Mark Hall's Staging Area

The name gets your hopes up (all downhill?) and in the end delivers nicely if not totally. The course starts at Ridgecrest Conference Center with a 4 mile out and back segment west towards the town of Black Mountain. It’s downhill out and since it takes a little different route back, the uphill wasn’t as bad as it might have been. Then, from Ridgecrest east to the end in Old Fort, it is about as downhill as it can be, a few small ups near the end, and a cruel uphill driveway into the parking lot with the finish, but nothing bad. My watch had a total ascent of 410 ft and descent of 1,644 ft. It was very scenic running thru Appalachia, especially the downhill segment. Aid stations and portapotties every 2 miles (except mile 8, only aid station, they warned you at the start). The town of Old Fort makes for a scenic finish, there were bananas and other things but we went across the street to a cinnamon roll/coffee shop (next door to the owner/operator’s former grandparents’ house, where he lives now). There were shuttles back to the start but I didn’t use it so I can’t comment.
We stayed at the conference center the night before, so we had access to the restaurants in Black Mountain, and a short walk to the start in the morning.
Swag was a long sleeve tech shirt, a medal with the state’s outline, race name, and date, and a sticker for the race in the shape of NC. The production was excellent and it’s easy to see why this race sells out it’s cap of 350. Very recommendable.

This was April’s installment of the Knoxville Track Club’s monthly trail run series. You could choose a half marathon or 7 mile distance, both are approximate and actual distances are higher. It was at North Boundary greenway/mountain bike area just west of Oak Ridge, TN. The 7 mile option was split between gravel access roads and single track trails. It all seemed to gentle rolling hills, which of course accumulate, but still, nothing too long and steep. My watch had 673 ft of ascent. It was a beautiful wooded area with parking on the roadside, plenty of room. KTC also put on a kids race a half hour before the other events, pretty neat.
The production was great as usual – a couple hundred people were through race morning packet pickup and at the start, which began at precisely 9:00. There was a water station somewhere on the loop, which the half marathon runners would go by twice. Gun time only, no chips, which fits. The production on these fits the events well. You know going in that the swag is one shirt per runner per year. There was cut fruit and water at the finish.
What a great way to start a weekend.

The Ultra Caballo Blanco is the race Christopher McDougall wrote about in Born To Run. A marathon distance has been added, in addition to the original 50-mile race. “If you were looking for a beautiful and challenging route in one of the most remote and beautiful locations on the planet – you’ve succeeded”, to quote one long time ultra-runner. There is one road into Urique, about 25 miles of what we used to call a “logging road” back in the day – bulldozed and only infrequently a full 2 lanes, with some impressive drop offs and no guard rails. If two vehicles meet, one backs up to a where there is room to pass. Sometimes light planes use one of Urique’s larger streets as a runway but the way in and out is the road. And the paved road that the Urique road connects to is remote to begin with. That may be why the race still seems to resemble the one in the book.

It is hard to review this like a regular race in the US. The sign up is through ultrasignup.com, but it is more than just a race. Micah True started it to introduce international athletes to the beauty of the Raramuri (Tarahumara) people, their culture, and their magical lands. You may have heard of Korima – give without expectation of return – it’s not about monetary crap. The local town folk love race week. The town is alive with big city entertainment and many visitors. They are happy to have visitors, but also, they don’t need to have them.
There aren’t full published results yet but approximately 600-800 local Raramuri runners were expected along with about 300 National and International runners (Nationals were the majority of the 300).

The town seems to scale up to provide for the influx of people. Food and bottled water were plentiful in tiendas, there were pop up street vendors cooking gorditas over a metal sheet on a 55 gallon drum, and the few local restaurants never seemed to have a wait. Getting pesos in small denominations ahead of time was best, I don’t think there was a bank.

Packet pickup was the day before under a structure shading a basketball court area. There were two lines, probably split between those who have access to ultrasignup.com and those who don’t. It wasn’t apparent to me and others at first but I eventually figured it out and got my packet (the first line you see is the one for no access since it is much longer).

Both races started at 6:00 AM, a good balance between just enough light and giving maximum time on course with lower morning temperatures. Funny to have a race with parking not an issue. Everyone walks from where they spend the night – it’s a small town. Many Raramuri really do walk into town a day or two before and camp or sleep where there is some cover.

