Lake Murray Endurance Run

Saturday, October 28, 2023

5 Mile⋅ 25K ⋅ 50K ⋅ 100K ⋅ 100 Mile

About The Race

The Lake Murray Endurance Run is held annually in late October at Lake Murray State Park near Ardmore, Oklahoma. The event features trail races of 100 Miles, 100K, 50K, 25K and 5 Miles. This is a well supported race that has an old school trail running vibe.

Lake Murray State Park is Oklahoma’s first and Largest State Park, with 12,500 acres of forested rolling hills and over 30 miles of unique trail. The trails offer various terrain ranging from simple and flat to moderately difficult sections with rocks and roots.

Location

All races will start and end at Duke’s Forest Campground at Lake Murray State Park, near Ardmore, OK.

While mobile service is generally pretty good in the area, there are some spots where coverage can drop. Do not rely solely on your GPS.

From I-35 South Bound

  1. Take Exit 29 for US-70 E toward Madill/Ardmore
  2. Turn Left on US-70E
  3. Turn Right on OK-77S S (About 2.7 miles)
  4. Turn Left on Duke’s Forest Road (About 2.2 Miles)

From I-35 North Bound

  1. Take Exit 29 for US-70 E toward Madill/Ardmore
  2. Turn Right on US-70E
  3. Turn Right on OK-77S S (About 2.7 miles)
  4. Turn Left on Duke’s Forest Road (About 2.2 Miles)

Click here for detailed directions. (Opens in new tab.)

Events

  • 5 Mile Run (1 x 5M Loop)
  • 25K Run (1 x 25K Loop)
  • 50K Run (1 x 50K Loop)
  • 100K Run (2x 50K Loop)
  • 100 Mile Run (3x 34 Mile Loop)

Race Schedule

All Activities below take place at Duke’s Forest Campground.

Friday, October 28

3:00 – 6:30 p.m. Packet Pick up*
2:00 – 6:00 p.m. Drop Bag Dropoff (Drop bags will not be delivered to remote aid station(s) after 6:00 p.m. No Exceptions!)
5:00 p.m. 100 Mile/100K Race Briefing

Saturday, October 29

5 – 8 a.m. Packet pick up*
6:00 a.m. 100-Mile/100K Start
7:15 a.m. 50K Pre-race brief
7:30 a.m. 50K Start
7:45 a.m. 25K Pre-race brief
8:00 a.m. 25K Start
8:10 a.m. 5-mile Start

Packet pick up and same day registration will be open until 8:00 a.m. However, we recommend that all participants arrive early to allow time to pick up your packet, race chip, and get ready for your race.

*We accept same day registrations if the race is not sold out. Register online.

Race Awards

Prizes will be awarded as follows in the 100 Mile, 100K, 50K, and 25K.

  • The top three overall male and female finishers
  • The top male and female Master’s finisher (40+)*.

Prizes will be awarded as follows to the finishers in the 5 mile event:

  • The top overall male and female finishers
  • The top male and female Master’s finisher (40+)*.

* Any masters runner who places in the top three positions will be ranked in the overall division. Masters awards will then be awarded based on the next eligible runner within that division.

Finisher Awards

100 Mile

  • Sub-24 Finisher Buckle for all participants who complete the course under 24 hours.
  • Finisher Buckle for all participants who complete the course in under 30 hours.
  • All 100-miler finishers will also earn special finisher gear with race logo and year, mailed to their home after to the race.

100 K

  • Finisher Buckle for all participants who complete the course under the time limit.

Lake Murray Buckles

50 K, 25 K, 5-mile events

  • Finisher Medal (not a buckle) unique to their event.

Shirts

All race participants will receive a race shirt in the size indicated during registration.

Please note the following:

  • We do not mail shirts to participants who do not show up for the race.
  • Transfers to another runner after the shirt deadline will receive the shirt size indicated by the original registrant.
  • We only exchange shirts for a different size after the race as long as we have extra sizes available.

* Shirts are only guaranteed for participants who register 14 days prior to the event.

Aid Stations

Aid Stations

This is a cupless race. Please bring your own hydration device to carry and consume fluids on the course. Water and endurance drink will be available at all aid stations along with favorite food items such as bananas, oranges, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, potato chips, Oreos, fig cookies, soda, Salt Stick and much more.

Aid stations are between 2.8 and 5.6 miles apart. For a full chart, check out details on the course page. The 5-mile event does not have an aid station.

Drop Bags

Drop bags are encouraged only for the 100-mile and 100K events and will be allowed at the Start/Finish and at the Buzards Roost aid station. The size of the drop bag for Buzards Roost should be a manageable size and weight for our volunteers. More details will be included in the race guide and emailed to all registered runners closer to race date.

Time Cut-Off

50K runners have until 10 p.m.; 100K runners and 100-mile runners must leave Duke’s forest campground for the last segment (5 miles) of the race  no later than 11:10 AM on Sunday Morning. This should allow for close to 32 hours to complete the 100 mile course. Anyone who leaves Duke’s Forest by 11:10 AM will be allowed to complete the race as long as they continue to make forward progress (i.e. no leaving the aid station and taking naps on the final loop.)

