We got a new sponsor! Special thanks goes out to Cantey Hanger, LLP for getting on board with El Scorcho. Founded more than 125 years ago, Cantey Hanger is the oldest law firm in Fort Worth and handles the legal needs of organizations ranging from Fortune 500 companies to small, family-owned businesses.

In addition to Cantey Hanger, El Scorcho is sponsored by:

Corgan Media Lab

Cowtown Camera Girl

Fort Worth Running Company

Photogenic Images

There's an El Scorcho buzz. Can you feel it?

We've gotten a bunch of e-mails lately with questions about the run. And this morning we received an inquiry from Inside Texas Running magazine. Things are heating up (pun intended).

Here are two recent questions (and our answers) that may be helpful:

Any chance the time limit could be extended beyond 7 hours?
Our permit with the city technically runs out at 7 a.m., but we will take steps to accomodate runners who need additional support. The run takes place in a city park, and runners who haven't finished by 7 a.m. may keep running. El Scorcho staff intends to keep at least one aid station open until 8 a.m., if needed. If you're concerned about finishing after 8 a.m., e-mail us, and we will try to figure something out.

Is there a possibility of doing a relay race so entrants can do the event with friends?
Sure, assuming each member of the relay team pays the regular entry fee. Although El Scorcho will not have an official relay category, entrants may split the distance among themselves. Each "relay" entrant will receive the same support, t-shirt, and finisher's medal as an individual participant. But to receive the commemorative El Scorcho spur, the 50K must be accomplished by a single runner.

Wow! We've already had some folks sign up for El Scorcho. Very cool. Our website went online two weeks ago, but we only recently started trying to get the word out. 86 days and counting until the run.

After a couple months of brainstorming, we submitted our application to use Trinity Park after hours to the city.

And then we waited.
And waited.

It was not a quick process. But eventually, we were approved!

Lately, we've been working on logistics and getting the word out. We set up a website and this blog, and--amazingly--there actually seems to be some interest. We've gotten several e-mails, somebody started a Runners World discussion about the run, and the North Texas Trail Runners added us to their race calendar.

Things are going very well.
Don't forget to sign up!

When GandaMan came up with the idea of putting together this thing I too initially thought he was a little loopy. Although considering this is the same person who talked me into running marathons in the first place I should have known he would sell me on the idea.

It is going to be a blast. Who has ever run a ultramarathon in a park in the center of a big city, in the middle of a Texas summer, and in the darkest part of the night? The best part is that it will be on a course with virtually no traffic, great crushe limestone trails (easy on the joints), and plenty of support. The three mile loop will allow us to keep an eye on everyone and make sure they are doing great. This is going to be interesting!

We will give out more details and our thoughts as they come to us throughout this entire process. Be sure to leave us your comments and thoughts when you visit our blog. We want to make this an ultramarathon event that people look forward to every year.

The idea for El Scorcho started last fall/winter when I checked out the Ultracentric 24-hour road race in Grapevine. Watching folks running a looped course that November night (and knowing that they would still be running into the wee hours of the morning), gave me the idea.

Why couldn't we put on something like this? At the time, I'd run several marathons and had just broken the 4-hour barrier, but I'd never done anything beyond 26.2 miles.

So I called up Smiley and told him my idea. A 50K race in Fort Worth at night in the middle of the summer. He was into it, but neither of us had ever organized a race.

So we called up Coach Jim at Fort Worth Running Company. After Jim realized we weren't completely crazy (or that we were the right kind of crazy), he warmed up to the idea. He helped us plan out the course (a 3.1 mile loop, as opposed to a 10 mile course), and we started the process of locating a charitable beneficiary and obtaining approval from the city to use Trinity Park after hours.