Hare Scramble Homes in on Tradition as Family, Friends Bond Over Bikes

By Sunday afternoon, Oct. 18, the sun shone high over Silvi Sand in Eagleswood Township, where trucks, campers and trailers lined the sandy grounds and the hum of motorcycle engines mixed with generators. Some riders worked on their bikes. Others packed up or sat around their trailers catching up with family and friends.

The previous day’s rain had left the course slick in places, according to some young riders, but Sunday brought the kind of crisp, sunny October weather classic to the Pine Barrens.

On this final weekend of the East Coast Enduro Association’s 2026 hare scramble season, youth races took place on Saturday and adult competition Sunday. For the families who travel from race to race throughout the year, it was also another weekend of camping, reuniting, and even a little Halloween fun.

Erin Stretch of Sussex County knows the routine. She and her husband, Jeff, arrived Saturday morning with their two children, both of whom raced over the weekend. Thirteen-year-old Natalie, riding a Yamaha YZ85, finished sixth in her class Saturday and third in the season standings, according to her mother. Sixteen-year-old Jeremy finished second in Sunday’s Schoolboy 1 class. As for how her kids got their start, Stretch admitted jokingly, the joy was planted by  her “lunatic husband, Jeff Stretch.”

Jeff raced with the ECEA some 30 years ago, she explained, and never quite left dirt bikes behind. Once the children were big enough to ride 50cc motorcycles, they were hooked, too. These days, the family travels to races throughout Pennsylvania, New York and New Jersey. Silvi Sand, despite being in Southern Ocean County, is one of the closer events to their Sussex County home.

The rain Saturday hadn’t bothered Erin much, though the cold and wind were another matter. By Sunday, she figured the damp sand had at least kept the dust down.

For Katie Sharrington of Tabernacle, whose son raced Saturday, the course was a little less forgiving. Her son described it as “really, really slick,” she said, though he managed a second-place finish in his class after several difficult races earlier in the season.

“He had a really clean race,” she said.

Sharrington’s husband, a member of South Jersey Enduro Riders, was among the volunteers who had spent weeks preparing the course. On Sunday, he was out sweep riding, helping keep an eye on the course and its riders. The work is considerable. Hare scrambles take place on courses laid out through woods, sand and other natural terrain, and finding somewhere to hold them is no small task.

“You have to fight for a place to do this,” said Bill Hess, 65, who raced Sunday in the Masters class for riders ages 60 to 69. He finished fourth. Hess explained that clubs depend on private landowners willing to allow events on their property. Silvi Sand has been one of those places for nearly two decades.

Families come in RVs from states away and camp out for race weekend. Some campers decorate their sites for Halloween, and children in costumes go trick-or-treating among the trailers.

Lindsay Pirie, formerly of Harvey Cedars and now of Port Republic, remembers the effort required to get racing started there. Around the turn of the century, he and a friend spent about a year cutting trails and laying out a course. “We put some races on. Everybody loved it,” he recalled.

Pirie, a former president of Pine Barons Enduro Riders, eventually retired from organizing events. He was back Sunday to see old friends, including Hess, who is still racing. The two joked about their ages. Hess, at 65, was the younger man by about 20 years.

While the racing brings everyone to Silvi Sand, plenty happens between races, too. Saturday night, campers decorated their sites for Halloween, and children in costumes went trick-or-treating among the trailers. For many of them, the other young riders are friends they see throughout the season, regardless of age or racing class.

Sharrington said her family has been traveling the circuit for years, often alongside the same parents and children. Her son has friends several years younger than he is, and the kids spend much of their time together when they’re not on their bikes. “Everybody looks out for everybody’s kids,” she said.

Fans gather on Spectator Hill to see the action.

Lauren and Curtis Fanti of Tabernacle were there Sunday to support their son, Judah, who was racing at Silvi Sand for the second time. Curtis, also a member of South Jersey Enduro Riders, said the roughly 8-mile course is part of what draws them back, but being involved with the club adds something else.

Members spend weeks preparing the trails, setting up the course and getting everything ready for the weekend. By the time the riders arrive, much of that work is already done. “You kind of feel bonded to it,” Curtis said. The event also benefits the Eagleswood Volunteer Fire Co. through its gate fees.

By Sunday afternoon, some families were already breaking down their camps and loading equipment for the trip home. Others lingered around the trailers while the day’s racing continued.

For Pirie, who helped establish racing at Silvi Sand years ago, there was no race to prepare for and no course to cut this weekend. But he had come back, like he always does, to see his friends.