This low-key, flat race is perfect for any type of athlete–those who want to go fast, those who want to go long, and anywhere in between. With no mileage or time cut-offs, all paces are welcome and walkers are encouraged. How many parallels of latitude can YOU complete in 8 hours?

The Parallel of Latitude is an 8-hour fixed time race featuring a 3.45-mile out-and-back on a flat, scenic rail trail next to beautiful Dryden Lake. From the time the clock starts at 8:00 AM, to the time it stops at 4:00 PM, how many miles you complete is up to you. With one large aid station available at the start of every loop, you’re never too far from all the pickles, soda, and potato chips your heart desires. Need a break between loops to rest your feet? Erect your own pop-up tent or set up inside one of the two pavilions with the essentials: a cooler, someone to fan you with a palm frond, and a record player to spin Billy Joel’s greatest hits. Just beware the chair, for she is a cunning temptress, and if you spend too long relaxing the race director just might chase you back out onto the trail.

What’s up with the name of your event? How does it even apply to what we’re doing here? A parallel of latitude is an imaginary line that circles the Earth, parallel to the Equator. These lines are used in geographic coordinate systems to define locations north or south of the Equator. The race course is aligned very closely to the 42nd parallel north, the line of latitude that passes through the Finger Lakes region of New York, including Dryden, where the race takes place.

Parallel of Latitude is one of RRCA’s 2026 New York State Championship Events.

Elevation Gain: Little to none.

Race Director: Heather Cobb; cobb.heather.m@gmail.com

If you’ve never run a trail race before, check out our First-Timers FAQs for Trail Races.

Online pre-registration is required and is open through 12:00 PM (noon) on Friday, September 26, 2026. There is no in-person, same-day registration at the race, so plan ahead.

8-Hour Solo Entry
$50 until midnight Tuesday, September 15
$80 from September 16 to 12:00 PM (noon) on Friday, September 25

8-Hour Relay Entry
$35 per person until midnight Tuesday, September 15
$65 per person from September 16 to 12:00 PM (noon) on Friday, September 25

Changing events

You may change events no later than September 25th. You will complete this change on UltraSignup; if you contact the race director asking to make this change, she will direct you to UltraSignup. If you “upgrade” from the relay to the solo division, your original order will be removed and you will be given a credit to re-register for the solo division at the price of the original order. UltraSignup will then direct you to re-register and you will be charged the difference in price between the relay and solo divisions. If you “downgrade” from the solo division to the relay division, you will not receive a refund for the difference and you will not be able to change it back to the solo division on your own.

Coupons

• FLRC members may deduct $5 by entering coupon code FLRCMEMBER2026 during the registration process.
• Runners 18 and under may register for free by entering coupon code FLRCYOUTH during the registration process.
• If financial considerations would prevent you from entering this race, please use coupon code FLRCRUNFREE2026 during registration to waive the entry fee.

Coupons expire at midnight on Tuesday, September 15.

On race day, runners should head to Dryden Lake Park, 5 minutes from Dryden, NY, and 25 minutes from Ithaca, NY. Race HQ and start/finish will be located at the big pavilion in the park–look for the FLRC feather flags. The location of the mega loop start and finish is next to the big pavilion in the park. The location of the mini loop start and finish is at the bottom of the small path leading up to the big pavilion. Parking is available in designated spots in the park, or by the dam less than a quarter of a mile away.

FLRC encourages runners to carpool to make the race more inclusive for those without cars, help fight climate change, and make a friend—sign up to drive or ride.

Race day is Saturday, September 26, 2026. The race clock starts at 8:00 AM and stops at 4:00 PM. You can be out on the course for as much or as little as you like during that time. There are no custom start times and bib pick-up will end when the race starts at 8:00 AM. (You can, however, have someone pick up your bib for you–a friend, a stranger, your mail carrier, it doesn’t matter to us.) You can pick up your bib before 8:00 AM and start running anytime thereafter, but you only have until 4:00 PM to be on the course.

