Paleozoic Trail Runs
Devonian Fall II

9th Annual Fall-Season Paleozoic 50-Km and 25-Km
Trail Runs!

Our annual fall celebration of "going long" made use of the Palos Trail System of Willow Springs - Region 6. Immediately following our spring version in March, with much uncertainty due to the languishing pandemic we charted/requested/permitted another new racecourse that had no street-crossings, made up of the area's most scenic and more technical interconnecting trails. Each out-n-back lap totals a running distance of 7.767 miles. 50-Km = two laps; 25-Km = one lap. Our start/finish aid station was set up at Wolf Road Woods, Grove #2. Our satellite aid station was located at Maple Lake East, Grove #1. This marked the seventeenth running of our semiannual race, which has always offered the event distances of 50 kilometers and 25 kilometers.

Official statistics for our 2021 Paleozoic Trail Runs - Devonian Fall II...

Five runners of the 50-Km chose an early start to ensure they'd make their finish by sunset. Our 50-Km field started at 8:30:23 am CST, and our 25-Km field started 62 minutes later at 9:33:42. Rather raw conditions persisted throughout the day with racing temperatures ranging from 36˚ - 40˚F, brisk winds, spurts of light precipitaion, and stretches of slippery trail.

Past Paleozoic champions, Elias Theodosis and Matthew Thompson were first and second across the finish line of the 25-Km, with Michael Cramarosso in third. Paleozoic vererans, Amy Kuska and Angela Freeman led all 25-Km female runners, with newbe Xinchun Ma in third. Incidentally, this was Xinchun's first-ever race of any distance!

This fall's 50-Km was quite topsy-turvy with chicks leading the charge to our finish line. Paleo-vet Debi Haas out-paced all ultra runners and was first-ever female to outright win a Paleozoic Trail Runs event distance! Jimmy Kasper, who'd finished overall champion of Chicago Lakefront 50 Mile just two weeks earlier, finished second as top male. In his second Paleozoic, Thomas Hameister finished third overall in winning his age division. Lily Medina came in fourth overall, earning Masters Top Female honors. Apolonio Esquivel finished as third male, earning Masters Top Male honors. Dehlia Wilkins was female third-place finisher, winning her age division.

Through the Paleozoic feather flags, under the race banner, across the finish line timing mats, awaiting all runners... customized finisher-medals, special awards, optional beer, and the drawing-them-in-siren-sound of ringing cowbells. First-time ultramarathon finishers earned "My First Ultra" pint-glass awards. Five-time Paleozoic finishers collected special zipper-draw-string shoe bag awards. We had no Ten-time finishers, so this time around no special pint-glasses were awarded for this accomplishment. Les Hockenberry earned a newly minted "Fifteen-Time Finisher" ball cap when he crossed this fall's line in the 25-Km. Yep, Les leads all paleo-dinosaurs having now tallied 326.352 miles in Paleozoic Trail Runs finishes! And for those keeping track... Margie Hockenberry, Les' wife, has moved into second position of all-time finishers with 248.613 miles in 13 Paleozoic Trail Runs finishes!