 9-mile course that typically sees some fast times and good racing.
“We’re watching (the forecasts) but right now its just a bunch of rain,” said HTC president Brian Carter. “In general, we’ll try to run unless there are tornadoes or lightning. And we’ll work with Huntsville Police Department as required.”
Other local events and updates:
— Racin’ the Station Duathlon — Saturday morning at Redstone Arsenal … Team Rocket Tri Club having a call Thursday to discuss
— Oak Park Challenge — Sunday morning at Oak Park, Land Trust, Monte Sano State Park … RD Suzanne Swift is monitoring and talking with state park officials; will send update Friday to runners
— Devil’s Racetrack Backyard Ultra — Saturday (and possibly Sunday) at Wade Mountain Preserve … still scheduled, race directors monitoring weather
— Dew It on the Trails CC — in Decatur, moved to Tuesday at 3 p.m.
Ribbon Run Change
The starting point has changed for the 23rd Liz Hurley Ribbon Run on Oct. 17 in Huntsville due to road construction in the area.
The popular race will begin on Lowe Avenue near the Gallatin Street intersection. This is a slight shift from the previous starting point. Runners will line up on Lowe Avenue, along the south side of the Federal Courthouse Building.
More than 6,500 runners are expected in the biggest 5K event of the area. More than $8 million has been raised for the Liz Hurley Breast Cancer Fund at Huntsville Hospital. Hurley, a longtime television journalist and anchor in Huntsville, established the fund in 1999 following her cancer diagnosis and successful treatment.
Registration still is open. See the updated race route here.
New Mist Directors
Kathy and Rob Youngren are the new race directors for the 33rd annual Mountain Mist 50K, set for Jan. 23 at Monte Sano State Park.
Both are longtime trail and road runners with prior experience handling events large and small. They have competed in numerous ultras; Kathy owns the fourth-best Mist time in the Top 10 women’s division, a 4:43:28 finish set in 2002. No woman has cracked the Top 10 list since 2019 when Liz Canty, formerly of Huntsville, popped a 4:44:17 for fifth.
Mountain Mist attracts runners from across the country. It currently is at 308, with about two dozen states represented.
