Biking MSU Ghost Campus Wondering About Wichita Falls Hotter 'N Hell 100 & COVID-19

This final Sunday of the 2020 version of April my bike took me north on the Circle Trail, then west through the Wichita Falls Beverly Hills to the MSU campus before crossing Midwestern Boulevard to ride around Sikes Lake with a lot of other refuge seekers.

The MSU (Midwestern State University) campus is a ghost campus these days, way more so on a Sunday. Thus I roll along locations I normally avoid on campus due to there being way too many students with whom to share a paved path.

Today my bike stopped me at the statue on campus which pays homage to the annual Hotter 'N Hell 100 bike race.

That got me wondering, what with the 2020 Tokyo Olympics cancelled due to the Coronavirus pandemic, has the Hotter 'N Hell 100 been cancelled.

I Googled "Hotter 'N Hell 100 cancelled?" and found no instant answer to that probing question.

So, I clicked on the official Hotter 'N 100 website link and quickly found the following answer regarding this year's biggest annual Wichita Falls event...

Both of us, here at the Hotter’N Hell Hundred office, are well and working remotely to comply with our local government “Shelter in Place” guidelines. Planning continues to progress for the 39th Annual HHH Weekend – August 27 through August 30, 2020!  Registrations are currently over 1300 and continuing to grow daily.

We fully expect that by the end of the summer the threat from the virus will have come to conclusion so that we can proceed with our weekend of events. That said, we will be reviewing the situation weekly and may make some adjustments as required for the safety of participants. 

Since I have been aboding in Wichita Falls I have only attended the Hotter 'N Hell 100 event at the MPEC (Multi-Purpose Events Center) once. It was a fun thing to attend, way bigger than I expected, with way more to see than I expected.

But, it was so HOT.

If the HNH 100 takes place this year methinks I shall make an effort to attend. Being there when the winner crosses the finish line was way more fun than I thought such a thing would be, followed by seeing 100s of others cross the finish line.

The crossing the finish line thing happens for hours. I think, if I remember right, I watched for about a half hour before I needed to seek shade...