The Old Dominion 100 Miler - established 1979 Virginia

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By Davy Crockett

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The Old Dominion 100, established in 1979, was held in Virginia along the beautiful Shenandoah River. It was one of the first classic modern-era American trail 100-milers. Today, few ultrarunners have even heard about this race.

Old Dominion 100’s origin story is similar to Western States 100. It also emerged from the horse endurance riding sport. The Old Dominion 100-mile Run patterned its practices from Western States, established two years earlier in 1977. Old Dominion 100 gave East Coast ultrarunners a trail 100-miler on their side of the country.

Western States 100 claims it is the “world’s oldest 100-mile trail race” (still being held), but technically Old Dominion 100 has legitimate rights to that claim because in those early years Western States was actually only 89 miles.

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Alex Bigler

Alexander Bowman Bigler Jr. was born Jun 8, 1935, in Merced, California. He played an important part in the history of Old Dominion 100. He came from a very prominent California family. His great-grandfather, John Bigler, was California’s third governor. Lake Tahoe was almost named Lake Bigler. His grandfather, Alexander B. Bigler was an attorney and superior court judge in Santa Barbara County for many years. His father, Dr. Alexander B. Bigler (1904-1968) was a medical doctor and a civic leader in Madero County, California and had a keen interest in California history.

Bigler grew up in Northern California and went to Chowchilla Union High School during the early 1950s. He then attended Stanford University and lived in Redwood City where his first wife taught school. Bigler had a love for horseback riding. In 1960 he was president of the Auburn Sierra Rangers, a horseman’s club that was organized in 1946 to further the interest in riding, breeding better horses, and putting on showmanship and recreation events. Bigler became a close friend to Wendell Robie, the founder of the Western States Trail Ride (Tevis Cup) that in 1955 started to be held on the trail from Lake Tahoe to Auburn.

Bigler became a big supporter of horse endurance rides. By 1961, public opinion came out against the Tevis Cup and its effect on horses, backed by the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. A few horses had died during the rides. Bigler, living in Auburn, vigorously defended the horse endurance event. He wrote, “To participate in this event, riders and horses must be in excellent condition. Both must be well-trained which is accomplished only through months of rigorous training. In proper training, the rider comes to know this horse and its capabilities and therefore will not drive it beyond its limit. This event is well-organized and veterinarians are located at check points to watch for overly exhausted horses. In my opinion this ride is an outstanding event in terms of both pleasure and a sporting activity and is contributing much to our knowledge and history of the horse.”

In 1966 and 1967, Bigler rode in the Western States Trail Ride on a thoroughbred, Joaquin, and finished well, in 16:46 and 17:12. During the early 1970s he served as a member of the Board of Directors for the Western States Trail Ride.

Old Dominion 100 Mile Ride

By 1973, Bigler and his wife Ila moved to Northern Virginia, where he took a job that was involved in planning for equestrian facilities. He brought with him a desire to organize a ride similar to the Western States Trail Ride. He gathered together a small group of enthusiastic endurance riders to organize an event. A non-profit organization was incorporated under the name “Old Dominion 100 Mile Endurance Ride” with seven board members, Alex Bigler (president), Dr. Jack Howard (vice president), Ila Bigler (secretary), Pete and Beverly Fields, Pat Horrocks, and Dixie Engelhaupt. Howard was a veterinarian and Horrocks was a local equestrian trainer.

The format for the ride was originally somewhat different than Western States Trail Rie, using some practices that existed in earlier Endurance Rides that originated in Vermont. They designed a “Cavalry Award” for the rider that rode with the least outside assistance. To stay in the good graces of animal right groups, they also wanted to sponsor research and education surrounding the athletic horse. For the first few years, like other endurance rides in the East, there would be no award for the “first to finish,” instead they focused on “To finish is to win. In later years, the winning criteria would change to the horse/rider that finished in the best condition.

Bigler knew that belt buckles would be needed so he took a class and learned the process for casting them. “It took over the kitchen table, then the porch, then the garage, then the barn. Eventually it would evolve into a small business he named, Equestrian Forge.