8-Hour Solo

• Female: Jessie George 56.8 (2025)
• Male: William Thierfelder 51.75 (2024)

8-Hour Relay

• Wild Things 44.85 (2025)

• Changing from the relay division to the solo division and vice versa. Changing events is allowed no later than September 25. See the Registration section for details.
• Absolutely no littering! Carry-in, carry-out, or throw it in a trash bag at the aid station. Those found littering will be disqualified!
• Do not bother the timing team for any reason other than letting them know you are ending your race. They have a very important job to do, and any distraction can make them miss a participant. Unnecessary badgering of the timing team by a participant or their crew member(s) may be grounds for disqualification.
• Bib numbers: Wear your bib on the front part of your body so the timing team can read it. You may fold your bib so just the numbers are showing. If your bib is not visible, be prepared to tell the timing team your bib number.
• Personal crew/aid tents: You may set up your own personal space for aid in the two pavilions in the park. They are available on a first-come first-serve basis and cannot be chosen before 7:00 AM on race day. If you do not want to take a chance on getting a spot in one of the pavilions, feel free to bring a pop-up/EZ-up tent to set up in the grass by the big pavilion. Space is available on a first-come first-serve basis and you may not set up your tent before 7:00 AM on race day. The tent size for one participant should be around 10’x10′. If more than one participant is using a tent, it can exceed these dimensions, but use common sense.
• Continuing on for another loop: When you finish a parallel of latitude and plan on continuing your race, approach the timing team so they can see your bib, or call out your bib number to them. DO THIS FIRST before heading to the aid station or to your crew spot. Work together with the timing team and make their life easier. You do not need to let the timing team know when you are headed out for your next loop.
• Ending your race: Once you are entirely sure you are done for the day, ring the cowbell and let the timing team or race director know. You are welcome (and encouraged) to stay and cheer for other participants or help out at the aid station. However, you must remove your bib so we do not think you are still participating.
• 4:00 PM cutoff: Any parallel of latitude that is not completed by 4:00 PM will not be counted toward your total mileage for the day. Participants may not begin their last loop any later than 3:30 PM. If you finish your last loop after 4:00 PM, your mileage will default to your last completed loop before 4:00 PM.
• Receiving aid anywhere other than the start/finish is not allowed and may be grounds for disqualification.

In addition to the general race rules, the following will apply to the relay race:

• “Batons”: When teams pick up their bibs in the morning, they can choose from a variety of batons to use. Teams can keep the baton at the end as a party favor or return it to the timing table to be used at next year’s race. Teams may also bring their own baton, but keep it reasonable. (A funky hat is a good option; a street sign on a pole is not.)
• Team size: 2-6 members.
• Loop order: It is up to the team to decide the order each member will participate in. However members cannot complete back-to-back loops. Team order will not be monitored, so follow the Code of Conduct and be ethical.
• Team members dropping out mid-race:
  • If a team has 3-6 members: the remaining team members can continue participating.
  • If a team has only 2 people on it: the team is done participating unless the member who is dropping out just finished a loop. In that case, the remaining team member may complete a “victory lap” before the team’s event is done for the day.
  • Finisher stones will not be available until after the entire team is done for the day. If any team member leaves before the team is done, another team member will be responsible for getting their stone to them. It is not the responsibility of the race director or any volunteer; stones will not be mailed.
• Continuing on for another loop: When a team member finishes a parallel of latitude and the team plans on continuing the event, the incoming member will approach the timing team so they can see their bib, or call out the bib number to them. THEY MUST DO THIS FIRST before heading to the aid station or to the team crewing spot. The incoming team member will hand off the baton to the outgoing team member. The outgoing team member does not need to let the timing team know when they are headed out for the next loop.
• Ending your race: See the General Race Rules for details.
• Mini-loops: Relay teams may participate in the mini-loops as long as the team has 2 or more members remaining. See the Mini Parallel of Latitudes section for details. Relay rules will also apply to mini-loops.
• Changing to the solo division: Changing from the relay to the solo division is allowed no later than September 25. See the Registration section for details.

During the last hour of the race (3:00 PM to 4:00 PM), mini parallel of latitudes may be completed in the park. These are optional and will count toward the day’s mileage total. Only complete loops will be valid; no credit will be given for partial loops. You or your relay team is responsible for keeping track of how many mini loops are completed. Once again, abide by the Code of Conduct and be honest. Relay rules will also apply to mini-loops.

The mini-loops will start and end at the bottom of the small path leading up to the big pavilion. You do not need to run up the path to the timing table. Run toward the entrance to the park, turn around at the blue FLRC feather flag, run past the big pavilion to the start of the connector trail at the other blue FLRC feather flag, and then back to the big pavilion (this is generally called a “butterfly” course). The distance per mini-loop is 0.4 miles.

You can start your mini loops any time during the last hour. Example: You finish a mega parallel of latitude at 3:25 PM, you may then start mini parallel of latitudes any time after that.

You can participate in the mini-loops as long as you have not told the timing team you are done for the day and have received a finisher stone, regardless of how long it has been since you finished a mega parallel of latitude. Example: You last completed a mega parallel of latitude at 12:16 PM. You can hang out for a few hours and at 3:00 PM, start your mini parallel of latitudes.

