Mrs. McCormick's Ice House

Mrs. McCormick's Ice House

est January 16, 2027

Mrs. McCormick's Ice House is a winter race on the trails of Ontario County Park (OCP) on January 16, 2027. Athletes have the option of completing the 4 mile loop once, twice, or thrice.

Price: $30 (+ $4.37 in UltraSignup fees) registration fee. No price increases.

New in 2027

We're adding a snowshoe race to kick off the day! If conditions do not cooperate, we'll cancel the snowshoe and all registrants can choose one of the running options.

Common Ground Winter Trail Series

Mrs. McCormick's Ice House is the second race in the Common Ground Winter Trail Series, a collaboration between FarFetched Enterprises, Goose Adventure Racing, Doody Runs, and WE Adventure NY. The goal of the series is bringing together the trail running community to get out on the trails over the winter and enjoy each other's company. The series contains the following events:

January 2, 2027 Frozen Assets Endurance Run
January 13, 2027 Mrs. McCormick's Ice House
February 6, 2027 Devil's Shadow Winter Trail Races
February 2027 Go Forth!

Options to register for the full series are available on the Frozen Assets site. Series registrants will gain exclusive access to three bonuses:

Free entry into the Go Forth! event (details TBD);
Series merch (details TBD);

Entry into a random draw for membership in the FarFetched Mug Club. Membership benefits include smug satisfaction and a 24 fl oz mug custom-crafted by Wizard of Clay, specifically designed for Common Ground's wide selection of hot beverages, soups, and cold beer.

Location, Parking & Schedule

Race HQ is at Wilson Lodge in Ontario County Park at Gannett Hill. Parking is available next to Wilson Lodge. Park roads and parking will be plowed prior to the race if needed. Note that the main park road is one-way, counter-clockwise, so be careful when leaving the park.

8:30 AM - Check-in and same day registration opens @ Wilson Lodge.

9:30 AM - Start of snowshoe race (if conditions permit)

9:50 AM - Check-in and same day registration closes. Athlete meeting starts.

10:00 AM - Start of running race.

11:00 AM - Post-race bunch @ Wilson Lodge.

Course

The 4 mile course visits many of our favorite parts of the park, but avoids the western slope where snow drifts can get deep. Participants have the option of completing 1, 2, or 3 loops. The race day course is subject to change due to trail and weather conditions.

Of Snow and Ice

If you choose not to find joy in the snow, you will have less joy in your life but still the same amount of snow.

On some important level, Mrs. McCormick's Ice House is a celebration of snow and ice. Based on history, the odds are high that there will be some of the frozen stuff on the course. This means you should bring good footwear options. Shoes with an aggressive tread, traction, microspikes and gaiters might be good choices.

However, we strongly encourage participants to make the most of wintery conditions. Bring your Nordic skis, sleds, and fatbikes! Bring friends who ski, sled, and fatbike! We'll feed them pancakes and hot beverages.

Post Race Activities

After the race we strongly encourage everyone to hang around, warm up, and catch up! Some features of our post-race include:

Real restrooms suitable for changing
Heated lodge with a fireplace
Freshly made buckwheat pancakes with Naples Maple Farm maple syrup, peanut butter, and hazelnut spread
Hot Chai Guy chai latte
Hot chocolate (with a Skratch Recovery option)
Warm apple cider Skratch Hydration
Cold lemon-lime Skratch Hydration and water
Fresh fruit and a variety of snacks

Who is Mrs. McCormick?

Born August 1, 1825 in Middlebury, Vermont, Nancy McAdam McCormick lived an eventful life - mostly in the Canandaigua and Rochester area. On July 9, 1868 she found herself in the unenviable position of petitioning the court for ownership of her home and her late husband's ice harvesting business. He had died earlier that year with a full house, but without a will. Since marrying at the age of 14, Nancy had given birth to 12 children and was pregnant with her 13th. She needed to find a way to support her family. After succeeding with her petition, Mrs. McCormick took control of the McCormick's Ice House, and is credited with becoming the first business woman in Canandaigua.

The McCormick's Ice House was a large warehouse located in what is now the Canandaigua Lake State Marine Park. Each winter, teams of ice harvesters would cut huge slabs of ice from the lake and float them to the warehouse. Mrs. McCormick often joined in the ice harvest if short on labor during the limited window when the ice on Canandaigua Lake was of the optimal thickness. Up to 10,000 tons of ice would be stored in the Ice House during a single winter. Once weather turned warm, McCormick's Ice House would supply households and many local businesses, notably McKechnie's Brewery and the Hotel Canandaigua.

Over the next 33 years Mrs. McCormick oversaw the Ice House and leveraged her standing in the community and proximity to the pier into other business ventures. Notably, she was selected to be the pier-mistress, which allowed her to collect various tolls associated with activity on the pier and manage boat rentals. Her son John was the long-time captain of the steamship Ontario, which would regularly make the run between Canandaigua and Naples.

Some sources describe various business ventures providing concessions to crew and passengers of the ships - and possibly setting up a barge in the middle of the lake where she could sell strong beverages beyond the growing strength of the temperance movement. There are no apparent records of Mrs. McCormick's love of trail running. However, it is my hope that our little trail race can be steeped in the knowledge that the winters in the Bristol Hills may be cold and dark, but there is also opportunity there for those willing to look.