Whiteface Mountain Races
Whiteface
With more vertical gain and loss per mile than possibly any other race in the United States, Whiteface is burly. Your legs will be reduced to Jello, your lungs worked, but you'll have completed a pretty incredible feat. Sound fun? Yeah, we agree. Be sure to take a moment to stop, look up toward some of the best mountain runners in the world shuffling forward to the finish, back toward fellow entrants of all ages, shapes, and sizes moving toward the summit, and around at the brilliant Adirondack Peaks enveloping you. You don't get any of those sights often…soak it up.
Date (s)
July 13, 2024 / July 12, 2025
Whatchya Get
A lot of Vert. Some kinda schwag that you’ll want to rock.
Location
Whiteface Mountain Ski Resort
5021 NY-86, Wilmington, NY
Start Times
08:00 / 13:00 (Weather Dependent)
Weekend Timeline
Friday, July 12
16:00 – 20:00: All – Events Check-In
Permitted Race Morning unless under heat index. In that case race start times Saturday will be earlier (MR) and later (VK). In that instance check-in for MR will be mandatory Friday afternoon (friend can pickup bib).
Location:
Whiteface Mountain lodge deck overlooking Gondola
Saturday, July 13
06:00 - 07:45
Raceday check-in at staging area
If under heat index, 06:00 will become start time
08:00: Marshak's Mountain Race
Consists of 1 lollipop Up-Down circuit on the mountain totaling 7 miles with ~ 4,000' elevation gain and corresponding loss.
Aid Stations (Water, Electrolyte Drink, munchies @ summit)
Mid-Mountain: 2.0, 5.0
Summit: 3.0
11:00 - 12:50
VK Check-In / Registration
13:00*: WF VK Start
*Timeline will kick back to later afternoon / evening if event is under a heat index.
Finish is at the top of Whiteface’s Summit Lift. Finishers will descend to Little Whiteface for a Gondola ride to the base, or all by foot.
13:10*: Kids SkyClimber Participants Board Gondola
13:30*: Kids SkyClimber Start on Little Whiteface
Sunday, June 30
08:00: Locals-Led other trail / ADK peak group
Reg & Event Options
There's a handful of options in this year's lineup.
Saturday will open w/ the 7 mile Marshak Mountain Race which will use the same up/down circuit used for the '22 US Mtn Racing Champs. Starting at the same time as the Open wave ($60), but separated for division scoring will be an Under (age) 20 division ($50).
Our classic VK line, used when we were part of the US Sky Running Series, w/ Open ($60) and U20 ($50) waves will run in the afternoon.
Entrants can register for each race, or double up for the combo in the form of the Vert Junky (Open $90, U20 $75).
Also in the afternoon will be the Kids Sky Klymber ($20), a 1'ish mile ascent from the top of the Gondola to finish alongside the VK line and geared towards kids and their parents.
The Sunday group runs are low key social adventures on area trails or small peaks. No charge. Details later.
The Courses
The Marshak Mountain Race will stick with the course used for the 2022 US Mountain Running Championship. A single lollipop configuration, runners start from the base lodge, serpentine to mid-mountain, run a counter-clockwise loop topping out at the top of the Summit Chair, before dropping back down with an additional climb around Little Whiteface. The footing is a combination of grassy alpine resort slopes, dirt / gravel road, and hummocky alpine terrain.
The Vertical K is a race from the bottom to the top of Whiteface Alpine Resort. We’ve stuck with the route used for our opening years under what once was the US SkyRunning Series. It’s fairly direct and pretty steep, combining grassy alpine ski slopes, dirt utility road, hummocky alpine terra.