The Mohonk Preserve will celebrate the running of the tenth Rock the Ridge (RTR) 50-mile challenge on May 6, beginning at the Testimonial Gatehouse off Route 299. This event challenges participants to run or hike a 50-mile course through a series of stunning trails and antique carriage roads, all within the 8,000-acre Preserve. This endurance quest was launched back in 2013 as part of the Preserve’s 50th anniversary celebration. And what better way to honor land conservation efforts than to dive in and get to know each rock and root and scenic overlook by running or walking 50 miles in the woods, all in one day?
Ian Erne is one of only two people (the other being Greg Brown) to have run every single RTR since its inception, and he’s getting ready to toe the line on May 6 for his tenth attempt. Asked what made him decide to take on this ultramarathon (any running event that is longer than the standard 26.2-mile marathon distance), he said, “I’m a longtime environmentalist and I grew up in New Paltz, skiing at Bonticou and Minnewaska [both of which used to have modest downhill ski areas with tow ropes], swimming in the lakes and enjoying the beauty that the Shawangunk Mountains have to offer.”
Although Erne had been running recreationally for more than 45 years, bounding around what is now the Millbrook Preserve on old snowmobile trails and pedestrian paths after school, he never really considered himself a “runner.” After a co-worker of his at SUNY New Paltz, where he recently retired as the head of Academic Computer Services, convinced him to do a 10K, he said he still wasn’t convinced that the 40-plus miles that he logged in every week for “recreation and fun” identified him as a runner. “That 10K was a disaster, and then she convinced me to do a half-marathon. I felt great for the first ten miles and then hit a wall. I was literally standing still.”
Undeterred by these less-than-stellar performances, his co-worker again encouraged him to run a marathon up in the Adirondacks, where he ended up qualifying for the Boston Marathon. “I finished, and the race director said, ‘Congratulations, you BQed,” recalled Erne. “I thought he said I had ‘DQed,’ and I panicked that I had taken a wrong turn somewhere, because I had never heard the term BQ before!” BQ means the runner has achieved the Boston Marathon Qualifying time (BQ) for their age and gender.
After that success and a few more marathons, Erne finally consented, at 46, to calling himself a runner. “I realized that the longer the distance, the better I seemed to do. And I just like to run.”
What lured him into attempting the 50-mile RTR was not only the daunting distance, but also his lifelong love of the Gunks and his belief that environmentalism starts locally. “The course is beautiful, the Ridge is beautiful and anything that supports the work of the Preserve’s mission is something that I will pursue. Yes, there’s a million great causes out there to support, but why not start with where you live? We get to enjoy and benefit from the Preserve and its lands every day, and it just feels good to support an organization that’s such an integral part of your community and one that is working toward protecting the Earth and its ecosystems — and that starts at home.”
Rather than charge an entry fee for the race, participants are asked to fundraise or donate money towards the Preserve’s various programs, missions and environmental stewardship. The first year, the 174 runners were able to raise $100,000 for the Preserve. In the past nine years the event has succeeded in raising $2.3 million, and already has 425 registered runners/hikers slated to take on the course — which includes lots of climbing, some smooth carriage roads but also some technical trails — on May 6 at 6 a.m.
While it was Norman Goluskin, one of the original race directors and a national age-group recordholder in several running distances, who first encouraged Erne to take on a 50-mile run, it’s a multitude of things that keeps him coming back. “That first year I was about 38 miles in and feeling great, and knew I had some downhill sections coming up,” recalled Erne. “But as I got to the Trapps Bridge, I had that classic ‘bonk’ or ‘hitting-of-the-wall’ that marathoners talk about. But this one was so much worse. I couldn’t see straight, I had no energy, everything was telling me to go to the Trapps parking lot and call someone for a ride home.”
Gratefully, Erne had read an article about ultramarathons in preparation for the RTR and remembered it saying that if you got to this place where you wanted to quit, to just “sit down for 20 minutes. Get something to eat and drink and then make a decision. That article was right. After about 20 minutes, I thought to myself, ‘Okay, I can make it to the next aid station,’ and I started running, slowly, again.”
The sheer breadth and length and physical endurance test of starting and completing a 50-mile run never cease to be anything less than intimidating; nevertheless, Erne and many others keep coming back. “It combines one of my favorite activities with my environmental passion, so it seems like a no-brainer. You would be hard-pressed to find a more beautiful course east of the Mississippi.”
“Also,” he added, “at this point, I know so many people that do the event — volunteers and participants — that it seems like a moral imperative to keep on going for as long as I can.
Raising money for the Preserve is important to me, and I encourage others to give the event a go whenever I get the chance. I even point people to the original marketing video to help them get a feel for the event.”
Ultrarunning has been growing exponentially over the past ten years, and the Preserve’s 50-miler has grown right along with it. That said, it still has a grassroots feel that attracts many locals to participate and volunteer, as well as people from around the country who are looking to get on a beautiful course with a generous cutoff that they can run, hike or even be part of a two-team or four-team relay.
While many miss the original course that also included the glorious carriage roads, lakes and waterfalls at the neighboring Minnewaska State Park Preserve, that route was changed in 2021 due to ongoing construction at the park. According to the race director, the “Preserve staff developed a revised course located on Preserve and Mohonk Mountain House properties. This course has the additional benefits of being fully accessible to the Preserve Patrol rangers for any first-aid needs and to volunteers for additional aid stations.”
The “new” route is all contained within the Preserve itself, which treats runners to views of Mohonk Lake, the Smiley Memorial Tower on Sky Top, Undercliff/Overcliff, Bonticou Crag and many other iconic Gunk landmarks. To register, volunteer, view the course or past results or learn more, go to www.mohonkpreserve.org/rock-the-ridge.
Join the family! 
