{"id":249,"date":"2026-03-10T14:33:34","date_gmt":"2026-03-10T14:33:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ktc.org\/footnotesonline\/?p=249"},"modified":"2026-03-10T14:33:34","modified_gmt":"2026-03-10T14:33:34","slug":"concord-prerace","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ktc.org\/footnotesonline\/concord-prerace\/","title":{"rendered":"Concord Prerace"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Nestled in the hills of far west Knoxville, tucked between Northshore Drive and a large inlet of Fort Loudon Lake, is Concord Park, a diverse facility managed by Knox County Parks and Recreation. A new section has developed over the past ten years out near The Cove, but this essay refers specifically to the old, original Concord Park adjacent to the dog park and golf course. Unknown by marina visitors and frequenters of the fancy restaurant atop the hill, enshrouded under the thick green canopy of hardwoods and pines exist several miles of winding, climbing, circuitous trails that are among the trickiest and most rewarding in the area. Countless delightful twists and turns wind through the woods, and the best way to describe much of it is to liken it to a rollercoaster, up and down, back and forth, left and right. Marvelous! What a way to welcome Spring 2026 at KTC&#8217;s third trail race of the season, The Trail That Can&#8217;t Be Concord on March 21!<\/p>\n<p>Also awaiting the intrepid trail runner are a number of challenging upgrades, particularly one leading up from a small bridge at the easternmost point of the trail that goes up and up, and can even necessitate a brief walk to negotiate. But once up that hill, it\u2019s fun sailing for quite a while, eventually reaching a half mile stretch that&#8217;s gentle, easy, and wide, enabling a the runner to completely forget the huffing and puffing, and the struggling and cursing that probably accompanied the hill climb for most. Finishing that section of the course provides a palpable sense of accomplishment and satisfaction.<\/p>\n<p>Then it&#8217;s across the road and into another section of old trees and winding trails that, despite occasionally hearing a vehicle pass within earshot, feels surprisingly remote and bucolic. The trail takes so many turns that unless you&#8217;ve familiarized yourself with the area, you&#8217;ll have little idea where you are until you hear distant cheering from those applauding finishers ahead of you on the trail. And moments later it&#8217;ll be you they are cheering.<\/p>\n<p>And if your appreciation of these wonderful trails is stoked sufficiently that you vow to come back again soon, consider wearing high socks if your visit is in late spring or summertime, as the most common trail companion\u2014other than the roots and sometimes slippery red clay mud\u2014is our old friend, the three leafed devil, the second most common weed in the state of Tennessee, the ubiquitous poison ivy. There are places along those trails where poison ivy is not the most common trailside vegetation, it\u2019s the ONLY vegetation. But this won&#8217;t be an issue in mid-March, as the nasty little vines won&#8217;t have leafed out yet. Just keep in mind for later visits.<\/p>\n<p>But regardless of poison ivy and nature&#8217;s other little tricks and treats, the point of all this trail running is to get out and scope out the delights of outdoor play. Try to figure out the lie of the land, develop an understanding of the various microecosystems that exist in woods totally surrounded by civilization and suburbia. There are animals and plants that flourish in such settings, and they can be visited in settings only a few miles from where we live and work. Running on trails satisfies so many needs for us in the twenty first century, physical, mental and spiritual. We don\u2019t often have opportunities to get in touch with the natural world, and when those opportunities present themselves, we ought to dive in with both feet. And a great chance to do just that presents itself on March 21 at The Trail That Can&#8217;t Be Concord. <a href=\"https:\/\/runsignup.com\/Race\/TN\/Knoxville\/TheTrailsThatCantBeConcord\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Sign up here<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>See you on the trails.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Nestled in the hills of far west Knoxville, tucked between Northshore Drive and a large inlet of Fort Loudon Lake, is Concord Park, a diverse facility<span class=\"excerpt-hellip\"> [\u2026]<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":251,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"image","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[95],"tags":[5,4,125,126],"class_list":["post-249","post","type-post","status-publish","format-image","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-trail-running","tag-knoxville-track-club","tag-ktc","tag-the-trail-that-cant-be-concord","tag-trail-race","post_format-post-format-image"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.3 - 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