Old Dominion 100 Ride Course

The Virginia riding group needed to decide where the 100-mile ride would be conducted. The Morven Park in historic Leesburg, Virgina was chosen as the start/finish for a large 100-mile loop through the countryside of western Loudoun County. The Park, along with a mansion dating back 200 years, was on a 1,000-acre estate that had first opened as a park in 1967 and was also the home of an International Equestrian Institute. By hosting the Endurance Ride, more attention would come to the Park and Institute.

Local landowners cooperated with the board to create a continuous circular course that utilized many miles of gravel road. “This trail would encompass a pristine area of large estates, open farmlands, and deep woods bounded on its western border by the Blue Ridge Mountains with the Shenandoah River only a few miles further west.” The course was designed to cross many of the routes that had been used by George Washington as he surveyed the land around Leesburg and in the Shenandoah River Valley.

First Years of the Old Dominion 100 Ride

The first Old Dominion 100 Ride was held in June 1974. “Competitors came from as far away as the Midwest, although most of the riders were more or less local from Virginia and the surrounding states. Ride day dawned with the riders going off in a drenching rainstorm. Downpours continued well into the late evening, but that did not dampen the enthusiasm of the competitors.”

Winkie MacKay-Smith , claimed first place and Kay Fullerton won the Old Dominion Trophy based on time and condition of the horses. John White of Canada won the Cavalry Award.

In 1975, Don Cromer, a veterinarian from Churchville, Virginia, rode his black stallion, Mack, in the second Old Dominion ride. He said, “We trained for four months and rode 78 miles a week, but there was just no way to really be prepared for what faced us at Leesburg.” Cromer wanted to start in the last group because Mack was slightly unsettled among all the horses. “It looked like the start of a posse when the first group broke from the starting line. They were going at a full gallop. But I wanted to pace myself at eight miles an hour.”

“The ride was through rough mountain country, some of which was very steep. It included numerous water crossings and logs across the trail. But Mack never once quit on me. He was always willing to go on. A lot of it went across private land and a number of markers were knocked down by cattle. You had to be on your toes to keep on the right trail.” Don finished in 23:40, total time. There were 24 finishers among the 51 starters that year.

Many of the riders had “pit crews.” “People with trucks or vans carried hay and grain and met the riders at their stops and take over, feeding the rider and the horse. Sometimes they had special trucks with hoses so they could hose a horse down along the trail. Those people were going for speed.”

The Idea for a Run

In 1978, several of the Virginia riders, including Patricia “Pat” Botts, went out to support horses in the Western States Trail Ride. They heard the tales of the successful 100-mile run that started in 1977. Botts met with Wendell Robie who encouraged an idea of establishing a similar run in the East. “They spent time with both runners and run management and came away with the impression that the runners had discovered gold all over again they were so excited by the experience. It was decided to proceed with a foot race to be held concurrently with the sixth annual Old Dominion ride event.”

Founders of the Run

Ralph “Wayne” Botts (1935-1987), an aircraft mechanic, and his wife Patricia Sullivan Botts (1940-) have been credited as being the founders of the 100-mile run that was established in 1979. Wayne was also the president of the Old Dominion Ride organization. The Botts wanted to give those on the East Coast an ultra, patterned after Western States 100. Unaware that ultrarunning had existed for decades in the East, Pat Botts wrote, “I couldn’t free my mind of the realization that at home in Virginia, there were runners who would only be able to read about endurance running and never get the chance to learn and compete.”

Dr. Don Richardson of Boyce, Virgina, was the run’s first medical director and first race director. Ed Ayres (1941-), of Virginia, editor of Running Times, and recent winner for the JFK 50, was the Advisor to the Run Committee that was headed up by its chairman, Pete Fields. Beverley Fields served as the Run Secretary.

