⏵ Course guide · Oklahoma's anchor ultra
Pumpkin Holler sends its field around a 30-mile gravel-road loop through the J.T. Nickel Family Nature and Wildlife Preserve in rural Cherokee County, Oklahoma, "relatively flat" only if you drove it rather than ran it. I will walk you through the loop structure and elevation by distance first, then give you a pacing and fueling plan built for a well-aided gravel-road day, plus free tools to dial in your own numbers.
These facts come from the official ph100.run event, course, aid, and FAQ pages. Course markings and logistics can change year to year, so confirm the current details before you register or run.
Every distance runs the same 30-mile loop out of Eagle Bluff Resort, repeated 1 to 3 times depending on distance, with each distance also including a first-loop-only spur through the Nickel Preserve.
The loop is 26 miles of gravel country road and about 5 miles of paved road, surrounded by trees, pastures, and prairie, with fall colors typically in progress by mid-October. Several rolling hills, and a few genuinely tougher ones, keep this from being a true flat PR course, but the surface itself is fast and non-technical compared to a singletrack mountain 100.
Because every distance shares the same loop, elevation gain scales cleanly: 666 feet for the 10+ mile, 1,007 for the 25K, 1,742 for the single-loop 50K, 3,553 for the two-loop 100K, and 5,771 for the three-loop 100M. Use those numbers directly when comparing this course to others you have run.
Aid stations sit every 4 to 6 miles around the loop, each with its own personality according to the race's own description, and three of them, Start/Finish, Savannah Corner, and Hard Up Ahead, support crew access and drop bags. Everywhere else, you are running self-supported between well-stocked but crew-free aid stops.
Every distance and start time funnels toward the same hard deadline, the course closes for everyone at 2:00 PM Sunday, so work backward from that number regardless of your entry distance.
Because the 100M and 100K repeat the same 30-mile loop, your per-loop time is directly comparable and a strong early warning system. Check your pace against the overall 2:00 PM Sunday cutoff after every loop, not just at the finish, so a slowing trend gets caught while you still have time to adjust.
The organizer's own honest revision, from "relatively flat" to "somewhat hilly," is worth taking seriously. A grade-adjusted pace target for the rolling sections keeps your early loops from running faster than you can sustain, especially since gravel and pavement can feel deceptively easy compared to technical trail.
⏵ Free tools to pace this course
Nine named aid stations every 4 to 6 miles is generous spacing, so build your carbohydrate plan around that frequency rather than carrying large reserves.
Aim for roughly 60 to 90 grams of carbohydrate per hour, and use the 4-to-6-mile aid spacing to stay consistent. The race's own volunteers are largely experienced ultrarunners themselves, so trust the aid station food as a real supplement to your plan, not just an emergency backup.
Keep sodium in the 300 to 700 mg per liter range. Mid-October in eastern Oklahoma can still run warm during the day and cool off sharply overnight, especially for 100M runners on course into the second night, so plan your sodium and layering to shift as conditions change.
⏵ Build your fueling plan
Get a carb, sodium, fluid, and caffeine plan per hour built for your weight, your goal time, and a long Cherokee County gravel 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, this exact 30-mile loop profile, and your projected splits. Summit Line reads your real training, builds a plan for the rolling gravel-road climbing, and rehearses your fueling so race day is something you execute, not guess at.
The race's own founder called it "relatively flat" after only driving the course, then ran it and revised that to "somewhat hilly." That is an honest summary: 26 miles of gravel country road and about 5 miles of paved road per 30-mile loop, with several rolling hills and a few not-so-rolling ones. The 100M stacks 5,771 feet of gain across three loops, which is real but manageable vert for a 100 miler, and the organizers explicitly pitch it as a strong PR course for a decent climber and a solid choice for a first 100.
Every distance shares the same 30-mile loop. The 100M runs it three times, the 100K twice, and the 50K once. The 25K turns around at the Dem Idiots aid station and the 10+ mile turns around at the Mad Dog aid station (measuring closer to 11.2 miles in practice). Each distance also includes an out-and-back spur through the Nickel Preserve on the first loop only, adding 1.5 to 11 extra miles depending on distance.
The 100M and 100K start Saturday at 7:00 AM with a 31 hour limit (an optional early start is available at 6:00 AM). The 50K starts at 8:00 AM with a 30 hour limit, and the 25K and 10-mile start at 9:00 AM with a 29 hour limit. Regardless of your distance or start time, the course closes for everyone at 2:00 PM Sunday, so that is the hard number to plan around.
Aid stations are spaced 4 to 6 miles apart and stocked with water, Gatorade, and a variety of foods, with crew access and drop bags available at three specific stations (Start/Finish, Savannah Corner, and Hard Up Ahead). Aim for roughly 60 to 90 grams of carbohydrate per hour and sodium in the 300 to 700 mg per liter range, and use the frequent aid to stay on schedule rather than carrying large reserves between stops. Build your numbers with the free ultra fueling calculator before race day.
Yes, and the organizers say so directly: "Even with the hills, Pumpkin Holler is the perfect race for someone doing their first 100." The 30-mile loop format means you pass a well-supported aid station network repeatedly, the terrain is gravel road rather than technical singletrack, and the 31-hour time limit is generous for the roughly 5,771 feet of gain. If you can drop to a shorter distance if needed (100M and 100K runners are eligible to drop, with conditions), that flexibility adds another layer of safety for a first attempt.
Yes, crew access is available at three locations: Savannah Corner, Hard Up Ahead, and the Start/Finish area, using designated crew routes rather than driving on the course itself. Drop bags are also supported at those same three stations. Crew, family, or friends who drive on the course risk disqualifying the runner they are supporting, so review the official crew rules and routes before race weekend.
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<a href="https://runsummitline.com/guides/pumpkin-holler-hunnerd">The Pumpkin Holler Hunnerd course guide</a><iframe src="https://runsummitline.com/embed/race/pumpkin-holler-hunnerd" style="width:100%;max-width:420px;height:180px;border:0;" loading="lazy" title="Pumpkin Holler Hunnerd 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.