Sleeping Giant Trail Runs

The NEW Sleeping Giant Trail Runs on March 30, 2025 will be one of the toughest, gnarliest races in the Northeast. Considered one of the more iconic parks and popular trail running/hiking spots in Connecticut for outdoor enthusiasts, it offers every kind of trail imaginable. There are 30+ miles in the park with everything from smooth carriage roads to the more technical, rocky, winding singletrack that Connecticut is famous for. This will be a beast of a course with 3K+ of vertical in the 25K loop. If you think you can handle two loops, then it's a 50K for you! In comparison to our difficult Macedonia Trail Race 25K/50K, this course will run even harder.

Registration Opens August 1!

25K
$65 early registration through October 31
$75 November 1-January 31
$85 February 1 - Race Day

50K
$75 early registration through October 31
$85 November 1-January 31
$95 February 1 - Race Day

Refund Policy: There will be no refunds and/or no transfers of your registration or bib to any other person. Entry fees collected are used to develop and produce the event, starting well in advance of the race date--including course preparation, race supplies, permits, and administration.

Swag/Awards

Specially designed finisher medal from Ragged Cuts
Swag from our sponsors
Additional awards for Top 3 podium for Overall Male/Female in each event

Location/Directions

Directions to Sleeping Giant can be found at this LINK

There is parking just inside the entrance to the right or straight ahead from the entrance. Parking is also available on the north side of Mount Carmel Avenue nearest the park.

Course Description

Each loop will start at the Pavilion inside the park. The first 5 miles of loop are mostly runnable rolling singletrack except for a few technical small rock scrambles. Once you hit the 5 mile mark, that's when the fun starts!! You begin the head wall climb a lung busting rock scramble of 500'+ in just 0.3 miles towards the top of the park. A few more technical ups and downs await you before turning towards the southern end of the park. Moving to the east now on the Yellow Trail, runners experience less technical terrain with some rolling singletrack trails before arriving at the Chestnut Trailhead, the location of the 8 mile aid station. Now it's back through the center of the park with a 4 mile section of moderately to harder technical terrain of which you will run a portion of the infamous White Trail with some faster terrain before returning to the same trailhead to access the aid station a second time at mile 12. Now it's time to begin the trek up towards the highest part of the course with the ascent mostly on the Quinnipiac (Blue Trail). Runners reach the top at the Observation Tower and it's on to the Tower Path a 1.5 mile carriage road descent before the last 0.2 miles of pavement back to the pavilion.

Course Maps

Race Day Schedule

Sunday, March 30, 2025

6:00 a.m. Packet Pickup/Race Day Registration Starts
7:00 a.m. START for both 25K/50K
12:45 p.m. HARD CUTOFF for 50K runners to start 2nd loop
7:00 p.m. FINISH Cutoff for ALL runners

Aid Stations

We will have water and Hyle Hydration electrolyte drink at all aid stations (2-3 on course) plus other typical food items (potato chips, pretzels, candy, etc.). Keep in mind that ALL Steep Endurance events are "CUPLESS". Runners are required to carry their own hydration bottle, pack, or cup. This policy is put into effect in an effort to reduce the amount of waste and adopt a sustainable “green” practice for the race and the sport of trail running.

Runner Rules

These rules are meant to make your experience during any Steep Endurance event a positive one. Most of these are common sense type policies that you will see at any trail or ultra race.

Absolutely No Littering! The race is completely on CT DEEP State Park land. Please respect that we are using their amazing and beautiful trails for this race. Failure to do so could jeopardize future events in Sleeping Giant.
Race entries/bib numbers are not transferrable--hence NO unofficial runners
Following the marked course is mandatory. Please do not cut the course, cut any switchbacks, etc. Any runner caught doing so will be disqualified. In addition, if you get lost on the trail you must return to the point at which you lost the trail. The course will be well marked with ribbons and other necessary course markings.
Though the course will be VERY well marked with flagging and signage, runners are ultimately responsible for knowing the course. It will be suggested that you download the .gpx course map to your phone and/or gps watch.
Please respect others that are on the trail. The trails on the course are open to the public and are fairly well travelled. Please be hikers know if you need room to get by them.
If you must use the bathroom, please try to do so very discreetly a good distance off the trail before returning to the race. There will be port-a-johns available near the start/finish on the course.
If at anytime you intend to drop out of the race, please do so at an aid station/checkpoint or at the start/finish. Surrendering your bib will serve as notice of withdrawal/DNF for the race. Failure to follow these policies means somebody has to come looking for you. This is a trail race with some remote sections of trail, where we will be forced to have someone come looking for you and in some cases, local authorities (at your cost).
Smoking is not permitted on any of the trails or at any checkpoint by runners (probably shouldn’t be doing during a trail race anyway). Alcoholic beverages are also not permitted in any sections of Sleeping Giant State Park.
The use of personal music devices is strongly discouraged at this race. To enjoy all that our race has to offer and for the safety of all participants, Steep Endurance encourages a headphone-free environment during our events. We believe your race experience and those around you will be greatly enhanced by leaving the headphones at home or in the car. Running headphone-free allows opportunities to develop camaraderie with your fellow runners and to enjoy everything the race has to offer. Plus, volunteers and spectators will be on course cheering you on and providing directions to help get you to the finish line. Runner safety will be a top priority for our events.
SMILE and enjoy the race! You are lucky to be enjoying this amazing park!