In 1978, Western States had abandoned the idea of holding a run concurrently with the Ride and had also increased the overall cutoff time to 30 hours. The Old Dominion 100 run committee chose to have the runners cover their course at the same time with the horses. They emphasized finishing in less than 24-hours, but like Western States allowed up to 30 hours for the first year.

The race was officially named, “The Old Dominion Cross-Country Endurance Run: 100 Miles – One Day.” In promotional material it was written, “The joining together of horses and runners on the same trail and with the same goal represents a new dimension and camaraderie for both sports.”

1979 Old Dominion 100

The inaugural run, with an entry fee of $25, was sponsored by Vienna Inn. It was to be held on June 9, 1979, starting and finishing at the Morven Park Estate in Leesburg, Virginia. “The rolling hills and stream traversed by modern day runners were the same areas traversed by Mosby’s Raiders during the Civil War. The route circled to the west from Leesburg, climbed the Blue Ridge Mountains, crossed the Appalachian Trail, descended to Calmes Neck, and then through many rural villages before returning the Leesburg.” The course consisted of gravel roads, many miles of trail, long grass fields, stream crossings, muddy bogs, and some pavement.

The local newspaper was skeptical about the race. “How many persons can be interested in something nearly four times as long as a marathon? Probably at least five; possibly as many as twenty-five, if every ultramarathoner in North America decided to run!”

Word got out and forty-five runners would start along with 85 horses and riders. It was so popular that runners had to be put on a wait list. One teenager on the list said, “I just like to run. I don’t want to get high. I don’t want to get drunk. I just want to run.” Most of the runners had experience running the JFK 50-miler held in Maryland. Only a few runners had completed a 100-mile race before.

Three Featured Runners

Frank MacMillan Jr., (1954-) age 25, of Fayetteville, North Carolina (later of Hawaii), was among the entrants. He was working as a lifeguard that summer. In 1976 he had taken up running because his girlfriend ran cross-country. Her father had about every issue of Runner’s World and MacMillan started to read stacks and then began running. He joined the Carolina Godiva Track Club and ran a couple of marathons including the Boston Marathon. He recalled, “I remember seeing an ad in Runner’s World about a 100-mile run in Virginia, and I said, ‘I think I can do that; I want to that that.’ I had read about Park Barner, Tom Osler and Frank Bozanich. So, I roped a buddy of mine, John Emery, to go on up there with me. We drove up and had no idea what we were doing.” Up to that point, the furthest that MacMillan had ever run was thirty-five miles in a training run. This would be his first ultra.

Ed Demoney (1934-), age 45, was a bank examiner from Arlington, Virginia. He also was among the entrants. He took up running in 1973 at the age of thirty-nine, wanting to average running a mile a day for a year. Three years later he ran his first marathon in 3:34, finished nine more marathons, and then ran a 50K for fun. He recalled, “In early 1979 I heard about a meeting to discuss an Old Dominion 100 Mile Run. I went to the meeting where Dr. Don Richardson discussed the upcoming event. The idea of running 100 miles was incomprehensible, but I decided to run it anyway.”

Old Dominion would be Demoney’s first 100-miler. He recalled, “The first Old Dominion 100 was a great mystery to almost all of the starters. On a personal basis it was a great adventure, a giant leap into the unknown. I did not treat the event casually, was prepared, trained (averaging 75 miles per week in 1979), and had a plan and support crew headed by my wife Rosalie, daughter Lisa and Lisa’s high school classmate Rick.”

Ed Foley (1949-), age 30, was from Stearling, Virginia and worked for the Navy at the Ship Research and Development Center. He also entered Old Dominion and it would be his first 100-miler. He began running in 1978 and soon ran his first JFK 50-miler with other Navy employees. He became active in the Washington Running Club. In May 1979 he won a small 100 km race and became addicted to running, filling his calendar with races. When asked why, he said, “It’s a challenge” but also admitted that it was fun.

