Rumble on the Ridge
Did somebody say more Cowbell?? Rumble on the Ridge is a take on the traditional Backyard Ultra-Last Person Standing. The event takes place on an old family dairy farm just 40 minutes west of Madison, WI in the heart of the Driftless Area. Participants will compete on a 1"ish" mile looped course, dubbed "The Drifty Mile", completing a loop every 20 minutes. Sounds easy enough right?....
To keep it interesting we change the route up every year and will not publish details until the day of the event. All we can tell you is it will be between 1-1.25 miles, there will be a minimum 250ft of elevation gain, and you will have 20 minutes per loop. The rest you will just have to show up to find out. The race goes until only one person has successfully completed every loop in under 20 minutes. We do have one more catch..... the route reverses every 4 hours so you can never get too comfortable.
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Date & Time
Date: May 18th, 2024
Check In and Tent Setup: 6:15am-7:45am
Race Start: 8:00am
Race End: Last Runner Standing
Location
Address: 5749 County Rd H, Arena, WI 53503
Rules
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Participants have 20 minutes to complete a lap. Runners coming in after 20 minutes will be eliminated.
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A new lap will start every 20 minutes with all participants starting each lap at the same time.
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Participants must be in the starting corral at the start of the next loop when the cowbell rings.
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Countdown for the start of each lap
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3 minute warning-3 whistle blows and music starts playing
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2 minute warning-2 whistle blows
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1-minute warning-1 whistle blow
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Start - Cowbell
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The winner is declared when there is only 1 person left who has successfully completed all laps in under 20 minutes. A solo victory lap must be complete to earn the win.
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If no participant successfully completes the final lap, there will be no winner for this year.
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No runner may accept aid while on the course. Any aid must be carried on the person and can only be provided in the designated crew area.
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Poles will be allowed the whole race
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Numbered tag must be worn at all times.
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All participants must have a running light starting at 8:40pm (lap 38)
The old barnyard will serve as basecamp for the weekend. This is where the start corral, crew tents, aid station, restrooms and spectator viewing will be located.
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Crew tents are allowed to be set up in a designated area near the start corral on a first come first serve basis.
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There will be a large participant tent set up for drop bags, chairs and coolers if you do not have a crew tent.
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There will be a aid station with fruit, sweet & salty snacks, carbs, hot food and hydration products-Skratch Labs, Gatorade, water, soda, Red bull and coffee.
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Portable restrooms will be available in this area.
Crew & Support
Course
The Drifty Mile is a 1 mile loop scaling ~250ft of elevation gain per loop. It begins with a .4 mile climb up an active gravel service road to the top of the ridge before immediately sending you back down and up again on a .1 mile loop through the woods. Once back on top you will run single tack along the spine of the ridge before taking a steep .15 mile drop to the bottom of the hill with an average grade of 18%. Once at the bottom you will have .2 miles to stretch out your legs on some flat single track and prairie path back to the start.
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But don't get too comfortable as we will be switching directions every 4 hours.
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Length: 1 ish Mile Loop
Elevation Gain: 300 ft per loop
Terrain: Mix of gravel access road, dirt single & double track and prairie path
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***2023 course data. 2024 course data will be revealed on May 18th at 6:30am!!***
What you get!
All participants will receive
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A soft-blend event t-shirt
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A DNF award
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Fully stocked aid station
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We will be hosting a family cookout style dinner from 5:00-7:00pm Saturday (all are welcome).
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Breakfast for those who make it through the night from 7:00-8:00am
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Plus some fun post run & spectator experiences
The Driftless Trail
Driftless Endurance will donate $0.10 for every lap completed during the event to the planning and building of the Driftless Trail. The Driftless Area Land Conservancy (DALC) is leading this project to build the Driftless Trail which is a planned 50-mile loop that connects Tower Hill, Governor Dodge, and Blue Mounds State Parks. This is a foot-only trail, to be used for hiking, running, snowshoeing, or cross country skiing wandering through the woods, prairies, farms, bluffs and streams of Iowa County’s Driftless landscape. Participants have the option to add a donation to DALC during registration if they choose.
More information on this project can be found on the DALC website.
Camping and Lodging
Camping will be allowed on the farm on Saturday night ONLY!! This must be a tent or camper van as this is a private residence and there are no camper hookups or space for parking pull behinds or RVs. There are several camping and lodging spots within 20 minutes of the race venue for Friday night.
CAMPING
Governor Doge State Park
Blue Mounds State Park
Tower Hill State Park
Brigham County Park
Trader's Island Campground
Tom's Campground
Wisconsin Riverside Resort
LODGING
Deer Valley Lodge
The House on the Rock Resort
Spring Valley Inn
Round Barn Lodge
The Birdhouse Inn
Volunteers
Events like this cannot take place without the generous support of volunteers. If you or a group you know are interested in volunteering in for this race, you can view the volunteer positions and details by clicking the button below.
Results
Directions & Parking
The farm is located off CTY Road H between Arena, WI and Barneveld WI. Below are the easiest routes. Cell service can be very spotty depending on which provider you have.
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From Hwy 14
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​Hwy 14 then south on CTY Road H just west of Arena.
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East on Hwy 18/151
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Exit on HHH in Ridgeway, head north on CTY Road H​
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West on Hwy 18/151
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Exit on CTY Road ID/T in Barneveld, CTY Road T northwest, North on CTY Road H​
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Parking is limited. Please carpool if you have the option. There will be volunteers and signage directing you where to park.