Moraine State Park trail race is runaway success
Runners flocked to the Moraine State Park for Saturday's Glacier Ridge Trail Race.
“The weather was great. It was the perfect day,” said runner Eddie Rosenfeld of Pittsburgh. “It's beautiful up there. I really enjoyed it.”
Saturday's event featured four different styles of races.
Team Mojo Express won the 50-mile relay, 7 hours, 16 minutes, 14 seconds; Anna Balouris of Allison Park won the 50-mile race, 8:08:44; Mike Bonarski of Buffalo, N.Y., won the 50K, 4:37:11; and Dan Goldstein of Pittsburgh, won the 30K, 2:43:29.
The races are run annually to celebrate the local trails and to provide a donation of all net proceeds to Moraine State Park, Jennings Environmental Center and McConnells Mill State Park.
According to the race's website, about $111,000 has been donated to the park in the past nine years.
The Glacier Ridge Trail is the local name for its own piece of the larger North Country Trail system that passes through Moraine State Park.
It was on these trails that Rosenfeld ran in the 50-mile race. He finished with a time of 11:55:47.
“I anticipated coming in between 12 and 13 hours,” he said. “Most people in their minds, they think they can't accomplish these types of goals, but you can do anything you put your mind to.”Rosenfeld said the countless hours running with his friend Derek Bunce of Pittsburgh paid off in only his second 50-mile race. He said the race was also well-organized, making it easier to focus on the simple act of running.“I felt good for the bulk of this race, until the last two or three miles knowing the end was near,” he said.Another runner, Ryan Hirt of Pittsburgh, finished just before Rosenfeld at 11:51:35. He was greeted by a large support group from the South Park Runners, a group to which he belongs.Hirt also liked where he finished, especially considering it was his first ever 50-mile race.“For being out there for 12 hours, you had your ups and downs,” he said. “Some parts feel pretty good, and then you hit those walls, and they don't feel so good. It felt amazing to finish.”He too couldn't help but become entranced with the park and its offerings, not only during the race itself, but on the multiple visits before where he practiced running on some of the trails.“Now that I've run out there so much, I'll definitely go back,” he said. “It's only an hour from Pittsburgh, and it's great running.Hirt said it felt good to be out of the house enjoying the day, and the race provided the perfect time and place to do that.“I'll definitely run this race again,” Hirt said.
