WESTON, Mass. – The last time the Trail Animals Running Club played host to the TARC Spring Classic, runners dodged or splashed through puddles and a volunteer dumped buckets of wood chips near the timing mats to try to keep them from becoming submerged.
Continue reading Spring Classic Breaks with Tradition in Post-Pandemic ReturnTag Archives: Spring Classic
Results: TARC Spring Classic
Following a two-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Trail Animals Running Club once again played host to the TARC Spring Classic 50K, marathon, half marathon and 10K trail races on Saturday, April 23, in the Jericho Woods of Weston, Mass. It was the 10th running of the event, and more than 200 runners took part in the various distances offered.
Continue reading Results: TARC Spring Classic
Photos: 2022 TARC Spring Classic
The 10th running of the Trail Animals Running Club’s TARC Spring Classic took place on Saturday, April 23, 2022, in the Jericho Woods of Weston, Mass. This year’s event marked the return of the Spring Classic following a two-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic. More than 200 runners took part in distances of 50K, marathon, half marathon and 10K. The following are a sample of photos taken at this year’s race. A full photo gallery by MassUltra Editor Chris Wristen can be found on Facebook at this link.
Continue reading Photos: 2022 TARC Spring Classic
Registration Opens for TARC Spring Classic
The resurrection of the Trail Animals Running Club’s TARC Trail Series continued this morning with the opening of registration for the TARC Spring Classic.
Continue reading Registration Opens for TARC Spring Classic
TARC Cancels 3 More 2021 Races as Pandemic Rages On
The Trail Animals Running Club (TARC) was forced to cancel nine of its 10 trail races in 2020 as the COVID-19 pandemic took hold in the United States. A massive spike in positive cases and hospitalizations tied to Thanksgiving and Christmas holiday gatherings and travel, coupled with a slow rollout of vaccines, made it clear that COVID-19 isn’t yet done ravaging the TARC Trail Series.
Continue reading TARC Cancels 3 More 2021 Races as Pandemic Rages OnVirtual Spring Classic Winners Crowned for Creative Routes
The global pandemic caused by the new coronavirus may have cost runners the opportunity to gather together for the Trail Animals Running Club’s popular Spring Classic trail races on April 25, but the pandemic couldn’t stop the race’s spirit. Continue reading Virtual Spring Classic Winners Crowned for Creative Routes
Race Directors Embrace Virtual Options to Keep Runners Motivated During Pandemic
The Trail Animals Running Club’s annual TARC Spring Classic is one of the most popular trail-running events in Massachusetts, drawing more than 300 runners to the trails of Weston each April to tackle distances from 10K to 50K. The 10th annual Spring Classic was scheduled for Saturday, April 25, and it was shaping up to be another busy day on the trails with hundreds of runners once again signed up to race.
As the global pandemic caused by the new coronavirus and the disease it causes, COVID-19, expanded its spread across the state and the country, the race’s future was put in doubt. Then, following an order by Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker limiting the size of gatherings to no more than 50 people to help slow the spread of COVID-19, Spring Classic co-Race Directors Annie Gagliardi and Michael McDuffie announced on Wednesday, March 18, that the race was canceled.
The Spring Classic was the second TARC race and third in Massachusetts to cancel due to COVID-19. That number has since grown to eight cancellations, three postponements, and another that will take place as a virtual race. That means that after kicking off the year with the G.A.C. Fat Ass 50K and the Cape Cod Frozen Fat Ass 50K in January and the TARCtic Frozen Yeti on Feb. 1-2, the earliest the next in-person ultra in Massachusetts might take place is July. That’s a long time for ultrarunners to go without connecting with their trail tribe. Some race directors are doing what they can to minimize that disconnect even if races can’t take place in person at the moment by introducing virtual races, a concept that has exploded in popularity nationwide during the pandemic. Continue reading Race Directors Embrace Virtual Options to Keep Runners Motivated During Pandemic
TARC Spring Classic is Latest Race Canceled Due to COVID-19
Michael McDuffie and Annie Gagliardi, co-Race Directors for the Trail Animals Running Club’s TARC Spring Classic, hoped their race on April 25 in Weston, Mass., would be able to avoid cancellation in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, but they let runners know not to get their hopes up. Just days ago, McDuffie pegged the chances of the race taking place at “15.2 percent.”
On Wednesday evening, the percentage dropped to zero when McDuffie made the announcement that the race was canceled. Continue reading TARC Spring Classic is Latest Race Canceled Due to COVID-19
Burke, Damon Splash, Dash to Victories in Spring Classic 50K
WESTON, Mass. – Of course it rained. It was always going to happen. This is the Spring Classic, after all.
The Trail Animals Running Club’s Spring Classic has established its share of traditions through the years – the yeti howl at the start; the wooden “trophies” foraged from the course; the MarketBasket sushi tray for volunteers – but perhaps the most predictable feature of the early-season event is rain. Nearly every Spring Classic has experienced at least a bit of the wet stuff, usually during pre-race set-up or at some point in the first loop or two of the race. Continue reading Burke, Damon Splash, Dash to Victories in Spring Classic 50K
Photos: TARC Spring Classic
More than 300 runners took part in the ninth annual TARC Spring Classic on Saturday, April 20, 2019, in Weston, Mass. The following are a small sample of photos from the race. A full gallery with 130 photos can be found on the MassUltra Facebook page at this link. Continue reading Photos: TARC Spring Classic
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