Justin Baker's Staging Area

Course difficulty: Grey Butte is a beast. You basically run to the back of the butte and then make your ascent. That’s about 2,000 ft. of elevation gain in about six miles. The hardest part is the ascent of Grey Butte where it has 40% incline grades at parts.

Scenery: You run through some beautiful farm land and then the views from atop Grey Butte are absolutely beautiful.

Production: Alpine Running did a great job. The parking lot does fill up easily but they had a volunteer to help with that. The start of the race was a bit lackluster but I’m starting to get used to that with trail running. Course was marked well and the after race burrito bar was astounding.

Swag: The wooden medal is nice and big but if you want a shirt/hoodie/hat then you are going to have to pay for it. The burrito bar, post race beer and the sponsors that showed up like Speedland, and Territory Run were great.

For one thing, it was raining so that did not help, but a lot of things could have been improved. 1) The race shirt apparently is gray every even year. This makes the dri-fit shirt not as appealing. 2) There was only 1 port-a-potty at the start line. 3) Snacks were lacking at the finish line. The bananas were so green that even 5 days later the banana is just turning yellow. 4) There was miscommunication between the festival emails & the Chattanooga Track Club emails about what your race bib got you into.

Even with all these production problems, it is still a race that I will do almost every year.

I have heard about this race for years. I have friends that live on St. Simons Island which is right by Jekyll & they run the 10k almost every year. Needless to say, I had high expectations of this race and they were not meet. I ran the 5k & Half Marathon. Parking was pretty easy for the 5k. Maybe 400 total were running that day for the 10k/5k. The start line was very lackluster. They started the 10k a whole 15 minutes before the 5k because they ran pretty much the same course. There was no pomp & circumstance at the start line, just the photographer yelling at us from his ladder. No music, group stretch or anything. Just line up & run. It was the same for the half marathon & half marathon on Sunday, but plus the rain. The course for both were very pretty. The finish line was a line disappointing too. No music or DJ pumping people up. Just the photographers bluetooth speaker on loop. Food spread afterwards was very good for the 5k/10k but they oddly had less for the marathon & half marathon. We did get those foil like emergency blankets on Sunday which is nice. As for swag, we got a thin dryfit long sleeve shirt & a sticker at bib pickup. Medals were very nice though.

This was my 2nd year running this race. Last year I ran the 5k & this year the 10 miler. Race supports the state park it is run in which is a great cause. The 10 miler starts at the pavilion at the upper lake and makes its way through the parking lot to the visitor center to spread people out before hitting the trail around the lower lake. The course then has rolling hills that go by RV camping, campsites, etc. Some on trail with a little road running. You then make your way up to the Marble Mine and after the 2nd aid station the real fun begins. You start your ascent of Becky’s Bluff. Just when you think it is over it keeps going. The trail gets very narrow & technical until you get to the top. After that you work your way back down and basically backtrack to the finish line. Course is well labeled with lots of friendly volunteers. After the race there are plenty of snacks & drinks at the pavilion. Swag is a baggie with some goodies and a cotton t shirt. Medal is a handmade pottery medallion.

So this was my first time running this race & my first half ever. You have to take buses up to the start line at Jump Off Rock park & end in downtown Hendersonville. My wife & I rode the first bus up & enjoyed the scenery. iDaph (production company) only had 1 big bluetooth speaker that you could barely hear for announcements, stretching, pump up music, etc. The course was beautiful going down the mountain. We saw nice houses & overlooks on our first 6 miles down. Once you get to the bottom you run rolling hills though a not so nice neighborhood & a never ending lake. The final push was to get to downtown and then turn on Main St. & cross the finish line. There was a small party in downtown with sponsors tents and such and we had a free ticket to get a beer at the local brewery. Overall a great experience minus the lack of music & proper tech for announcements. Swag was a pretty nice medal and a tshirt.

I’ve ran this race this past 3 years & love it. Get there early for parking. Pick up your bib early too if you can. This is a very popular race since its always on the 4th of July and on St. Simons Island. They try to corral people based on what times they think they will finish. Lots of people wearing red,white & blue or costumes. Not a lot of pre race fare (just stretch & get in line). Course runs through some neighborhoods on the island (no seeing the beach on this race). Course is flat but it is always hot even though they start running at 7AM. Lots of houses are decorated or have sprinklers for you to run through. You finish where you started & there is a bunch of water in swimming pools & sponsors have tents (Ga watermelons, bagels dog for adoption, etc.) Run you race and then go to the beach.