Pre-Race

Runners checked in the day before the race and received a medical examination at the Denning Springs Nature Center. They also had to show evidence of training for the ultramarathon distance. A pre-race briefing was also held that afternoon. Demoney said, “We were advised not to drink too sweet liquids and avoid salt tablets. There were short talks by John Purdy, who had finished Western States, and Bill Lawder who previously had run 100 miles at Flushing Meadows, New York. Dr. Richardson commented that the American College of Sports Medicine had advised them to cancel the run, in view of the anticipated heat and humidity, but that outlook failed to discourage anyone from starting.” The forecast was for 91 degrees during the race.

MacMillan and Emery planned for their race fueling. “Tom Osler had written about running nutrition. Our idea for the race to go buy a few bags of sugar, put that into baggies, and those would be our aid in our drop bags. I also bought white grapes.” Cloth race bibs were provided that included a pouch that would be very convenient to store some food in.

Aid stations were placed every 5-10 miles, but the race staff really had no idea what to provide, other than water and E.R.G., an electrolyte drink. At one station, a guy set out cups of water on the hood of his car in the sun. Strict cutoff times were implemented at key checkpoints. It was explained, “We cannot leave fatigued runners on their own in remote country and it is not possible to man the checkpoints and provide additional support personnel indefinitely. Those who disregard this rule will be barred from participation in the future.”

Like Western States 100, medical checks were made. They were located at miles 35, 50, 60, and 88 miles. Weight loss due to dehydration was the major concern. The course was marked with double streamers of surveyor’s ribbon.

The Start

Forty-five runners lined up for the start in front of the Morven Park Mansion. “A priest blessed the start of the event with the words that the runners were ‘in God’s hands, under God’s care, in a celebration of life and well-being.’” The running race started at 4:15 a.m. The horses started 45 minutes later and would ride either 50 or 100 miles.

Ray Krolewicz, age 24, of South Carolina, running in his first 100-miler, took the early lead. A mile out of the Morven Park Estate, the course hit a public road. The front-runners all turned the wrong way. Soon they figured out their mistake and passed most of the field. At another point in that race after the town of Waterford, a group of about 15 runners went off course because of a streamer that that been blown away in the wind. Once they figured out their error, they piled into a car and were taken back to the course, losing about 15 minutes.

Nick Marshall reported, “Ray Krolewicz sped off o’er hill and dale, leading Bill Lawder by 18 minutes at the 14-mile checkpoint.” Lawder, of New Jersey, was one of a few runners in the race with previous 100-miler experience. He had finished the 1978 Unisphere 100-miler at Flushing Meadows, New York, 15:37:22. (see episode 73).

Early Miles

After about two hours, they hit the first “cross-country” section of the course. Demoney recalled, “We ran across open fields, up and down hills, and through woods with planted fields around us. Some of the farmers were there, providing refreshments and making sure the gates were open for us. As we followed the trails, which were often muddy and sometimes involved stream crossings, it was often necessary to pause and look for streamers. It was not hard to get off the trails.”

Some of the local residents noticed that a race was taking place. MacMillan said, “Early on we passed a local gym. Some guys came out to run with us and help with support. They were a great group and continued that tradition for some years.”

Demoney experienced a state of euphoria mentally as he ran down fence lines, along streams, and across fields alive with colorful flowers. He said, “Naturally there is always something to disturb serenity. In this case, on entering the forest, it was damnable flies.”

MacMillan added, “The deerflies were miserable. They chase you and fly behind your head so you don’t see them, and then bite you. We didn’t know to bring any repellant.” Dust was also a problem on the gravel roads, coming from all the crew cars and horses.

Krolewicz lengthened his lead to an impressive 54 minutes at mile 43. He was going so fast that he would arrive at the aid stations before they were set up.

The Second Half

At about mile fifty-six there was a spot along the Shenandoah River where many of the runners stopped to rest. Demoney, who was teamed up with Fred Pilon said, “We were encouraged to take a swim in the river. I declined but did take advantage of the opportunity to sit down, rest, eat, wash my legs and soak my feet. I had way too much to eat but the cantaloupe has never tasted better.”

