Triple Lakes Trail Race

The year was 1767, off the coast of Kill Devils Hill in the Graveyard of the Atlantic. The British Royal Navy was in hot pursuit of the most dangerous pirate of the century, Captain William Dare. As they penetrated through the thick morning fog, they saw Captain Dare’s ship, the Bad Intention, washed ashore. On approach they quickly realized that it had been abandoned.
 
Captain Dare and his crew headed inland with hopes that if they went far enough, they could disperse amongst the commoners and blend in. After two weeks of almost non-stop pursuit, they arrived in a sparsely populated area that would become Greensboro, NC. Exhausted and sure that they could not evade capture, they buried three casks that they desperately wanted to keep out of the Royal Navy’s hands.
 
One cask is said to have carried treasure. Rubies, emeralds, diamonds, and other precious stones. Another is said to have carried coins of pure gold. And the last is said to have carried the “spirits” of their past crew mates. Within days of burying the three casks, they were captured, tortured, and burned alive at the stake. The Royal Navy never did recover the casks.
 
Lake Brandt, Lake Higgins, and Lake Townsend were all developed around 1925 as natural reservoirs for Guilford County. Historians believe that coincidentally, these lakes happened to be created on top of the three casks, further impeding the capability of ever recovering them.
 
In 2004, a young John Dewey, decided to pay homage to the legend by creating a trail race that would cover pieces of each of the three lakes. Each year, trail runners far and wide come to run Triple Lakes Trail Race and pay their respects to the old pirate. John has passed the torch from person to person and since 2021, the race is now shepherded, by Rich Swor and Trivium Racing.  Trivium is excited to add the to legend and continue the tradition.
 
As luck would have it, during a trail run in 2018, a cask washed up on the shores of Lake Brandt, on the Owl’s Roost Trail. After carefully opening it, to race director Joe's delight, it was neither gems nor gold, but the “spirits” of the old crew… RUM! Starting in 2018, all of the winners of the Triple Lakes Trail Races, are given a wooden mug, that entitles them to the rum for the entirety of their lives. And their names are emblazoned on to the cask for eternity… #defendthecask