The Endless Mile

The 2024 Endless Mile Race

Thursday, October 24th through the 27th

The 72 Hour race will start Thursday, October 24th at 9:00 AM. The 48 Hour will start Friday, The 6, 12 & 24 hour races will start
Saturday at 9:00 AM. All runners do receive finisher medals.

We are going to have a very special buckle for those that reach 200 miles.

Runners that reach the 200 Mile mark at Endless Mile will receive a 200 mile award. Following the race, we will have custom made, hand crafted and engraved buckle send to those that reach 200 Miles.

The RAce

Have you ever wondered just how far you could run in 6 hours, 12 hours or 24 hours or maybe even 48 or 72 hours on a smooth, level surface? Well, here is your chance. The Endless Mile will be held at Veteran's Park in Alabaster, Alabama in Mid-October. The park is 26 miles south of downtown Birmingham, and 16 miles south of I-459. The address of the park is 7305 Highway 119, Alabaster, AL 35007. The course is USATF Certified and Sanctioned. It is a fraction over a mile in length, exactly 0.8864969 miles. Runners will circle the paved and lighted path as many times as they can in the allotted time. The event will be electronically chip timed, instantly recording and displaying the exact distance covered. Run the race solo or start a relay team. Either way, Endless Mile will be an experience you will never forget. Solo runners that reach 100 miles will receive a 100 mile buckle.

Things you should know

1. We provide "Real Food" to runners for 72 straight hours at EM. We will be preparing and serving meals at the appropriate times. Breakfast from about 6 to 8 AM, lunch from about 11 AM to 1PM, dinner from 5 to 7 PM. Of course we will be providing our usual selections and made to order food through the day and night. If you prefer GUs and other Gels to real food, you need to bring your own. We do not provide gels at Endless Mile.

2. Although Endless Mile is not a “Cupless” race, we do ask everyone to bring several cups to the race. Write your name or initials on a cup and leave it at the drink table or bring it to the aid station when you need cold drinks. We will have some disposable cold cups, but not enough for everyone to use a new cup every time they want some Tailwind or coke. We will have plenty of cups for coffee, soup and other hot liquids.

Race Shirt Cutoff - October 12th

To be assured of receiving a race shirt, YOU MUST REGISTER NO LATER THAN THURSDAY, OCTOBER 13TH.
The shirt order must be turned in on October 14th. Please do not wait until the last minute to register.

The Course in a one Mile Loop

The course is USATF Certified at exactly a 1.00203 mile loop through the park. The hiking paths are asphalt, very flat and smooth and winds along through wooded areas and past several lakes. Total elevation gain for each loop is about 12 to 15 ft. The 90 acre park also contains picnic areas, picnic shelters, two playgrounds, real restrooms with running water, soccer fields and a youth baseball complex. Some trails are shaded and will provide very pleasant running. Click on the link to the Endless Mile website (above) to find a Google Maps link to Veteran's Park in Alabaster. On the website you will also find more pictures of the park and short video lap around the course.

WE WILL REVERSE DIRECTIONS EVER 6 HOURS

Runners will reverse directions every 6 hours. At the end of each 6 hour segment we will place a cone on the course at the timing mat. Runners will circle the cone and head back the way they came. This makes things more interesting and creates a pleasant change of scenery. This also means you will not be able to stop at the aid station on the laps changing from clockwise to counterclockwise. You will need to plan ahead!

Endless Mile Aid station

We provide a well stocked aid stations along the front straight. The aid station is open 24 hours a day during the race. We provide breakfast, lunch and dinner each day of the race. We also provide made-to-order food throughout the race, “If Possible!” We might have a hard time coming up with fried shrimp, for instance. We serve hot food and soup all night, each night. Breakfast starts in the “wee” hours. Of course, there is also all the standard aid station foods like, chips, cookies, candy, fruit, etc. Pizza might even appear a few times in the evenings. Because we provide REAL food, we do not offer gels. If you prefer to eat those, you will need to bring your own. Of course we offer Tailwind. water, cokes, ginger ale, sprite, coffee, tea, pickle juice, etc. Popsicles will even appear from time to time if it’s hot.

Relays

You are welcome to run the Endless Mile as a relay with friends or family. We must know in advance so we can set up the entry as a “Team Name” not as an individual runner. This will avoid confusion for all runners.