Later this week we will send out the list of start times for you to confirm.

​As you plan for race day, please be advised that all summit timers and aid station attendants will be operating on a fixed schedule.  

CLICK HERE for the "hours of operation", and plan accordingly.

With ever-changing topography, trail re-routing, logging and unpredictable weather, the traditional Patch course has changed many times in the past 33 years.

"While we would love to give all racers the option to devise their own favorable and fast route," said co-founder Tim Singer, "our top priorities are to a) Respect the environment, b) respect the land owners and, c) make the competition safe!"

Therefore, the following portions of the course will be mandated for Patch Sprint:

BARE:  Due to excessive logging on private land, this course will be altered somewhat from past years- actual route tba. Please stay on the marked course following the traditional Orange arrows.

RATTLESNAKE:  Racers and trekkers must pass by the 1812 homestead both to and from the mountain.

Failure to follow the mandated portions of the course will lead to disqualification.  "It's a longer course, 13.5 miles," said Singer, "but by sticking to the route, it will be a safer, and more fair and enjoyable experience."

   The end of April deadline has passed for Patch Sprint participants to receive refunds.  Should anyone need to drop out between now, and event weekend, they may request for their race fee to be added to their donations, for which they will be receipted.

   If you plan on backing out, please alert us as soon as possible, as racers and trekker spots are nearly sold out.  

In addition, most T-shirt sizes have sold out but, if interest is there, we may do a supplemental order.

   The Patch Sprint is pleased to continue its affiliation with Kinetic Running.  The Plattsburgh, NY-based store is one of the region's very few locally owned and operated running retailer.  

Aside from selling quality products for running (and other outdoor activities), Kinetic is committed to promoting the sport locally, and helping local organizers put on a top-notch event.  "We  enjoy being a part of the Patch Sprint" said Jeremy Drowne, store co-owner along with his wife Shannon, both Patch Sprint racers. "This is a good group of people who do this race" 

For the 2019 event, Kinetic is donating several items to be used for race support, as well as for a fundraising raffle, in support of the Patch Sprint's beneficiary, Adirondack Scholarship Foundation. Among the goodies: running shoes and energy gels. 

Visit Kinetic Running at:
77 MARGARET STREET PLATTSBURGH, NY     (518) 324-4786

Attention Patch Sprint Racers and Trekkers:

   As training season kicks in, and you want to take on portions of the course, please keep in mind that the logging trails on Bare Mountain are private property, and off limits to everyone. These are the trails that lead down Bare, to the Homestead.

The land owners have granted access for race morning only; should we violate the request to stay off of the property at other times, they may revoke all access, including for the race.

The standard hiking trail up the mountain is still open for use; please travel up and down this route during your training.

Thank you for your cooperation!

                                            Honoring the Patch Sprint's Renaissance Man

The annual spring Patch training series gets under way Thursday, April 4, with a trip up and down Rattlesnake Mountain.  As in years' past, this, and all other weekly events (all scheduled for Thursdays) will be held, rain, snow or shine, and followed by a potluck picnic.

The 2019 theme:  Five-time Patch Champion and BEAST founder Jim Kobak.  See the details and check out the full schedule HERE.

Patch Sprint  legends Jason Fiegl  and Cole Starkey have captured the 2019 winter title, by virtue of a successful traverse of the course, in a time of three hours, 48 minutes, on Wednesday, March 20.

Fiegl extends his record with a ninth winter title, while three-time Patch Sprint champion Starkey has twice shared the winter title.  (See split times, records and event history HERE)

"The day was beautiful, but the course was challenging," reviewed Fiegl, who also holds the record for most titles in the main Patch Sprint race, with six.  Despite some deep snow on Sugarloaf, and icy patches on both Bare and Pok-O, the pair ran and hiked in trail running shoes, using no poles, no snow shoes, and putting on micro spikes for the final mountain only.  "We just decided to power through the best we could," said Starkey.  "It wasn't bad at all."

Two other Patch veterans -Tim Singer and Kyle Smith - successfully completed the winter course on the same day, but with a finish time slower than the champs. 

The winter patch is informally staged each year between December 21 and March 21.  Participants may choose the day, and their own route, but still must summit all four mountains with no outside assistance,

Earlier in the winter there were several unsuccessful attempts, as Singer and Smith, as well as Steph Lylis, David Durant, Katie Moffett and Brian DeGroat were all turned back by challenging conditions, after making it up three mountains.

With their completions this week, Fiegl and Singer have each completed a record 30 Patch Sprints: summer and winter.

“I was jogging along, minding my own business, when a deer came flying right past me!” -  Cara Gentry

That deer was Ryan Atkins.  The professional racer from Toronto, one of the top-ranked adventure racers in the world, smashed the course record while handily beating the sacred two-hour barrier, easily capturing the 2018 Patch Sprint, held Saturday, May 26.  Another first-time Patch Sprinter, Sara Dunham was the women’s winner, as new champions were crowned in five of the six racing divisions.

“Yeah I wanted to break two hours, it seemed like a really cool benchmark, but I was just trying to run a solid, steady, even race,” said Atkins, who spends summers in the Adirondacks, but had never been on the Patch Sprint course until three days before the race.  “It was super fun.  I think the change in the course - from steep and technical, to fast road, to double track, to bushwhacking and back to steep - there’s just so much variance and you are switching gears constantly; it was just fun!”

​Jan Wellford (Keene, NY), one of seven past champions in the field, edged past Liam Davis (left, Willsboro, NY) in the final half-mile to claim runner-up position; Davis ended up third, while capturing the Clydesdale division for the third straight year.  Two-time winner Austin Huneck was fourth, while double Pond Sprint champion Jeremy Drowne took fifth.  “There are certain races that for one reason or another hold a special place in my heart. The Patch Sprint is one of these," said Drowne.

Hit the READ MORE link for more results, quotes and photos