2023 Gretna Gritty Recap from Dan Kirby 

On May 13th, 2023, all across Lebanon and Lancaster County and beyond, early alarms went off to rouse people from their Saturday morning slumber. By 5:45 am, the first bus full of cheery Gritty volunteers had unloaded and begun to settle in for our morning meeting to hear about the day and disperse all across the site. These 107 people spent the next 7-9 hours across these 200 acres cheering on runners, prepping food, taking photos, stoking fires, giving directions, and most importantly, giving our guests a warm and loving welcome. Of course, they did. It’s tradition. When I think about the Gretna Gritty and all we’ve accomplished with this event in 10 years, I have a lasting feeling. Thankfulness and pride for what this event is and who it represents. Our community. God’s Place Apart.

I’m deeply thankful to the 500+ participants who joined us. Your excitement, trust, and willingness to get out there and have fun have been an inspiration and a joy to us over these many years. Spending a day in the mud with you all each year is truly special.

Thousands of runners have taken on the challenge of running the Gritty, and we hope that thousands more will do so in the future. Moving forward our Gretna Gritty Mud Run will be a fall event, and the next Gretna Gritty will be on September 21st, 2024. We are excited to see you all next fall!

Dan Kirby, Race Director

We are beyond excited to open registration for the 10th Annual Gretna Gritty! 

PRE RACE EVENT DETAILS FOR ALL PARTICIPANTS HERE (This includes important parking info)

DAY OF INFORMATION (For on site guests and participants)

Join us for Gretna Glen Camp & Retreat Center's 10th annual 5k mud run fundraiser with 20+ obstacles in the beautiful, rugged terrain of the Mt. Gretna area. In our 10th running of this fantastic event, participants can expect to encounter challenges of balance, brawn, bravery, buffoonery, and more! With hilly terrain and challenges new and old - the Gritty has something for everyone. This event allows you to challenge yourself as much as you want, so walking is also welcomed. In addition to the Gretna Gritty, we also host the "Nitty Gritty" kids (5-11 years old) fun run, which gets kids in on the action with a 1.3-mile fun run. All Gritty and Nitty Gritty runners can expect lunch, medals, adventures, a sweet Gretna Gritty t-shirt*, and memories to last a lifetime! 

We plan to have an AMAZING event with the BEST course around & Raise $50,000! Proceeds for this event, excluding participation costs, will help us finally ELIMINATE the mortgage debt from 2005! When we started these Gretna Gritty events, we had over $690k to pay off, and now with the Gritty and the irreplaceable help of many other donors, Gretna Glen is ready to celebrate paying off this debt! We are so confident in our support of this event we are planning the 'burning' of the mortgage celebration for the same day. 

*Participants registered prior to 4-29 will receive the t-shirt size ordered - participants registered on 4-29 or after will be able to choose from select sizes on a first come first serve basis.

Register Today!

Interested in being one of our amazing community partners who sponsors this event? 

Sponsorship - Click Here