MacMillan remembered, “At about halfway, we stopped and took an extended break. Ed Demoney was there, and a couple other guys kicked back on a blanket taking a rest. They seemed to know what they were doing, so I hung out there to settle down.” About that point his friend Emery quit with very sore feet. MacMillan continued with serious doubts in his mind whether he would finish. He said he kept deciding to quit, but then changed his mind at each aid station. He linked up with other runners including John Kenul of New York.

Demoney plodded on ahead of MacMillan. Demoney’s daughter Lisa recalled, “There were times when my father didn’t think he could continue. At one point we pulled him up from the road, where he lay prone, refusing to budge. Somehow, we convinced him to keep going. I could sense it was a real challenge for him.”

Peter Monahan (1934-). an attorney from Bethesda, Maryland, sliced Krolewicz’ lead to 33 minutes at 60 miles. Krolewicz, on his way to victory at about mile 72, became distracted as he talked to a pretty girl on a horse. Unfortunately, he fell and sprained his ankle and had to limp the rest of the way to the finish, losing his lead to Pete Monahan and others. Krolewicz said, “After I sprained my ankle, I started getting depressed until I remembered what the minister said at the blessing of the runners before the race, ‘Tune in to your surroundings,’ so I did, and it was beautiful and that’s how I finished.”

Ed Foley was crewed by friends from work who supplied him encouragement, water, fruit juice and at one low point came up with a beer for him. He said there were quite a few streams that had to be crossed and he went through four pair of shoes trying to keep his feet dry. At least one hill was so steep that he said “no one actually ran up it.”

Trail markings were difficult to follow and twice Monahan went off course requiring what he claimed consisted of seven miles of back-tracking. Navigation was especially difficult after 80 miles. Demoney said, “Even with Fred Pilon’s help we had great difficulty following the trail, crossing a major stream without locating the bridge and suffering from stinging nettles and poison ivy. But we managed.”

The Finish

Paul Appell of Illinois was in the lead in the late stages, but Monahan pushed hard, overtook him, and won with a time of 17:56, only 59 seconds ahead of Appell. The finish was at Denning Springs Nature Center.

The rest of the field continued for hours after the front-runners finished. At about mile seventy, MacMillan linked up with a local runner Johnnie Johnson, an attorney from Reston, Virginia. At night they used flashlights to find their footing and see to how deep the streams were. When they we on gravel roads, the moonlight guided them.

Lisa Demoney wrote of her father’s finish, “In the end, he crossed the finish line hand in hand with Fred Pilon. My father is not a touchy-feely type of guy, but it was obvious that they had come through an epic journey together, and a bond had been formed out there on the dusty trails. They tied for 10th place with a time of 22:18:34. I was extremely proud of what he had accomplished.” Demoney wrote, “My feet were sore and blistered. I was sure I needed major medical attention, but the doctor indicated no big deal and gave no sympathy.”

MacMillan said, “Johnnie and I just death-marched it in. His wife and daughter were crewing for him, and they were great, but they ran out of food. For the last five miles I was really starting to bonk for lack of nutrition.” He resorted to sucking the nectar out of honey suckle flowers to get a little bit of a sugar buzz to get to the end. He finished with Johnson in 27:43:55.

There were only eighteen finishers in less than 24 hours, including Foley who finished in 23:44:06. Barbara “Bobby” Allen, age 20, was the only female finisher with a time of 22:13:32. During the race she paused to take smoking breaks. Another woman started but did not finish. Four other runners finished over 24 hours but in less than 29 hours. The first rider finished in 14:23, setting a new course record.

Awards

On Sunday night, a joint awards presentation was held for both the runners and riders at the Quality Inn, in Leesburg, with a buffet dinner. Runners had difficulty walking and riders had difficulty sitting down. Runners who finished in under 24 hours received a sterling silver buckle, and those over 24 hours received a bronze buckle.