All participants must start their final loop no later than 3 a.m. on Sunday (mile 68.2 for the 100-mile). All must have passed the Tucker Tower aid station (mile 81.9) no later than 6:15 a.m. on Sunday.

Pacers

100-mile runners are allowed to have a pacer starting at mile 53, or after dark. 100K runners are only allowed pacers after dark. Sunset is around 6:40 p.m.

Pacer exchange points will only be at Duke’s Forest or Buzards Roost aid stations. If you plan to have a pacer meet you at Buzards Roost aid station, please arrange for a ride to the aid station. Parking is limited.

Pacers are NOT allowed for any other distances! Any participant that is not in the 100M or 100K race who runs with someone who has not registered and paid for the event will be disqualified.

Logding and Camping

Lake Murray State Park

A wide variety of options are available at Lake Murray State Park including a full service lodge, cabins, RV sites, and primitive tent camping. We encourage all participants coming in from out of town to stay at Lake Murray State Park. This is an important source of revenue for Oklahoma State Parks. The closest options are within Lake Murray State Park. Other options are available in Ardmore just a short drive from the Start/Finish at Duke’s Forest Campground.

Lake Murray Lodge and Cabins
3323 Lodge Rd, Ardmore, OK 73401
(580) 223-6600

Duke’s Forest Campground

This is by far the closest option. All campsites are just minutes from the shelter where the race starts and finishes. If you are interested in reserving a campsite at Duke’s Forest on race weekend, please send us an email at info@blazetrails.com. Please be aware, if you search for campsites at Duke’s Forest directly with Lake Murray State Park, it will not show accurate availablity since we have reserved the entire campground for the event.

Duke’s Forest Campground has 34 Water/Electric campsites available for RV camping plus another primitive area for tent camping.

  • RV Sites $25/night.
  • Tent Sites $20/night

We will collect camping fees at packet pickup. If you are interested in reserviing an RV campsite, please let us know what kind of a campsite you would like to reserve, and we will assign you a spot. Please note the fees above do not include a parking pass into the entire state park. In June 2020, Oklahoma State Parks enacted a systemwide day use parking fee of $8/day for Oklahoma residents and a $10/day for out of state visitors. As long as you leave your vehicle parked at Duke’s Forest campground, there will be no additional fees.

Please refer to the following map for details on Duke’s Forest Campground:

Additional campgrounds at Lake Murray State Park are also available within a short driving distance from Duke’s Forest Campground. Click here for more details.

Ardmore Hotels

If you cannot get a reservation at Lake Murray State Park’s Lodge or Cabins. Ardmore has several hotels that are around a 15 minute drive from the Start/Finish at Duke’s Forest Campground. The following is a small selection of what is available in Ardmore.

Hampton Inn And Suites
526 Railway Express Street, Ardmore, OK 73401
(580) 490-9011

Hilton Garden Inn
710 Premier Pkwy, Ardmore, OK 73401
(580) 226-2223

Best Western Plus Ardmore Inn And Suites
2600 W Broadway, Ardmore, OK 73401
(580) 223-3200

Baymont by Wyndham
2606 12th Ave NW, Ardmore, OK 73401
(580) 798-3199

Comfort Inn And Suites
410 Railway Express Street, Ardmore, OK 73401
(580) 798-3200

Days Inn
2614 W Broadway St, Ardmore, OK 73401
(580) 226-1761

Motel 6
120 Holiday Dr, Ardmore, OK 73401
(580) 226-7666

Registration and Refund Policy

We understand that things come up. If you can no longer run the race, if you let us know more than one month in advance, you will receive 100% race credit for another Blaze Trails Running event. If you let us know between one month and two weeks prior to race day, you will receive 50% race credit towards another Blaze Trails Running event. We will not allow any refunds or transfers less than two weeks before race day. No exceptions.

Bib transfers to another runner are allowed up until the two weeks prior to the race only if the race has not sold out. If you are interested in transferring your bib to a friend, please contact us immediately. It is very important for the safety of all runners that we have the correct contact and medical information. If the shirt order has already been placed, your friend agrees to accept the shirt size that you ordered. A $15 administration fee (plus transaction fee) will be charged to the person who is accepting the bib transfer. We do not allow transfers if the event has sold out and have a wait list. In that case, we will follow the posted refund policy and allow the next person on the wait list to register. We require transfers to be completed no later than two weeks prior to the race. This allows us to keep our focus on producing the event and other important race details during the race week. If you contact us in the last two weeks to ask for a transfer, we will not reply and the transfer is not allowed. No exceptions.

Refund and/or transfer requests must be made in writing by sending an email to info@blazetrails.com. Refunds are only processed as credit to a future event.

I further understand that I am not entitled to a refund if the race director and/or race officials are forced to cancel the race due to any participant safety issue on the course that is out of the race organizer’s control. This may include, but is not limited to flooding, lightning or any other weather condition that makes the course unsafe for participants.

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