Frozen Snot Trail Race Decidedly Un-Frozen This Year! 300 compete in mild temperatures, sunny skies

Runners take off from the outdoor pavilion area at Restless Oaks Restaurant in McElhattan for the 12th annual Frozen Snot trail race on Saturday. Close to 200 completed the half-marathon (13.5-mile course), while another 100 competed in the 8.3-mile shorter course.

A group of runners was all smiles and they prepared to take on the 12th annual Frozen Snot trail race Saturday in McElhattan.

Volunteers serve up a great meal to the nearly 300 participants in Saturday’s Frozen Snot trail race.

Local trail runner Nick Walker, 38 of Mill Hall, gets an assist from his 13-year-old daughter Aaliyah as he crosses the finish line in Saturday’s Frozen Snot. Walker came in 22nd in the 13.5-mile, half-marathon course with a time of three hours, 46 minutes.

Aimee Kohler of Nazareth, PA, right, and Erica LuBera of Bangor, PA, were the top female finishers in the 13.5-mile Frozen Snot race. Kohler was 11th overall, while LuBera was 14th.

Ed Tedjeske, 43, of Hollsopple, PA, was the 10th-place finisher in Saturday’s Frozen Snot short course and was met at the finish line by wife Chelsea and sons Parker, Logan, Conor and Blake!

Frozen Snot Race Director Luke Ebeling congratulates the top female finishers in Saturday’s 8.3-mile race. Kristen Gonyaw, at right, of Howard was the first female finisher and 14th overall, followed by Tiffany Sakmar, who came in 15th overall.

First-time ‘Snotter’ Michael Busada of Linden finished second in the Frozen Snot half-marathon. He’s seen here afterward with two of his biggest fans, daughters Lucy, at his right, and Charlotte.

David Stoltzfus, 27, of Montgomery, left, receives congratulations from Race Director Luke Ebeling after winning the half-marathon course on Saturday. This was Stoltzfus’ third Frozen Snot and his first, first-place win.

From left, Frozen Snot Race Director Luke Ebeling congratulates the top three finishers in Saturday’s short-course race – third place finisher John Shaffer of Jersey Shore, first-place winner Gabe Batdorf of Leesport, PA, and second-place finisher Brock Rider of Spring Mills.

Photos Courtesy of the Central Region Trail F(r)iends

Temperatures hovered around the freezing mark Saturday for the early morning start of the 12th annual Frozen Snot trail race, but there wasn’t much that stayed frozen. This year’s race was possibly the warmest on record, with sunny skies and only a skiff of snow at the very top of Bald Eagle Mountain in McElhattan.

Even with mild weather, both the half-marathon (13.5-miles) and shorter, 8.3-mile course were – as always – brutally challenging, with boulder fields, steep descents, lots of elevation change over few miles, and four stream crossings.

About 300 participants from nine states and Canada took part in the race. It was a ‘third time’s a charm’ day for David Stoltzfus of Montgomery, who was the winner of the half-marathon challenge. The 27-year-old completed the 13.5-miles in two hours, 42 minutes, saying, “It was a great course, really runnable and not muddy or frozen.” Stoltzfus shaved off quite a bit of time from his two previous Frozen Snot runs; he finished in third-place in 2020 with a time of 3:12, and ninth-place in 2022 with a time of 3:31.

Second-place in this year’s long course went to Michael Busada, 34, of Linden, who finished in 2:53, followed by Eric Smith, 32, of State College, with a time of 2:59. Rounding out the top five were Thad Paunovich, 30, of Avonmore, PA, who was fourth with a time of 3:14, and Adam Russell, 45, of Rome, PA, who finished just four seconds later.

Aimee Kohler of Nazareth, PA, was the first female finisher in the half-marathon. The 28-year-old was 11th overall, with a time of 3:24. She called the day a “battle on a pretty wild course,” referring to the give-and-take between her and second female finisher Erica LuBera, 33, of Bangor, PA, who finished 14th overall with a time of 3:26. The third female finisher was 39-year-old Kelly O’Connor of Conestoga, PA, who was 33rd overall with a time of 3:58.

Gabe Batdorf of Leesport, PA, was first across the finish line, completing the Frozen Snot short course in two hours and nine minutes. The 39-year-old said, “Course conditions were perfect – it’s beautiful out there, and when the sun came out, it was hot.”

Batdorf said this is his third Frozen Snot; he’s run the longer course in the past but chose the shorter trail this year because he was still recovering from a recent long-distance race.

Second-place in the short course went to Brock Rider, 45, of Spring Mills, who finished in 2:22, followed by John Shaffer, 52, of Jersey Shore with a time of 2:25. Jeremy Weeder, 37, of Mill Hall, was fourth at 2:28, and David Walker, 42, of Danville, made the top five with a time of 2:35.

Kristen Gonyaw of Howard was the first female finisher on the short course. The 31-year-old was 14th overall, with a time of 3:04, and called it a “great, warm day.”

The second female finisher was Tiffany Sakmar, 36, of Johnstown. Fifteenth overall with a time of 3:07, Sakmar smiled and said the course was “brutal!” The third female finisher was Kristine Vanderplas, 46, of Lemont, who was 20th overall with a time of 3:22.

The Central Region Trail F(r)iends host the Frozen Snot. Race Director Luke Ebeling said, “It was a much warmer day than usual – possibly the warmest Snot we’ve had – but absolutely beautiful, with fast trail conditions. Some runners loved it while others, like me, would have preferred it to be 30 degrees cooler with snow on the ground!”

Ebeling added, “We have such a good team, including a core planning team and about 80 volunteers who help with the race. We have the best volunteers in the world – they come out year after year.

“We also appreciate the generosity of Restless Oaks restaurant and the Maguire family, who offer their support and the start/finish area for the race,” said Ebeling.

Ebeling also thanked the City of Lock Haven and the PA Department of Conservation & Natural Resources-Bald Eagle State Forest for use of their land for the course; the Wayne Township Volunteer Fire Company, Sugar Valley Community Fire Company, and the Clinton County Department of Emergency Services and DES representatives Scott Kemmerer and Travis Hillyer, for emergency response and communications support.
Additional Frozen Snot supporters include Oregon Hill Winery; Redmond’s Complete Comfort; Dunkin’ of Lock Haven; Little Caesar’s Pizza; Domino’s Pizza; Clinton County Visitors Bureau; Leadership Clinton County; U.S. Army Reserve Center McElhattan; Tiadaghton Embroidery & Screen Printing; Love’s Disposal; Falcon Race Timing; Best Western Lock Haven; Fairfield Inn & Suites by Marriott; Craig Fleming and the PA Trail Dogs; ReVibe Gear; Sportea; and Brigandi, Gleghorn & Haffley, LLC.

Always held during the coldest time of year in central Pennsylvania, the Frozen Snot is typically Clinton County’s first of about a dozen trail challenges every year. For more information, visit the race website at thefrozensnot.com or on Facebook at TheFrozenSnot.