Thursday April 11th 2019 12:45AM CST
Dear Friends,
The 2019 Zumbro Endurance Run has been canceled. This cancellation includes the 100, 50 and 17 mile races.
Throughout the forecasting of this storm, the National Weather Service communicated that there were significant unknowns as to the exact track of the storm, the amount of precipitation in any given location, and the distribution of that precipitation (rain vs. snow).
We indicated to runners and volunteers in previous correspondence that we were holding out hope that we could have the race. We indicated that a cancellation or modification may come at anytime.
In order to have any chance of holding the race, we needed the initial round of precipitation to fall as rain versus snow. Today we received heavy, wet, accumulating snow that has already created dangerous conditions on local roads and within the Zumbro Bottoms Management Unit. While we were able to get some equipment in, in advance, and did mark the entire trail, the conditions at the race location today have already made it impossible to safely mobilize the balance of our trucks, trailers, vehicles and ATVs to the race site. Given the current conditions and what is forecast, deploying the equipment and setting up the aid stations tomorrow, or in the coming days, is literally not possible.
With the conditions already too bad to set up for, or hold the race and with more snow, sleet, freezing rain, rain and dangerous winds forecast from now through Friday night – it would be a fool’s errand to blindly march forward, simply hoping that things might not be as bad as forecast or may somehow miraculously get better. Putting our runners, their pacers, crews, families and volunteers at risk (on the roads or on the trails) on the basis of wishful thinking is something that I am unwilling to do.
You put your heart and soul into your running, training, racing and most importantly, our trail community. Cheri and I do too – we eat, sleep and breathe Zumbro during the months leading up to it. We are all beyond disappointed. That said, we know that the disappointment we feel now would pale in comparison to how we would feel if we attempted to hold the race and someone got seriously hurt, or worse. No race is worth that.
Thank you all for everything that you are. Thank you for your fighting spirit and for what you bring to our community. Thank you for your support and understanding.
Please note that I will be following up with a more comprehensive communication regarding the cancellation of this year’s race in the days to come.
Thank You,
John Storkamp
Race Director
[email protected]
[The communication “2019 Zumbro Endurance Run Weather Update 1” was sent to all registered runners and volunteers on Monday April 8th 2019 at approximately 12:45PM CST – a copy of that communication can be found on our website HERE https://www.zumbroendurancerun.com/2019-zumbro-endurance-run-weather-update-1/ and The communication “2019 Zumbro Endurance Run Weather Update 2” was sent to all registered runners and volunteers on Tuesday April 9th 2019 7:45PM CST – a copy of that communication can be found on our website HERE https://www.zumbroendurancerun.com/2019-zumbro-endurance-run-weather-update-2/ – These communications provide important context / background to the information above.]