Cock-A-Doodle-Shoe Snowshoe Race report was written by ATRA contributor Laura Clark. Laura is an avid mountain, trail and snowshoe runner who lives in Saratoga Springs, New York, where she is a children’s librarian. Photos: Jen Ferriss
This year we celebrated the 10th anniversary of Cock-A-Doodle-Shoe 5K and 10K Snowshoe races at the New Land Trust in Saranac, New York. For those of you not sure of your geography, this event takes place a stone’s throw from Dannemora, site of the prison break memorably captured in Ben Stiller’s award-winning film. Next year, take a drive through town with its unforgettable prison occupying the length of main street and guards (with guns) patrolling the towers. Then see the movie as you rest up that evening.
And snuggle under the blankets as this is always the coldest event in the Dion Snowshoe Series, and the one with the best snow! You might well wonder how a rooster, normally a warmer-weather bird, got involved. That first year, as Race Director Jeremy Drowne was finishing up hours of scouting a prospective course, he heard the raucous cry of rooster who obviously didn’t mind the cold and snow. One thing led to another and Cock-A-Doodle-Shoe was born.
Cock-A-Doodle-Shoe course.
True to form, the weather didn’t disappoint. When we arrived, my car Sir Thomas protested the -14 degree temperature, but we secured him a prime parking spot in the sun and he soon registered +1 degree. Mentally, that was so much easier to deal with. And thankfully, Jeremy held the pre-race briefing right before the kid’s race so we weren’t freezing at the exposed start. This is the only event in our series to host a kid’s race and Jeremy respectfully requests that we wait outside the hut to cheer them on before the half mile hike to our start at The Meadow. Fortunately, there was no appreciable wind and sunshine was plentiful so the entire race was really quite pleasant.
The Land Trust’s woods remind me of a younger, gentler version of the Black Forest in Germany where I used to cross country ski. The snow-covered pines were not as formidable and allowed for more filtered sunshine, but still held a quiet majesty. One difference is that the main cross country trails all seemed to be laid out in parallel grid style. If you have ever gotten lost driving around on the straight intersecting roads in the Finger Lakes, then you know what I mean. Except that here the trails were all marked and I enjoyed reading the creative signposts along the way –Zen, Sugarshack, Growler, etc. But when I arrived at OUT I was stumped, thinking that was a really weird name for a trail. It was only at my third OUT that I realized that I would truly soon be out! While I have done this race multiple times, the trails are uniformly picturesque and it is always difficult for me to place myself on the back-and-forth grid.
New Land Trust – home of the Cock-A-Doodle-Shoe.
I had promised my oldest daughter that if I felt frostbite coming on, I would bail at the 5K turnoff. After losing myself in the grid pattern, the beauty of the forest and the delightfully soft snow, I was totally surprised when I reached that point. I figured the next half would be a breeze. But somehow you always forget. While Jeremy promised a level course, I would swear that the final 5K was gradually headed upward. Figuring that was a reflection of how tired my legs were, I soldiered onward. Later, though, I checked with others and they seemed to have the same impression. I think part of it was the fact that this was the first deep snow we had to work our way through this winter.
In many races featuring shorter and longer distances, the 5K is usually the easier route. But not here. Somewhere in the first mile or so there was an incredibly steep uphill to rival the Winterfest Impossible Hill, followed by a twisty slide to the bottom, which rather resembled one of the chutes from the Chutes and Ladders game. And guess what I did—since there was no one around me I took the fun way down –and I made better time! My favorite features, though, are the turnoffs into the single track Deep Woods, especially the one at the end, just because I knew it was near the end.
Taking his duties seriously, Cock-A-Doodle-Shoe Snowshoe race remained in place throughout the race and was there to greet us all at the end!
Another satisfied Cock-A-Doodle-Shoe customer.
Cock-A-Doodle-Shoe race results will be available soon on the event website.
