Flat Branch Ultra
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Event overview
Flat Branch Ultra is a USATF-certified 50K trail race in Columbia, Missouri. The event is held on the third Saturday in February and uses a rails-to-trails out-and-back course between Columbia and Rocheport. The start and finish are at Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Park, 800 West Stadium Blvd, Columbia. The course passes a nearly 400-year-old Bur Oak tree about 8.5 miles in and follows sections of the MKT and Katy Trail alongside the Missouri River and river bluffs.
Course and logistics
From the start participants head southwest on the MKT Trail for about 7.5 miles, then join the Katy Trail just west of McBaine and continue west toward Rocheport. The course is out-and-back, with a Halfway Home aid station located just east of Rocheport, past the I-70 bridge. Drop bags left at the start/finish are transported to the Halfway Home aid station and returned after the turnaround. A route map is available on Strava.
Support, rules and awards
Aid stations are located at the start/finish and at Scott Blvd, Bur Oak, and Halfway Home, with mile markers given for each station in race materials. Competitors must check in at the Halfway Home aid station by noon and must be off the course before dark. Packet pickup is race day only at the start/finish and all competitors must sign a USATF waiver. Finisher awards and top three overall male and female awards are given. Photographs will be taken on course and at the finish. The race has a no refunds policy. Title sponsors include Fleet Feet Columbia and Fleet Feet Jefferson City. Visit the organization's website for the most recent information.
