Wickham Park Home Page
Entry information
Wickham Park is in Melbourne Florida. To get there from I-95 southbound, take Wickham Road (SR509) south to Parkway Drive, then 1/2 mile east to the park entrance. From I-95 northbound, take Eau Gallie Blvd. (SR518) east to Wickham Road, turn left, then right on Parkway.
The run course is new for 2004 after the first 0.87 mi. It is still a 3.75 mile loop, but we stay on the east side of the park.
The run course starts at the "run start" sign at the SE corner of the parking lot just NE of the south entrance (from Parkway Drive) to Wickham Park. Go 0.13 mi. NE on paved road (or run on the grass along side if you are allergic to pavement), and turn right onto the grass just after you pass the dirt road to the archery area. Cross a ditch into the woods, then immediately follow the trail right (S), then left (E) along a dry canal. The trail turns left (N) and joins another trail on the right at 0.22 mi. Continue N to a T-junction on a grassy road at 0.38 mile and turn right. (These side trails do not appear on the map).
At 0.44 mi. just after the grassy road turns N, turn right onto a smaller trail that is easy to miss. After 20 ft. turn right (S) again, then follow the trail as it heads E. At 1/2 mile you will duck under a low tree. Check your watch here. Was that slow or what?
The trail turns left, so follow it N. At 0.62 mi. you will see a dead pine tree leaning over the trail on the right side. Make a note of this location. On your 14'th lap you will turn around here. For the first 13 laps, just keep going N and ignore all the little side trails that will get you hopelessly lost. Continue as you are forced to turn left (W).
At 0.75 mi. you will see a wooden 4x4 post and a wooden bridge over a creek to your right. The creek comes from a natural spring. Cross the bridge and turn left (W) along the shaded and rooty trail. Continue W past the second bridge (don't cross it). At the next intersection at 0.81 mi. is a fork in the trail with a big tree in the middle. Go right (N) here.
At 0.87 you cross a dirt road. Up to this point the course was identical to the 2003 course. However we now go right (E) on the road instead of crossing. At the soccer field fence (0.90 mi) turn left and go to the NW corner of the fence. (Actually there are 2 NW corners. The first is the SW NW corner and the second is the NE NW corner. If this is confusing, don't worry. I'm sure it will all make sense on race day when you see the course for the first time and just follow the faint arrows scratched in the sand which you will have no trouble seeing as you run the 4:48/mile pace you will need for the marathon prize money).
At the SW NW corner coninue N over Soccerfield Ridge and down the other side. As you cross the ridge, you may appreciate the fact that you have doubled your elevation above sea level (from 17 ft to 34 ft). On the other side, you will find a trail heading NW. Follow it for about 200 feet to a T junction, and turn right (N). After another 100 feet, you reach another T junction at a dirt road. Turn right (E) again. After another 100 feet, the road ends, and forks into 2 trails. This is the one mile point. Check your watch again. And you thought your first 1/2 mile was slow!
Take the left, less obvious fork that climbs back up to Soccerfield Ridge (and you thought you were done with this nasty little climb). Stay on the ridge, hopping across a couple of deep ravines, until the brush becomes impenetrable. Turn right and descend back to the grassy soccer field (you may want to butt-slide here) and continue E on the grass just outside the fence. If you are lucky, the sprinklers will be on to relieve you from the oppressive heat and humidity.
At the NE corner of the soccer field (there is only one NE corner) at 1.11 mi. continue E over the ridge again (no, you weren't done). OK, now you are done with the ridge (until the next lap). The trail turns N here and parallels Croton Road on your right. Between you and the road is a very deep canal that you don't want to fall into. There are also lots of moguls that you can go around, or over if you didn't get enough hills.
At 1.48 mi. the trail turns left (W). At 1.52 mi. you come to a 4 way junction that joins the old course. Turn right (N). The trail soon turns left (W) and comes to a triangle at 1.55 mi. Stay left (W). The trail turns N, then stops at a T-juction with a big log at 1.60 mi. Turn right. You will come to a dried lake bed (or wet in El Nino years) where Alligators have been seen in the past. Do not cross this lake. Turn left onto Shiggy Lane, on a trail that is really hard to see, and head NW. You will soon learn what shiggy is.
At 1.80 mi. you come to a 4 way intersection. Turn sharply left (S). You will notice that you are running on soft sugar sand about a foot deep. This is Sahara Street. By now you have probably fallen off your 4:48/mile marathon pace, but don't despair. With an easy 5:48/mile pace you still have a shot at the 50 mile prize money.
Continue straight S across a 4 way intersection at 1.90 mi. where the road divides. Stay in the right lane. At 1.95 mi. turn right (W) onto a trail that is easy to miss. This is the old 50 mile course through Armageddon, an old burn area where there is no shade to protect you from the relentless burning sun. At 2 miles, go straight across a 4 way intersection and check your watch. And you thought your first mile was slow! Oh well, maybe you can still maintain a 6:52/mile pace to claim the 100 mile prize money.
Bear right (NW) at 2.02 mi. At 2.11 mi. you will see a parallel trail on your right. Your trail turns left (SW). Turn left (E) at a T junction at 2.16 mi. and right (S) at a 4 way junction at 2.22 mi. After 100 ft. the trail forks. Stay right (S) on the less obvious trail. You may not think this is a trail due to the undergrowth. Have faith. Just plow through it and trust that it continues on the other side.
At 2.27 mi. turn right (W) at the T junction, now on better trail with banked turns so you can maintain your rapid pace. At 2.33 mi. turn sharply left (E) onto a wide, obvious trail. This will open into a field with spotty bushes. Continue E and between a covered pavilion on your right, and some bathrooms (probably locked) further ahead on the left. On the left side of the pavilion at 2.49 mi. you will find a water spigot. What a treat! I bet you are thirsty by now. This was not on the old course. See, and people said I was trying to make the course harder.
Continue E to either of two paths across a ditch (filled with scummy water during El Nino years). You are now at the south end of Sahara street, which I mercifully did not make you run the whole way. Turn right and follow the trail S through woods and open areas. Continue straight at 2.66 mi. At 2.76 mi. bear right and don't take the side trails on the left. At 2.81 mi. you come to a dirt road. Turn left (E) toward the soccer field. Remember when you were on this road last time? When you get to the point where you entered this road before (now at 2.87 mi), just turn right and go back exactly the way you came. The first and last 0.87 mi. are the same. When you come to the wooden bridge at 3 miles, check your split time again, but don't give up hope yet. You still have a shot at the coveted fake rock.
At the start/finish at 3.75 mi., write down your time for lap 1. Repeat 7 times for the marathon and be sure to write down an accurate split just in case you don't finish 50 miles and this becomes your official time. Then repeat 7 more times for the 50, except that on the last lap (your 14'th), just go up to the leaning tree at 0.62 mi., touch it, and come back. Be sure to eat and rest, so that you will be ready to do this again tomorrow for the 100 mile, and the following 2 days after that for the 200.
Map of Wickham Park (from Florida Orienteering, just ignore all the little red circles). The area shown is 1 mile by 1 mile. Download map.
Aerial photo of course (from a Disk Golf website, where you can find a much larger photo. Just ignore all the little markers). Download photo