The awards were presented in reverse order. MacMillan experienced a disappointment. “They started reading through the runners. They called the guys behind me, and I expected my name, but they called out my friend John’s name who dropped out at 50 miles. John called out that he did not finish, and they skipped my name. They had flipped my number with John’s one digit apart. I went up there and spoke aside to the race director, Pete Fields, telling him that they had missed me. He apologized. A couple days later, Pete called to apologize again for the oversight. That said a lot to me about the ultrarunning family and the sense of camaraderie. That was a pretty amazing touch to me.”

One medical mystery was noticed among the runners. Many of them experienced severely swollen hands and there were very few weight-loss problems. With the pre-race advice to avoid taking salt tablets, it is not surprising that many experienced hypernatremia, a condition that ultrarunners still did not understand. They were also surprised that later after finishing, they were dumping lots of fluid through extensive urination.

After the Race

Demoney commented on the experience, “Suffering continued at home, and running was discontinued for a couple weeks. But mentally I enjoyed a remarkable calmness within me and a great feeling of self-esteem.”

Daughter Lisa gave another prospective, “We left on the hour-and-a-half drive immediately after the awards ceremony, and my father’s legs cramped badly in the car. When we got home, I had to help him out of the car and lift his feet over the doorjamb. That kind of freaked me out. The man who ran 100 miles suddenly couldn’t walk. He swore afterward that he would never do it again. My mother and I laughed, knowing even then that he would be back at it. I grabbed my recorder, and we got his never-again declaration on tape, which has provided great amusement and teasing for years to come.” Demoney would go on to finish more than 25 100-milers.

A local Virginia newspaper reported, “winners and losers aren’t very important in this sport – it’s man against nature, and against one’s own body, and the victory comes in completing the course, no matter how many have finished before you.” The Old Dominion Ride’s President Wayne Botts proclaimed “our experiment of adding the 100-mile run to our 100-mile endurance ride was an instant classic event. A total success.”

1980 Race

David Horton, Ed Demoney and others in 1980

The 1980 Old Dominion 100 course was modified slightly to make it a bit tougher. Pat Horrocks took over as the race director. Entrants were required to have completed a 50-miler in 10 hours of less during the past year. There were again forty-five starters.

Veteran ultrarunner Frank Bozanich, of Bothell Washington, was the pre-race favorite. He was the current American 100 km record holder.

Nick Marshall reported, “Hot and humid, it took people over mountain trails and through rivers and bogs. Trailing the field at 28 miles, Paul Robertson even had to climb a gate eight feet hiqh.

Only 20 of 46 made it, with the dropouts including defending champ Peter Monahan at 54 miIes. Although the course was marked with surveyor’s tape, there was no moon out at night and it was easy to get lost, if one’s vigilance strayed. The leaders were spread hours apart, with winner Frank Bozanich far ahead at 15:17:22.” That year the horses were given a 45-minute head start on the runners, but Bozanich still beat all but six horses to the finish.

Only seventeen runners finished in less than 24 hours including ultrarunning legend, David Horton, who finished his first 100-miler. Sue Medaglia was the only woman starter and she finished with 22:08:17.

One first-time ultra observer wrote this amusing observation: “You may be wondering, as I did, whether these guys don’t need to stop to pee, with all that drinking. The answer is, yes and no. They need to pee but all don’t stop to do it. Pete Monahan is said to be the champion at this, having developed a technique of peeing between steps.”

Endurance Riding Schism

An important sidenote should be understood that impacted Old Dominion 100 in 1981 In the early 1970s, there occurred a schism in the endurance riding sport. Some, including Western States, preferred a “race” format, but they knew better to call it a race in fear of animal activists, and instead called it a “ride.” Others in the sport cared more about the effect on the horses and preserved long-standing practices to take the racing element out of the endurance ride events. In the 1960s, the Western States Trail Ride had used the non-race format to get animal rights groups off their backs, but then reverted practices back to a race after the heat was off.

