The following article featuring Run The Ritter trail race was written by its founder and race director Paulette Odenthal. The event will celebrate its 6th running in 2024 and is held in Lakeville, MN, a south metro suburb of the Twin Cities. Featured photo is Odenthal at home with her canine companions.
Run The Ritter was first held in 2019 and features 3 mile, 5 mile, 10 mile and 15 mile trail race distances. In 2023, a 3 mile Canicross division was held. The race namesake comes from the park which is named after the Ritter family that owned the 340-acre farm land prior to the city of Lakeville purchasing the land in 1972. The purchase agreement stated that the family could homestead there until all of its members passed away (the last family member died in 1989).
There is an original historic silo on the land which serves as the icon and entryway of the park.
Ritter Farm Park consists of 340 acres offering hiking, running, snowshoe, cross country skiing and equestrian trails. Elevation ranges from 990 feet to 1090 feet and the terrain underfoot consists of rocks, roots, hills and gravel with beautiful scenic views of the oldest oaks in the City of Lakeville.
Roots of the event
As a long time race director and road and trail run competitor I was encouraged to start my own trail race which began in 2019. There were three main goals, outside of providing a well-organized race:
1. To serve the community and the trails that we would use;
2. To be a responsible event regarding sustainability efforts;
3. To be inclusive for anyone desiring to be a part of the event.
Prizes are awarded to the first finishers of each distance with wooden medals given to all finishers. Bandanas are given to all participating dogs.
Run The Ritter donates 25 percent of race proceeds each year for forest restoration, trail maintenance and sustainability and in 2022, the event received a $3000 grant from Brooks which was used to provide high quality pollinators to preserve the recently discovered Rusted Patch Bumble Bee comeback.
On the trails at Run The Ritter.
Adding Canicross to the race
Canicross is a sport that involves humans and their harnessed dogs that are trained to run with their human on the trails. The word Canicross is a hybrid of the words canine and cross country. Working collaboratively with enthusiast and Ambassador for North American Canicross Courtney Kampf (read more about Kampf below), I decided to add the Canicross event in 2023. The entire experience from inception to reality was great. It brought a wonderful dog loving demographic to the event (and I happen to be a long-time dog owner who enjoys running on the trails with my furry friends).
Said Kampf, “I’ve been emailing race directors for a couple years now. If there is a trail race I want to do and their website does not specifically say dogs are allowed or not, I always email to ask. Sometimes they say yes and sometimes they say no. I want to respect the races and all the work that goes into organizing a race so I would never just show up with my dog.
“Paulette was different, however. She told me she would consider it, but wanted to learn more about Canicross first. I loved being able to talk to her and explain the sport more thoroughly. I loved that she wanted to learn and was willing to try something new. We were able to show that there was a desire for these events in our area. Canicross is different from simply running with your dog and there are key differences that make adding this division to a race more complex – I’m proud that Run the Ritter is a Canicross race.”
In researching the discipline, I also talked with two Canicross race directors and enthusiasts of the sport to learn more about providing this opportunity as part of a trail run race. Brian Thomas, director of Canicross USA and owner of Kenosha Running Company and Lizzie Hill, director of North American Canicross were instrumental in providing information about conducting a Canicross race, the education and resource sites available and needed gear resources.
As a race director I have seen that this fairly new group of competitors have great respect for the trails and are very mindful and intentional with the behavior of their dog companions. Canicross participants are respectful, follow the rules and are there to exercise and have fun with their dogs in a friendly competition.
Future of Canicross and Run the Ritter
I look forward to working together with Canicross enthusiasts and expanding the Canicross field for Run The Ritter to each distance offered at the event. In our first year, Canicross participants represented about 15 percent of the field for our fall event, and in our recent winter snowshoe run, the Canicross division represented 35 percent of the field.
I hope for a growing awareness of Canicross as a sport and increased participation from a diverse range of athletes and dog breeds. I plan to provide standard rules for the Canicross division of our race so there is a consistency in terms of gear and equipment used as well as the safety of dogs and people interacting at the event. This would include gear check as well as proper dog care and behavior at the event.
Our goal is to begin offering educational seminars held at Ritter Park regarding the sport of Canicross as an educational tool to help grow the sport and to include local retail supporters that have Canicross gear to provide for training opportunities for new participants.
Supporting ATRA’s 2024 theme: Better Together – trail running and Canicross – an image from Run The Ritter 2023.
Information about the sport of Canicross and our history with the discipline is available here.
About Courtney Kampf
Courtney has been a lifelong runner and discovered the sport of Canicross when her family adopted their first dog, Holly, in 2018 and added Theodore in 2021. Their bond was instant, and the mutual love for running together was undeniable. Since then, they’ve been hitting the trails and constantly learning and growing as a team. For Courtney, Canicross is more than just running with your dog—it’s a harmonious partnership that combines athleticism, teamwork, and the incredible connection we share with our four-legged friends. Over the years, she’s specialized in this sport and recently became an Ambassador for North American Canicross. She’s passionate about sharing her experiences and knowledge with the dog sporting community.
Editor’s Note: Learn more about Canicross through the following video from ATRA.
