Retrospection

Summary

A behind-the-scenes look at trail races and race directing in Pennsylvania—where logistics, chaos, and questionable decisions meet the woods. Part field notes, part long-winded opinion, and part rediscovery of races past. It's also an exploration of the places that make it all possible—the overlooked landscapes, their history, and the outdoor economy that quietly shapes them.

Coming Soon

The First Frontier
The Hero's Journey

The VOID

... plus old and new race reports, event news, updates, more...

A Finish Worth the Finish

The finish line is not just another piece of race equipment. It is the place where months, and sometimes years, of work, hope, suffering, compromise, and determination finally come to a head. It deserves character. It deserves a finish line that reflects the same spirit we try to bring to every event we put on.

3 days ago2 min read

The Story You Tell Yourself

Trail runners don’t just swap splits and finishing times. We turn every long day in the woods into a story—complete with disasters, low points, unlikely rescues, and hard-earned triumphs. This essay starts with one accidental origin story from the Laurel Highlands 50K and follows the trail through psychology, mythology, and the strange possibility that the stories we tell may shape the lives we end up living.

6 days ago18 min read

The Flannel Has Been Chosen: Unveiling the 2026 Ironstone 100K Finisher Flannel

There are race shirts. There are race buckles. And then there is the Ironstone 100K Finisher Flannel. It is reserved exclusively for those who possess Legs of Iron and Resolve Like a Stone: the runners who conquer the Ironstone 100K course and arrive at the finish line in under 23 hours.

Jun 35 min read

What Makes Ironstone… Ironstone: The Making of a Mid State Monster

This is the story of what makes Ironstone… Ironstone. Don’t pretend I don’t know. I hear the whispers at aid stations. The muttering in parking lots after races. The cautious tone people use when someone says, “Yeah, I’m signed up for Ironstone this year.” Usually it’s followed by silence. A long stare into the middle distance. Maybe someone nervously tightening their hydration vest. Then somebody says: “Dude… why?"

May 2119 min read

Blog Roll

The Bell That Remembers: Carl Undercolfer

Perched high above a sweeping gorge at what is undeniably one of the most commanding and awe-inspiring vistas anywhere along the East Coast, for a few days each April stands a simple structure that, at first glance, might seem almost unremarkable: a ten-foot wooden post anchored into the earth, with a bell suspended from its arm, overlooking a trail that claws its way up from the river below to the plateau some 1,100 vertical feet closer to the sky. It is not ornate, nor poli

Remembrance

Apr 1411 min read

Built to Last: How Eastern States Found Its Path

In 2019, Eastern States 100 wasn’t just changing leadership—it was redefining what it meant to build something that endures. What followed was a shift toward stewardship, community, and a long-view philosophy rooted in the trails themselves. [ The Eastern States Trail-Endurance Alliance is a not-for-profit organization that promotes trailrunning and the responsible use of public lands, through events such as the Eastern States 100, Eagleton Trail Challenge and Ironstone 100K,

Eastern States 100

Mar 316 min read

The Dirty Kiln Trail Race: A Race Directors Report (2012)

I again go back into the archives and dig up an old blog post after the inaugural Dirty Kiln Trail Race from 2012. It has been a couple of weeks since our first trail race as one of the race directors. I really do not know where to begin. This had been a seven month long endeavor and we have made a lot of memories. Instead of trying to put together a chronological list of what happened, here is a list of items point by point. The Park It has been a pleasure working with the

Dirty Kiln Trail Races

Mar 259 min read

Dirty Kiln: Mud, Steel, and Something… Else

Canoe Creek State Park isn’t just a place to run—it’s a landscape shaped by industry, scars, and slow recovery. From lime kilns that fed Pittsburgh’s steel boom to bat populations clawing their way back, every mile here carries a story… including the one behind the name “Dirty Kiln.” My story with Canoe Creek State Park goes back a while. Fourth grade. Early 80s. My dad and I had what were probably the first mountain bikes in Blair County—or at least that’s how it felt at the

history and Heritage

Mar 255 min read

Then and Now, Still Moving Forward

A photo from 15 years ago stopped me long enough to realize just how much has changed—and what’s stayed the same—from the trail community, trail racing, infrastructure, to the outdoor industry.