Once the clock hits 4:00 PM and the race is over, let the timing team know the amount of mini-loops you or your team has completed. The timing team will then let you know your total mileage and you will finish your race as outlined in the General Race Rules section. It is not the race director or timing team’s responsibility to know if a participant did or did not complete mini-loops. If you do not report on the amount of loops, we will assume you did not complete any and your final mileage will default to your last completed mega parallel of latitude.

• There are no mileage or elapsed time cutoffs. The only cutoff time is 4:00 PM.
• The two pavilions in the park are available for participant use on a first-come first-serve basis. If you don’t want to take a chance, bring your own tent to set up on the grass by the large pavilion.
• Alcohol is allowed in the park. Glass containers are not allowed for any type of beverage.
• The park bathrooms will be available for use.
• One well-stocked aid station is located at the start/finish in the park.
• A mid-day lunch will be provided for race participants and volunteers.
• If you or a family member won’t be participating in the race for one reason or another, please consider volunteering.
• Results will be available soon after the race; visit the FLRC website for full results.
• For remaining questions, contact the race director at cobb.heather.m@gmail.com.

The course is a 3.45-mile out-and-back. From the big pavilion in Dryden Lake Park, head out on the path and take a right on the access road. Continue on the connector trail to the Jim Schug Trail, taking a left. Continue to where the trail ends at E Lake Rd., turn around, and return the same way, taking a right on the connector trail back to the pavilion. The course will be marked with surveyor flags stuck in the ground, along with other signage (including but not limited to a turn around sign and arrows). (Bonus points for singing Total Eclipse of the Heart at the turn around.)

Download the .GPX file.

For a map of the mini parallel of latitudes, see the Mini Parallel of Latitudes section.

Race Day Awards

• Solo Division
  • All participants will receive a custom concrete finisher stone which will have their mileage added when they finish, regardless of their distance. Each person in the male, female, and nonbinary categories who completes the most miles will receive a larger concrete stone and other goodies.
• Relay Division
  • Each member of the relay team will receive a matching custom finisher stone which will have the team’s total mileage added when the team finishes for the day, regardless of their distance. Each member of the team who completes the most miles will receive a larger, matching concrete stone and other goodies.

Lifetime Mileage

Lifetime miles accumulate every year you participate in the race. You will receive a special award when you reach designated intervals. These awards are separate from the race day award, which you will still receive in addition to the lifetime mileage award.

Lifetime mileage awards are given at 50, 100, 250, 500, and 750. Participants who achieve 1,000 lifetime miles will be awarded a custom jacket and website recognition.

Anyone who achieved a lifetime mileage interval during the 2024 race will be contacted and given the award for that interval.

(Mileage intervals and awards are subject to change. Only miles obtained while participating in the solo division will count toward lifetime miles. If you choose to participate in the relay division, those miles will not count toward your lifetime miles.)

View your lifetime mileage and how many miles to your next lifetime mileage tier.

• Even though the course is very flat and mostly straight, it will be well-marked regardless if it seems like overkill. As with all runs, it’s on you to pay attention. More about the course and markings under the Course section.
• Insect bites, ticks, mud, harmless snakes, horse poop, beavers, turtles, and vehicles at road crossings are all possible hazards.
• Heat could be a problem this time of year. If so, carry fluids and watch for symptoms of heat exhaustion!
• Cold weather could also be a problem. If so, bring warm clothes for after the race to prevent hypothermia.

• Awards are governed by FLRC’s Award Equity Policy.
• All runners, volunteers, and spectators must abide by FLRC’s Code of Conduct.
• Cutoff times: there are no mileage or elapsed time cutoffs. The only cutoff time is 4:00 PM.
• Parking: available in designated spots in the park or by the dam less than a quarter of a mile away.
• Please observe the no-parking and volunteer only signs.
• Pacers are not allowed. Make a new friend on the course and keep each other company/accountable. Adaptive athletes can contact the FLRC Diversity and Inclusion Committee chair at diversity@fingerlakesrunners.org for information about accommodations.
• No dogs, headphones, or jogging strollers.
• No cowbells at the start/finish.
• The race director reserves the right to reject any entry for any reason.
• Entry fees are non-refundable, even if the race is canceled because of an act of nature or humankind. Registration is not deferrable to another year or another person.
• If you are an adaptive athlete and you would like an accommodation for a disability to participate in this event, please contact the FLRC Diversity and Inclusion Committee chair at diversity@fingerlakesrunners.org.
• To ensure participant and volunteer safety in the event of hazardous environmental conditions, the race director may modify or cancel the race in accordance with FLRC’s Event Cancellation Policy.
• This race is organized by the Finger Lakes Runners Club and insured by the Road Runners Club of America.