⏵ Course guide · Late-season Oregon ultra
Frozen Trail Run Fest sends its 50K, 25K, 15K, and 5K fields around repeating Base and Summit Loops of Mt. Pisgah outside Eugene, Oregon, each loop gaining 800 to 1,000 feet on trail that is reliably wet and muddy by mid-December. I will walk you through the loops and terrain first, then give you a pacing and fueling plan built for cold, slick, late-season conditions, plus free tools to dial in your own numbers.
These facts come from the official Level 32 Racing event page. Start times, cutoffs, and course details can change year to year, so confirm the current specifics before you commit.
Every distance is built from the same set of loops. The 15K runs one, the 25K runs two, and the 50K runs four, with each loop gaining 800 to 1,000 feet.
Base Loop 1 and Base Loop 2 both include flat sections that the race explicitly warns will be wet and muddy, a near-certainty given a mid-December date in western Oregon. All three loops, Base Loop 1, Base Loop 2, and the Summit Loop, include small creek crossings, so plan on wet feet for most of the day regardless of your shoe choice.
The Summit Loop is the steepest of the three, and it includes a short section on packed gravel road, plus a 0.64-mile out-and-back spur to the second aid station that is also gravel. The rest of the course runs on well-maintained trail of varying width and surface, so the gravel sections are a brief change of footing rather than the norm.
Do not let the short distance fool you: the 5K course goes straight up the mountain between miles 1.32 and 1.9, a genuinely steep pitch packed into a small race. If you are running the 5K as a tune-up for a longer distance or just for the shorter option, respect that climb the same way you would a much longer course.
With an explicit 8-hour time limit on the 50K and a shared 4 PM closing time across every distance, wet footing that slows your pace matters more here than it would on a dry course with the same elevation profile.
A grade-adjusted pace target accounts for the 800 to 1,000 feet of gain per loop, but it will not account for slick, muddy footing on the flat sections, which can cost you more time than the climbing itself on a wet December day. Build in a buffer beyond what a dry-conditions pace calculation suggests, especially for the 50K's later loops when the trail has been churned up by earlier runners.
Because the 25K and 50K both pass through the start/finish transition area on every loop, with a bib scan each time, you get real split data after every lap. Check your actual loop time against a race-time prediction built off your fitness, and adjust your remaining loops accordingly rather than assuming your first-loop pace will hold as the mud and fatigue compound.
⏵ Free tools to pace this course
Cold, wet weather changes your fueling needs as much as your gear needs, so plan both together rather than treating fueling as a separate problem.
Aim for roughly 60 to 90 grams of carbohydrate per hour, and use the fact that the 25K and 50K both pass the transition aid station, stocked with GU Brew, GU Energy Gel, water, and light snacks, every single loop to stay consistent rather than carrying excess.
Keep sodium in the 300 to 700 mg per liter range, but do not let cold December air fool you into under-hydrating just because you feel less thirsty than you would on a warm day. Layer for conditions that can shift from a cold, muddy start to a genuinely wet slog by your later loops, and have dry gear staged at the transition area if you are running the 50K.
⏵ Build your fueling plan
Get a carb, sodium, fluid, and caffeine plan per hour built for your weight, your goal time, and a cold, wet Willamette Valley day 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 race-day plan built around YOUR fitness and this Mt. Pisgah loop profile, with your projected splits checked against the 50K's 8-hour limit. Summit Line reads your real training, builds a plan for wet, repeated-loop climbing, and rehearses your fueling so race day is something you execute, not guess at.
It is Level 32 Racing's December trail race on Mt. Pisgah, part of Howard Buford Park just outside Eugene, Oregon, offering a 50K, 25K, 15K, and 5K built from repeating Base Loops and a Summit Loop. It is one of the few late-season Oregon ultras still on the calendar in mid-December, which makes the 50K a popular year-end target for runners chasing one more result before the new year.
Each loop of the course, whether Base Loop or Summit Loop, gains 800 to 1,000 feet, so the 50K's four loops add up to roughly 3,200 to 4,000 feet of total climbing and the 25K's two loops roughly 1,600 to 2,000 feet. December in the Willamette Valley means wet and muddy conditions on the flat sections are expected, and the Summit Loop adds a steep, packed gravel stretch on top of the climbing. Even the 5K is not a warm-up: between miles 1.32 and 1.9 the course goes straight up the mountain.
The 50K carries an explicit 8-hour time limit from its 8:00 AM start, and every distance's course closes at 4:00 PM regardless of start time. That gives the 25K (9 AM start) 7 hours, the 15K (9:30 AM start) 6.5 hours, and the 5K (9:15 AM start) a generous window given its short distance, though its steep mile 1.32 to 1.9 climb should not be underestimated.
Expect wet and muddy conditions on the flat sections of both Base Loop 1 and Base Loop 2, a hallmark of a mid-December race in western Oregon. The Summit Loop is steeper and includes a short section of packed gravel road, plus a 0.64-mile out-and-back stretch to the second aid station that is also gravel. The rest of the course runs on well-maintained trail of varying width and surface, and Base Loop 1, Base Loop 2, and the Summit Loop all include small creek crossings.
Mid-December in Eugene means cold, wet conditions are the default, not the exception, so plan your fueling and layering together rather than separately. Aim for roughly 60 to 90 grams of carbohydrate per hour, and keep sodium in the normal 300 to 700 mg per liter range. The transition aid station at the start/finish, stocked with GU Brew, GU Energy Gel, water, and light snacks, is a chance to reset on every loop for the 25K and 50K, since both distances pass through it repeatedly. Build your specific numbers with the free ultra fueling calculator before race day.
The 25K, with two loops and roughly 1,600 to 2,000 feet of gain, is a reasonable entry point if you have some trail experience and are prepared for wet, muddy winter footing. The 50K is a serious step up: 8 hours to cover four loops and roughly 3,200 to 4,000 feet of climbing on terrain that will likely be slick and cold for the entire day. Either way, this is not a race to underdress for. Cold, wet December conditions on Mt. Pisgah punish anyone who treats it like a mild fall trail run.
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<a href="https://runsummitline.com/guides/frozen-trail-run-fest">The Frozen Trail Run Fest course guide</a><iframe src="https://runsummitline.com/embed/race/frozen-trail-run-fest" style="width:100%;max-width:420px;height:180px;border:0;" loading="lazy" title="Frozen Trail Run Fest course guide by Summit Line"></iframe>This guide is independent and for planning only. The course details, dates, cutoffs, and aid stations come from public sources and can change year to year, so confirm the current specifics with the official race before you register or run. The fueling and pacing advice is general and not medical advice.
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