2026 Report

The Big Schloss 50k 2026: Coming Full Schloss Loop

The weather was gorgeous, crisp and cool with abundant sunshine for the 20th running of The Big Schloss 50k, a treat after several years of wet weather before, during and after the run. But because it wouldn’t be a Schloss weekend without some rain, a light storm came through just as the last runners and sweeps were finishing. Thankfully the rain cleared out by the time we were packed up, so those of us camping could enjoy the rest of the evening around a fire with friends.

The North Mountain trails had been overgrown with brush and grass, much of it coming up in just the last month, and with a missed workday at the beginning of the month due to thunderstorms, as well as a recent windstorm bringing down several trees, Mike Allen and the PATC North Mountain Brigade had their work cut out for them getting the trails in shape in time for the run. The week before the run, runner Mary Rice and her husband James, as well as Rachel Castellon, Janice Heltibridle and I put in some good mileage on the course, particularly with the weed whacker. Thank you to the volunteers who gave their time so the runners could see their feet on the trails!

For the women’s competition, Lexi DeLisle, coming back to the trails after recovering from an injury, initially led the field until after Bucktail AS, where she stopped as planned for a 20 mile 30th birthday run. Previous Schloss winner Katie Thompson and friend Sarah Hodder ran together in the lead until Sheila Martin, in a follow-up to her recent win at The Ring, passed them after Aid Station 3, having left enough in the tank to run the whole way up Judge Rye Road for a finishing time of 7:15.

In talking to the runners, it felt like a year of returning to the trails we love in different seasons of our lives, and for some this meant finishing unfinished business. After back-to-back DNFs in 2018 and 2019, then missing a win by 7 minutes in 2021, male winner Barret Stanton bided his time for 5 years before his return to the Schloss this year. He led the field for the entire day for a decisive win, keeping course record splits until cramping derailed him and he lost some time up Tibbets and the road climb, coming in just 5 minutes shy of the record in a time of 5:18. First-time Schlosser Brennan Henning picked up second-place male in a time of 5:55, staying close behind Barret for much of the run, though also experiencing cramps from the Mill Mountain descent that slowed him down to the finish. Perhaps having heard that it was in jeopardy, Adam Watkins, having set the course record 9 years ago in a time of 5:13, came out of semi-retirement for a return to the trails, after mostly running roads since 2019. “I don’t know why I ever left!” he stated, with a satisfied smile after a breezy 3rd place finish in a time of 6:15, watching Barret and Brennan recover from punishing themselves on this difficult course in an unsuccessful bid for his record. To be fair, Barret and Brennan are both hatching plans to come after it next year!

In a testament to how life has changed since that record was set, 2017 was the year I first attended The Big Schloss, as a volunteer who couldn’t fathom why anyone would run a 50k, let alone 100 miles. I ended up sweeping part of the course with Adam’s wife, who was then pregnant with their first child, and heard all about ultrarunning and this crazy tribe of people. This year their daughter, along with her younger brother, hiked up to Big Schloss and was able to run with her dad all the way to the summit. Watching their kids and my Theo play together around the Trout Pond pavilion really puts in perspective how much life has happened in the time since that record was set and how amazing it is to be back here again.

Nine years is relatively short, however, compared to the milestones of some of the other runners this weekend. Jim Daniels, with his wife Alisa Springman, was excited to run the 2026 Schloss for the 20th anniversary of his first ultra at The Big Schloss 2006. Steve Platt returned with his son Chase for the 20th running of the course Steve and his wife Amy co-created, with both father and son improving on last year’s times and Steve coming in under the historical final cut off time, sprinting in at the end I suspect so that Amy would give him credit for an official finish this year. Don’t worry, I no longer enforce a final cut off time. If you make it past the Grim Reaper at Wolf Gap and to the end without the aid of car or ambulance, you’ve earned your finish.

The Patrick Henry College runners were back for a 4th year, bringing more family and friends along for Big Schloss fun, including the youngest Big Schloss finisher on record, Jack Buck, finishing with his older brother Luke in a respectable time of 8:47, as well as a couple that didn’t even know they were going to be running an ultra until they found themselves 31+ miles in and possibly regretting life decisions. If I know this crew, they’ll be back next year and even more prepared for the challenge!

Finally, I wanted to give a huge thank you to Virginia Happy Trails Running Club, without which this event could not happen. The one and only Jeff Best manned both the Bucktail Aid Station and the finish line feast, so that grillmaster Dan Aghdam could run this year. Board members Ivory Lira and Zach Weinberger had a solid crew at Little Stony Aid Station, though from the amount of drops they had on such a perfect day, I think they went a little overboard on their hospitality! Quatro Hubbard once again fulfilled his duty in enabling runners to leave Wolf Gap and tackle the Tibbets climb in fine form after checking for a pulse and making sure they were tanked up for the tough miles to the finish. Quatro, in addition to Homer Komthirath, Amanda Presgraves, Levi Mason, Andy Peterson and Deb Cawthorn, also did an excellent job marking trails, from reports from runners and sweeps, with only one runner taking a slight detour around the lake.

Congratulations to all the runners who tackled the course this year, I am truly impressed by your accomplishments. I hope to see you all back next year, so please mark your calendars for Saturday September 25, 2027, with entry opening August 10th.

Pictures by our wonderful photographer Tori Lev will be posted soon as a link on this page. If any of you have your own photos or stories to share, or race reports, or if you see any errors in the results, please let me know!

Results

Volunteers