Considered by some to be the toughest trail marathon in the area, the Running Lane Wade Mountain Marathon is not for shrinking violets or novices. It is a rugged route studded with rocks, roots, snakes, yellow jackets and occasional “Am I in the right place?” situations. Runners get a fairly complete physical and mental challenge on the marathon, half-marathon and even the 10K courses.
Some years it’s rainy and slick, with times inching up a bit. Others, like this year, the trails are dry as a sun-bleached bone and runners fly. The top four finishers in the 10K this year are among the best in race history, as was the time for the marathon finisher.
James Ebert of Huntsville won the marathon on Oct. 23 in a time of 4:22:20, besting his closest finisher by an hour. The 35-year-old turned in laps of 2:10:30 and 2:11:49. It was the seventh-best finish in the event’s history and best since 2019 when Craig Smith clipped 4:26 for the win.
Kerry Adams, 38, was the first and only female to finish. She crossed the line in 6:08:13 in eighth place overall.
John Cobbs, 61, of Birmingham, was second in 5:22:31, and Michael Swift, 44, of Lewisburg, Tenn., was third in 5:41.
Twenty-seven runners from at least five states, including California, started the marathon. Eighteen finished. Runners had a gorgeous morning with comfortable temperatures early and sunshine, with dry trails.
See all the Wade Mountain Marathon results here.
Wade Mountain Half Results
Blake Harvard, 39, of Madison claimed the Half-Marathon title in a time of 2:08:29. Gemma Hockett, 37, of Brownsboro won the women’s title (7th overall) in 2:30:54.
The field had 78 runners from eight states including Michigan, Ohio and Illinois.
Ben Smolin, 34, of Birmingham was second in 2:19:16 and Bradley Rainarek, 32, was third in 2:21:09.
Sarah Manning, 33, of Madison, was second in the women’s division (24th overall) in 2:48:48. Erin Hudson, 46, of Hanceville, was third (27th) in 2:51:55.
See all of the Wade Mountain Half-Marathon results here.
Wade Mountain 10K Results
Pushing each other and separating a smidge at the finish, the top three in the 10K posted record times as Kyle Medendorp claimed the win.
Medendorp, 20, of Hartselle, crossed in 47:02 for the title. That’s the second-best in 10K course history and gives him three top-10 times for the event.
Tyler Dreischarf, 22, of Bellbrook, Ohio, was second in 49:18. That’s the fifth-best finish in race history, and he also holds the third-fastest time. Last but not least, Charlie Lehr, 12, of Huntsville, finished third in 50:45, almost three minutes ahead of his closest pursuer. That time puts Lehr ninth among the top 10 best times. Matt Taylor, 37, of Trussville, was fourth in 53:51, the 10th-fastest time.
Holly Grigsby-Smith, 32, of Trussville, won the women’s 10K title in 1:00.21, the fifth-best time in event history. She was 15th overall. Elisabeth Perkins, 15, of Sewanee, Tenn., was second (20th) in 1:03:21, good for 8th on the fastest-time list, and Audrey Best, 21, of Carrollton, Ga., was third (21st) in 1:03:41.
The 10K field had 101 finishers from nine states.
See all of the Wade Mountain 10K finishers here.
About Wade Mountain
Loaded with beautiful hardwoods and scenic views, Wade Mountain Preserve is part of the Land Trust of North Alabama properties. It spans 935 acres in northwest Huntsville and has about 12 miles of trails for hiking, running, biking and horseback riding.
Among the 12 named trails are Devil’s Racetrack, Fossil Bench Trail, Bostick Trail and the Wade Mountain Trail. Along with the Running Lane events in autumn, the preserve is home to the Devil’s Racetrack Backyard Ultra in spring.
