Louisville Lovin' The Hills

Louisville Lovin' The Hills

Louisville Lovin' The Hills

( 3 reviews )
100% of reviewers recommend this race
  • Louisville,
    Kentucky,
    United States
  • February
  • 6 miles/10K, 50K, Other
  • Trail Race
  • Event Website

Tracy

Louisville, Kentucky, United States
2 4
2016
"Early-season trail race offers challenging elevation in midwest"
Overall
T-Shirts/SWAG
Aid Stations
Course Scenery
Expo Quality
Elevation Difficulty
Parking/Access
Race Management
Tracy 's thoughts:

Louisville Lovin’ The Hills is a decade-only trail race that currently includes a 50k, 15 miler and 6 miler. The distances provide options for those wanting to get into trail running, for marathoners-in-training looking for long-run variety, and for ultra runners of all abilities.
This year's race swag included a great long-sleeve shirt with a hood and one of my favorite quotes on the back, and a custom-printed Buff UV Half-Buff. No complaints there. Packet pickup is offered at a local running store the day before.
The sun wasn’t quite up yet when I parked, but it dawn was coming and looking beautiful. Jefferson Memorial Forest is a true gem, just about 30 minutes from Downtown Louisville.
Pre-run secret: there were only two portajohns at the start, but if you run a quarter mile past the start (along the gravel road that the race starts on), there's a few more.
The race course is in, um, a cloverleaf shape … that’s a stretch but it’s the best way to explain it. The first 6 miles were one loop, then you came back past the start/finish area, then there was a straight stretch and another 2 mile loop, then another straight piece and then another 2 mile loop, then you come back. So several out-and-back bits where you got to see the other runners.
After we went through the start area after the first 6 miles, we ran a nice pine-needled stretch and popped out on top of the most beautiful lake. Just gorgeous. Then we had a section that included stone steps down a hill, then a little loop and then back up the stone steps. The steps are probably a half-mile stretch and are in sets of five or six steps with short trail sections between.
You'll also get to check out the GoAPE obstacle course around mile 10.
This year's iteration was 15.38 miles long, which seemed pretty consistent over several GPS readings and in line with what the race directors expected. I recorded 2,400 feet of elevation gain over the course.
The post-race spread was fantastic — homemade food including chill, cookies and chicken salad, plus lots of other snacks and hot chocolate.
Overall, if you’re looking for a longer trail race in the early months, this is a great option. Due to the evolving nature of Jefferson Memorial, the exact course tends to change from year to year but it is always a great event.

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