Post Race Celebration

You’ve just finished a tough and beautiful course! Enjoy your accomplishment, sit back, relax, and don’t forget to cheer on all the runners coming in after you are done. We will have plenty of food throughout the day for everyone plus some awesome beverages from Athletic Brewing Company as well other non-alcoholic offerings.

Lodging/Things to Do

Hamden, Connecticut, located in New Haven County, is a suburban town known for its blend of residential neighborhoods, educational institutions, and natural beauty. Home to Quinnipiac University right across the street from Sleeping Giant and part of the Greater New Haven area, Hamden offers a mix of historic charm and modern amenities. It features diverse recreational opportunities, including Sleeping Giant. The town's vibrant community supports various local businesses, restaurants, and cultural events, contributing to its lively atmosphere and appeal to both residents and visitors alike. Click on this LINK for more info.

Weather

Late March in southern CT is usually very good for running with average temps in the low 50's, and low temperatures in the high 30's. It's not uncommon to encounter a mix of sunny days, occasional rain showers, and even the last remnants of winter snowfall.

History of Sleeping Giant

During the mid-19th century, spurred by the painters of the Hudson River School and transcendentalist philosophers such as Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau, an interest in mountains as a respite from industrialization and urbanization took hold in New England.[3] Summer cottages were built on the Sleeping Giant and many other locations on the Metacomet Ridge. In 1888, John H. Dickerman built a carriage road on the Giant and opened what he called Blue Hills Park. He held picnics with ice cream on the ledges for local residents.[9]
Conservation of the Giant began in 1924 with the creation of the Sleeping Giant Park Association (SGPA) by a group of local residents concerned with ongoing traprock quarrying on the Giant's head. A cottage owner, Judge Willis Cook, had leased his property to the Mount Carmel Traprock Company for the purpose of quarrying traprock for building materials. The blasting away of what was a beloved landscape feature resulted in public outrage, well reported by local newspapers at the time. Under the leadership of James W. Toumey, a Yale University forestry professor, the SGPA undertook a ten-year struggle with the traprock operation. The property was purchased by the SGPA in 1933, during the Great Depression, for $30,000; the money was raised through private donations and the property became the Sleeping Giant State Park.[14]
Sleeping Giant State Park was created in 1924, when the SGPA donated 600 acres to the Park and Forest Commission. The state added an additional 65 acres that year, purchased at a cost of $7025.00.[15]
In 1936, the Sleeping Giant Tower was built at the top by the Works Progress Administration. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1986 as part of the Connecticut State Park and Forest Depression-Era Federal Work Relief Programs Structures.[16]
On May 15, 2018, a severe microburst caused significant damage to the park,[17] forcing officials to close the park for an unspecified period of time. The damage was initially assumed to be from a tornado, but the National Weather Serviced determined that the tornado ended just west of Sleeping Giant State Park and had transitioned to a 100-mph microburst by the time it reached the park. The microburst was half a mile wide and continued for seven miles. Nearly every pine tree in the main picnic area was toppled. After more than a year of clean up, the park finally reopened on June 14, 2019.[2]
Most, but not all, of the Sleeping Giant has been conserved. The trails and facilities on Sleeping Giant are collaboratively maintained by the Sleeping Giant Park Association and the State of Connecticut, with the bulk of the trail maintenance done by the association. Sleeping Giant State Park encompasses 1,500 acres (6.1 km2); the SGPA remains active in securing additional parcels to add to the property. The SGPA has also been instrumental in defeating attempts to log the Giant, build communications towers on its summits, and close the state park altogether. SGPA runs a regular recreational and interpretive hikes on the Giant and volunteer trail maintenance programs. The Connecticut Forest and Park Association also has a working investment in the conservation of the Giant and trail building on it.