wo distances. Lake views below. Mountain views above. One unforgettable trail party! This trail party starts and finishes at Parking Field #4 inside Rockland Lake State Park, giving runners two completely different adventures in one beautiful corner of the Hudson Valley... The 5K is a smooth and scenic paved loop around Rockland Lake. The paved path circles the water with wide-open views and gentle terrain, making it perfect for runners, walkers, and families. This course is fully accessible and includes a wheelchair division, welcoming athletes of all abilities to be part of the trail party. The 10K is where things get a little more Squatchy: this trail run/hike heads up the rocky and rugged Long Path, climbing through forest and stone ledges to the spectacular summit of Hook Mountain. At the top, runners are rewarded with sweeping 360-degree views of the Hudson River and the surrounding Hudson Valley before turning around and descending back to the lake.  (The capitalized "TC" in SquaTCh stands for "Trail Conference"!!)  We are proud to be co-hosting this trail party with our friends at the New York-New Jersey Trail Conference! Please consider donating by using the add-on feature during registration. The NYNJTC maintains and protects over 2,000 miles of trails in New York and New Jersey. Please consider donating to the Trail Conference so they can continue to maintain the trails that we will be enjoying!

• RACE FORMAT:  5K on a flat paved loop and 10K on a rugged mountain trail
• CUTOFFS: 3.5 hour cutoff for all events (10Kers need to maintain a 33 min 45 sec per mile pace to finish by 12:30pm)
• ELEVATION/TERRAIN: ​​​​​​​​​​​The 5K is a flat, paved loop around Rockland Lake. The 10K traverses rocky terrain with steep climbs. The ridgeline getting up to the Hook Mountain Summit includes dangerous drop-offs beyond the trail. The 10K has 1,300 ft of elevation gain.
• CAPACITY: Capped at 200 participants across both events; this is a first-year event, so we do not have historical data to know if it will sell out or not​​​​​​​​​​​​
• PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION:  
  • Bus: Rockland Coaches runs buses from Port Authority Bus Terminal to Lake Rd & Route 9W near the park, with a ride of about 1 hour 30 minutes.
  • Train + local connection: Metro‑North Hudson Line from Grand Central or Harlem–125th Street to Ossining, then a local cab/ride to the park (commonly cited as about 1 hour 15–30 minutes total, depending on transfer).

To get all of the details about this squatchy event, please visit the official Sassquad website. On there you'll find our Trail Party Handbook, maps, gpx files, details about the location, aid station, volunteers, etc etc etc!

REFUNDS/DEFERRALS

Like many other race organizations, we do not offer refunds for our events. Please take the time to double-check your calendar before registering for a Trail Party. Please understand that we do not offer refunds under any circumstances.

• If you notify us via email (not through social media, text, or phone call) more than 21 days from the date of the Trail Party, we will extend a deferral to any of our events that fall within one calendar year of the Trail Party that you were registered for, minus 15% of the registration fee that you originally paid.

• If you sustain an injury less than 21 days from the race date, we will extend a 100% deferral if you come to that race to volunteer. For distances less than 50K, you'll need to volunteer for at least 4 hours and for 50M+ distances, you'll need to volunteer for at least 8 hours to get a 100% deferral.

• If the race that you want to drop from is sold-out with an active wait-list and are able to fill your spot: if you notify us via email (not through social media, text or phone call) at least 3 days before the race, we will extend a deferral to any of our events that fall within one calendar year of the Trail Party that you were registered for, minus 15% of the registration fee that you originally paid.

• ​The race credit is the amount that you paid for the race, minus 15% (total credit does not including UltraSignUp fees) so you will need to cover any difference in fees; refunds will not be issued if the deferred event costs less than your race credit. You can only defer one time, so please double-check that you can make the race you're deferring to. 

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PREGNANCY, ADOPTION, & POSTPARTUM POLICY

Whether planned or unplanned, the beginning or end of a pregnancy requires healing and recovery time. We are committed to supporting you in this regard. If you are experiencing a pregnancy or postpartum healing and recovery, or have adopted a child, we are pleased to offer a deferral of up to three years from the current event. Simply send us an email and we will arrange the deferral for you. This deferral policy includes partners and spouses and is also extended to folks who are going through the IVF process.

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COMMUNITY CARE DEFERRAL POLICY

We recognize that the current climate around immigration enforcement, including ICE activity, is creating real fear and barriers to training, travel, and participation. Any registered participant who feels unsafe may request a deferral of their race entry for up to three years from the original race date, no questions asked. For anyone who still wants to participate but is feeling hesitant, our Squatch Together Program offers the option to be paired with another runner or hiker for support before, during, and after race day. Your safety, dignity, and sense of belonging come first.