The two approaches caused a split in the sport. In the 1970s, the American Endurance Ride Conference (AERC) was founded in Auburn, California, with Phil Gardner as president. He published some false revisionist history proclaiming that the Western States Trail Ride originated the sport of Endurance Riding. To be an “Endurance Ride” required events to be sanctioned by the AERC, including fees. The AERC turned their back on the true history of “Endurance Riding” that had existed mostly in the East since 1913. Some of these same individuals would later also apply revisionist history on ultrarunning, getting people to believe that Auburn also invented the sport of ultrarunning when they did not.

Old Dominion Ride Breakup

In 1981, the schism in the endurance riding sport affected Old Dominion and changed its course going forward. Some influential Old Dominion endurance riders pushed to change the ride so it would be sanctioned by the Auburn, California based AERC organization. This meant that it would need to include a “first to finish” award, changing the riding event into a race similar to the Western States Trail Ride (Tevis Cup).

It was reported, “By the end of the year the differences had reached the point of causing a complete break in the organization. The dissident members, finding a loophole in the bylaws which allowed instant voting rights for new members, staged a coup at the January 1981 meeting by busing in and signing up enough family and friends to transfer a majority rule to their side. The result was understandably deeply and regretfully bitter. Those members who still wished to follow the old format eventually left the Old Dominion organization altogether.”

New Old Dominion 100 Course

The new Old Dominion leadership was effectively locked out by the former Old Dominion organizers from using the original trail the Loudoun County for Old Dominion 100. That group created a new “USTR 100 Mile Ride” in 1987 held on the original Old Dominion Course using Cavalry rules.

A new course needed to be found for the 1981 Old Dominion 100. It was moved to the Massanutten and Blue Ridge mountains. A start/finish area was found at a 4-H center near Front Royal, Virginia, the original site of a US Cavalry station. The new course used more mountain trails (35 miles) and fewer miles on gravel roads (55 miles) than the original course. “The new course was run, for the most part, between the north and south forks of the Shenandoah River, including a crossing that the riders took. The course had seven significant climbs with a total elevation gain and loss of 13,000 feet.”

Foley commented, “The organizers of this race are actually endurance horse riders, and they refer to the race as a ‘cross country’ ride and run. The term ‘cross country’ is loosely applied to some sections of the racecourse where walking can be a perilous pace. The climbing takes the starch out of the best endurance horses, not to mention runners.”

The first race at the new venue was billed “The Old Dominion Ride/Run “Move to the Mountains.” Because of heavy pre-race rains, the new 1981 course turned into a quagmire, especially for the horses. Foley reported, “I ran an easy steady pace and near the 50-mile point, I began to overtake the runners ahead of me. By 70 miles, I had pulled alongside the leader, Dave Horton, and decided to settle in with him and his entourage of running pit crewmen. An indescribable mountain climb around 80 miles, left both of us nauseated and depleted. Once we returned to semi-horizontal terrain, I could feel some strength return to my legs. I pulled away to finish in 18:07 for my first big ultra win.” Foley beat all but one horse.

Old Dominion’s Growing Pains

Sadly, for 1981, the race staff decided to lower the cutoff on the much more difficult course to 24 hours. Runners were also required to have crews. In 1981, only twelve runners finished in less than 24 hours, with no women finishers. Because of the unrealistic 24-hour cutoff, there were also no women finishers in 1982 and 1983. In 1984, the cutoff time was raised to 28 hours, opening the door for more entry-level ultrarunners to participate in the only 100-mile mountain trail 100 on the east coast. In 1985 the cutoff time was raised to a more generous 30 hours and Ed Demoney took over at the race director.

Getting unified rules across the early trail 100s was a problem. In 1983 Ed Foley took a wrong turn due to poor marking. The race staff gave him a one-hour penalty against his time, taking away his win. During the 1985 race, the eventual winner went far off course and received a car ride from the race director back to his mistake point. The race director gave another runner who was nine miles off course a ride back and even bumped him nine miles ahead on the course to make up for the blunder. Such practices were eventually stopped.

