⏵ Course guide · Western Maryland trail 50K
Fire on the Mountain sends you out of Green Ridge State Forest on a course that mixes technical singletrack with forest service road, with 5,387 feet of total climbing and descending packed into the 50K. I will walk you through the cutoffs, the terrain, and a pacing and fueling plan built for a real 10 hour effort, with free calculators along the way to dial in your own numbers.
These facts come from the official 2Lowe Run Co race page. Entry fee and exact mile-by-mile course notes were not published there at the time of writing, so check the official page for those before you commit.
Start and finish are at Point Lookout on Carroll Road, in the southeast corner of Green Ridge State Forest. The 50K totals 5,387 feet of elevation gain and loss, spread out rather than stacked into one climb.
The race describes its own course as roughly 6.5 miles of trail, sometimes technical with roots, rocks, and real ups and downs, combined with about 9.6 miles of forest service and improved road. Expect your rhythm to shift: careful footwork through the trail sections, then a chance to settle into a steadier stride once the road opens up.
The 50K hits 7 aid stations, with 3 of them along the route twice as the course backtracks. The 25K sees 3 stations, one of them twice. That frequency means you can run lighter between stops and count on regular chances to refill.
If the full 50K and its 10 hour cutoff feel like too much this year, the 25K covers the same Green Ridge terrain on a 4 hour 30 minute cutoff, a good way to bank a first look at the course before coming back for the longer distance.
A 10 hour cutoff on 32.8 miles with 5,387 feet of vert gives you real room, but the technical trail sections will slow you more than the road ones, so plan your splits around terrain, not a flat average pace.
With roughly 9.6 miles of forest service and improved road in the mix, that is where you make up time. On the 6.5 miles of technical trail, roots and rocks and real elevation change will slow your legal pace no matter how fit you are, so do not force speed there. Let the road sections carry your average.
⏵ Free tools to plan your effort
With 7 aid stations on the 50K, you have plenty of chances to refill, but you should still carry a plan for what to take in between them.
Aim for roughly 40 to 60 grams of carbohydrate per hour and sodium in the 300 to 500 mg per liter range as a starting point, then adjust based on how your gut handles it over the miles. Early November in western Maryland can run cool, so hydration needs may be lower than a summer race, but do not skip fluids just because you are not sweating as much.
⏵ Build your fueling plan
Get a carb, sodium, fluid, and caffeine plan per hour built for your weight and a 10 hour western Maryland trail effort with the free ultra fueling calculator. Browse the rest of the free running tools at the tools hub.
⏵ Train for it with Summit Line
Get a training plan built around YOUR fitness and Fire on the Mountain's mix of technical trail and rolling road. Summit Line reads your real training, builds the climbing and descending legs this course asks for, and rehearses your fueling so race day is something you execute, not guess at.
The 50K carries 5,387 feet of total elevation gain and loss over roughly 32.8 miles, which works out to moderate, steady climbing rather than a single brutal crux. The race itself describes stretches of technical trail with roots and rocks mixed in with forest service and improved road, so the difficulty comes from sustained rolling terrain and a genuine 10 hour effort more than one nasty section.
The 50K has a 10 hour 0 second cutoff, with the race closing at 5:00 PM. The 25K has a 4 hour 30 minute cutoff, with official finishers needing to cross by 11:30 AM. Both are real cutoffs the race enforces, so pace with them in mind rather than assuming extra grace.
The 10 hour cutoff on the 50K is generous for a course with moderate technical trail, which gives a first-time 50K runner real room to walk the tougher sections and still finish. If the full 50K distance feels like a stretch, the 25K with its own 4 hour 30 minute cutoff is a solid way to experience the same terrain first.
The race describes the course as a mix of roughly 6.5 miles of trail, sometimes technical with roots and rocks and real ups and downs, combined with about 9.6 miles of forest service road and improved road. Expect your legs to shift between careful footwork on singletrack and a chance to open up your stride on the road sections.
The 50K has 7 aid stations, with 3 of them hit twice on the out-and-back layout. The 25K has 3 aid stations, with 1 hit twice. That is frequent enough support that you can run light between stops rather than carrying a full race-day kit.
Runners who finish under the cutoff receive a finisher's premium along with an event T-shirt. Beyond that, check the official race page for the current year's specifics, since race swag and pricing can change from one edition to the next.
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<a href="https://runsummitline.com/guides/fire-on-the-mountain-50k">The Fire on the Mountain 50K course guide</a><iframe src="https://runsummitline.com/embed/race/fire-on-the-mountain-50k" style="width:100%;max-width:420px;height:180px;border:0;" loading="lazy" title="Fire on the Mountain 50K course guide by Summit Line"></iframe>This guide is independent and for planning only. Dates, cutoffs, and course details come from the official race page and can change year to year, so confirm the current specifics with 2Lowe Run Co before you register or run. The fueling and pacing advice is general and not medical advice.
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