Welcome to the 30th Annual Strolling Jim 40 Mile RunTM

Hello Runner,

Again, WELCOME to the 30th Annual Strolling Jim 40 Mile Run held in Wartrace and Bedford County Tennessee. We hope you have a great time and walk away with that coveted GOLD shirt presented to those runners that cover the 41.2 mile course in less than 5 hours. This year we have $1500 in prize money. $500 for the top male and female finishers as well as an additional $250 if they break the course record. Festivities begin on Friday with pre-registration all day long at race headquarters at the Walking Horse Hotel in downtown Wartrace. This will be followed by the traditional spaghetti dinner and festivities at the Walking Horse Hotel at 6PM. YOU MUST RSVP TO THE RD BY APRIL 18. $10 dinner, runners free with welcome letter.

We will be putting the big tent up Thursday evening or Friday morning. You have all day to meet your competitors and register. If you don't get a chance to register on Friday, you will have until 6:30a.m.CST on Saturday morning to register if you plan on starting at 7a.m. If you plan on starting with the 5a.m.CST trekkers, you will have until 4:30a.m. to register. If you plan to arrive here on Friday for registration and the pre-race event, you can get a good night’s rest at one of the local motels or bed & breakfast in the area. Please check out the Strolling Jim website at www.tynesweb.com/sj40 or the Wartrace Chamber of Commerce website at www.wartracechamber.org for links to local area accommodations and events.

Now, for some of the finer details of the race, let’s start with registration.

When you register you will be given a "goodie" bag that will contain your bib number, race program, brochures, etc. There are two (2) starting times. Trekkers leave at 5a.m. and everyone else leaves at 7a.m. The official clock will start at 7a.m. and all trekkers will have 2 hours added to the official clock time finish. The best your time can be as a trekker is 9 hours. On Friday at approximately 4p.m., we will leave the big top area and take a driving tour of the course affording you the opportunity to become familiar with the course, place "drop bags" and determine the best location for your handlers to position themselves along the route. It will take about an hour and 45 minutes or so to tour the course. We will be stopping along the way so you can place drop bags if you choose to do so. Then we return to Wartrace for a fun filled evening of fine food and music at the Walking Horse Hotel, YOU MUST RSVP BY APRIL 18.

Handlers/support teams: handlers and support team vehicles are NOT allowed on the first five (5) miles of the route due to the fact that most of the runners will still be "in a pack". There is an alternate route (check the map for Bugscuffle Rd.) to get to the five mile mark and your support team can meet you at this location. In the interest of safety for everyone, after passing the five (5) mile mark, we HIGHLY DISCOURAGE any form of moving vehicle support; i.e. don’t try to give someone a bottle of water from a moving vehicle.

As you know, there are lots of safety issues and controversy related to the use of “head phones”, we HIGHLY DISCOURAGE the use of devices that require the use of “head phones”, “ear buds” etc…

Aid stations: Again this year, the Strolling Jim will have aid stations which will be located at approximately the 13, 20, 30 and 35 mile marks. These locations will have "sports drink", water, sliced fruit, veggies, protein bars, cookies, chips, bananas etc.

Drop bags: for those of you that do not have handlers, you may wish to place your drop bag along the route during the Friday afternoon tour. You can also leave it at the big top and we will place it at the aid station of your choice; 1,2,3 or 4.

Water: there will be fresh water, in jugs with NO cups placed about every two miles or so along the route. There will also be water and other energy drinks available at the aid stations.