Grand Slam of Ultrarunning

In 1986, the Grand Slam of Ultrarunning was established to entice runners to finish the four classic mountain trail 100-milers in the same year. Old Dominion 100 was included, along with Western States, Leadville, and Wasatch Front. Tom Green of Maryland was the first to complete it.

Old Dominion was getting more popular. With more than 122 runners in 1987, a lottery was imposed for 1988. That year 68 of the 98 runners finished, including six women. The race committee didn’t like having a lottery, so made the unwise decision in 1989 to again lower the race’s cutoff time back down to 24-hours. This decision catered only to the more elite runners and slammed the door on entry-level runners, older 100-mile runners, and most female runners from running in the only trail 100-miler in the East.

In 1989 there were only 29 Old Dominion 100 finishers including only two women and in 1990, there were only 23 finishers with no women. Because of this difficult cutoff, it also made it difficult to complete the Grand Slam of Ultrarunning. Vermont 100, which was established in 1989, was allowed to be a substitute for Old Dominion in the Grand Slam. In 1991, Old Dominion wised up, and increased their cutoff to 28 hours, but the damage was already done. The popularity to run Old Dominion waned and Vermont 100 took over as the premier 100-miler in the East. In 2001 controversy arose when two front-runners went off course, did not return to their point of mistake, and created their own route to the finish. They were properly disqualified but one runner slammed the race officials publicly for poor markings and race management. Old Dominion was dropped from the Grand Slam of Ultrarunning in 2003 after the race was cancelled in 2002 due to an internal conflict. In 2017, it was reinstated as a Grand Slam option.

Later Years

In 1991, because of the difficulty accommodating both riders and an increasing field of runners on the same day, the running race eventually moved to another day, away from the horses. In 2008, the riders’ course moved further west to Orkney Springs, Virginia. The 2020 run was cancelled due to the pandemic.

In 2021, the Old Dominion 100 Mile Run was held for the 41st time with forty-nine finishers.

In 2021, Ride founder Alex Bigler was 86 years, living in Arlington, Virginia, still operating his forge company making buckles, plaques, and other objects.
Run co-founder Wayne Botts died in 1987 from colon cancer.
Co-founder Pat Botts went on to finish Old Dominion six times, was the race director for many years, and finished the ride at least four times. In 2021 she was 81 and living in Fort Valley, Virginia.
In 2021, Frank MacMillan was 67, still running, had accomplished about 250 marathons, more than 70 ultras, had 21 surgeries, and was living in Hawaii.
Ed Demoney was 87, had directed many races, finished more than 90 ultras, and was living in Arlington, Virginia.
Ed Foley went on to finish Old Dominion 15 times and once ran 143 miles in 24 hours. In 2021 he was 82 and living in Virginia.

The parts of this 100-mile series:

Sources:

A Complete History of the Old Dominion Ride
Old Dominion 100 History
Santa Maria Times (California), Sep 21, 1968
Merced Express (California), Sep 15, 1955
Auburn Journal (California), Mar 17, 1949, Jan 12, Aug 4, 1961
Placer Herald (Rocklin, California), Jan 21, 1960, Mar 16, 1961
The Chico Enterprise-Record (California), Sep 21, 1961
The Sacramento Bee (California), Aug 24, 1961
The Fresno Bee (California), Oct 8, 1961
The News and Observer (Raleigh, North Carolina), Jun 15, 1979
Hartford Courant (Connecticut), Feb 1, 1981
Estherville Daily News (Iowa), Jun 23, 1969
Running Through the Wall: Personal Encounters with the Ultramarathon
Ed Demoney, “Old Dominion Cross-Country Endurance Run, June 9, 1979”
Interview with Frank MacMillan in September, 2021.
Ultrarunning Magazine, Sep 2001
Washington Post, Aug 22, 2004
Washington Running Club Newsletter, July 1980
Washington Running Club Newsletter, July 1981
Old Dominion Ride Results

87: The 100-miler: Part 27 (1979) – Old Dominion 100

By Davy Crockett