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With the DAM 8 the DeRuyter area now has three road races. The DAM8 (8K, H-M, Marathon).....DeRuyter Firemen's Fair in August (5KM and H-M.....
2025 is the third year for the DAM8. We started with the 8Km, which was well received. Last year we added the half-marathon. Also appreciated. This year we have added the marathon.
The rural DeRuyter area exhibits an amazing display of mother nature, including animal life, over the seasons. Five valleys and streams converge at the village. The village elevation is about 1300 ft, the same approximately as is the DAM at the Lake. However, the H-M and Marathon are not level. A description could be undulating. Except for the marathon in September, where a "heartbreak hill" occurs at about the 20 mile point for two miles, and then downhill for the next three. The DAM8 marathon at the 20 mile point takes another route back to the finish. Sorry, no "heartbreak" section.
The two marathons, spring and fall, share about the same 90% of the courses. The starts and finishes are two different settings. Both courses are located in four different counties. The same can be said for the three different half-marathon courses (spring, summer, fall). However, their route is in only three counties with three different starts and finishes. The four counties are: Madison, Onondaga, Cortland and Chenango! The half-marathons stay out of Chenango.
At the three starts of the Dam 8 courses one looks left, toward the west. The large hill overlooking the lake is the location of one of the largest county parks in the nation. It is in the southeast corner of Onondaga County, Highland Forest.