The marathon course is a Y shape like the original 50-mile course. The Y nexus is about a mile outside of Urique, the course leaves town, goes back thru town and then returns to the finish after a 6 mile out and back. The course is well marked and much of it is along the area road – bulldozed and rough. The one trail section is from just a little above the river crossing to about 200 ft below some of the impressive cliff faces overlooking town. It is rough and steep and beautiful. The high point and turnaround of that section is the small settlement of Naranjo and the return section is on the rough road that leads up there. It was a relief to run downhill on it.

Aid stations were very adequate. A couple ran out of water but I was in the back part of the pack. It really is best to carry what you need and refill at the stations that have water. The lack of water was entirely forgivable to me since some stations had pinole – roasted corn meal mixed with purified water. It was delicious, I had been wondering what it was like. Bananas and oranges and bottle water were the other offerings. Three stations put wrist bands on you since electronic mats were out of the question. All the volunteers I met were helpful and nice and quick to keep things moving. Red Cross staff were present at some for first aid. All in all, given the remote location, the aid stations were a 5 shoe effort.

What was the best or most unique aspect of the race? Running with the Raramuri. Many really still use sandals made with tire rubber and leather, and wear the vivid traditional clothes. Some, including Lorena of the wonderful Netflix special, were wearing shoes but sandals were numerous. And they really do run. You may already have heard this, the Raramuri were what could be perceived as shy in public, and with the language barrier, running together was the primary way of communication and seemed very sufficient.

Importance of swag kind of recedes in a race like this – everyone got a very nice tech shirt and matching muff, which many Raramuri runners wore on race day. The finisher’s medal is subdued but the ribbon is hard to beat since ‘Ultramarathon Caballo Blanco’ is in large print on it (I know the 50-miler is the real ultra but I wasn’t going to argue). You can tell, I had a great time, and if this type of event fits you, then it is well worth the effort getting there.

The Knoxville Track Club puts on two 30k races in one location at the same time – at Whitestone Inn with trail and road versions. I did the trail in 2022.

Course difficulty gets 5 sneaks – 3,000 ft ascent. The trail itself was a combination of old bulldozer paths and single track trail. The area got a lot of rain two days earlier but mud wasn’t a problem. We did a 6 mile loop 3 times. There was one aid station, and it is my favorite. On the one black top road in the forest, 4 guys set up a sound system and had a terrific array of beverages – vanilla beer is my new go to race hydration. They had cowbells and fist bumps and plenty of energy. Since it was on the stick section of one of the loop lollipops, we got to go by 6 times.

Course scenery is 5 sneaks – farmland with sheep, goats, and horses, forest, lakeside, and hilltop views. It helped that it was a brilliant winter day, 25 degrees at the start and high 40s by my finish, perfectly clear sky.

Production definitely 5 sneaks. Packet pick up and race center was in a Whitestone lodge. Course was well marked, pre race communication excellent, just the right amount of course monitors, and post race breakfast.

Race Swag was an orange tank, sort of an in club joke. Apparently 20 years ago they gave had the same orange tank but with white letters that became a club joke for the ugliest shirt – you must have had to have been there. This year they changed the letters to black, I love it. Great like wicking material, I will definitely use it. And, since this was part of the 2022 race series, it was on top of the one shirt that everyone gets for the whole series.

My performance, 4 sneaks. Wish I could have gone faster but given the circumstances it was OK.

This was an outstanding event. KTC knows how to do it.

The Knoxville Track Club made the difficult decision early race morning to cancel the half and 10k because of snow and ice on the course, and wind chills around 6 F. They gave the option for virtual runs and modified the runsignup.com website to accommodate adding results. Along with a generous time frame to complete the virtual.
They had the genius idea to include pics from the course in the cancellation email, including the arched passage under the railroad tracks, an inspired choice since everyone who has ran the course before would remember it and have a frame of reference. What was a dusting over most of the county was what looked like an inch and a half on site that was not going to melt anytime soon on the shaded rural roads or easily accommodate all the traffic coming in to the small town area – this is a popular area race. I ran the virtual the next day in the afternoon – mid 40s and clear skies. That’s life.
Course scenery and difficulty are what I remember from past 10Ks.
Email and social media updates were timely and when they said they would be. KTC put so much time into this, I felt badly for them the most of anyone. Looking forward to next year already.

Really a fun half marathon. 2022 was a classic January race, 19 degrees at the 8:00 start and 28 degrees two hours later at the finish, on a brilliantly clear winter day. The route was along the greenway with much of it by the Tennessee river. The start and finish were at Volunteer Landing on the waterfront with Neyland Stadium as the backdrop.
The course was Y shaped which is fun since you get two chances to go by everyone, in a race of 71 runners, that helps it seem more compact and friendly instead of strung out in a loop. My watch had total ascent of 292 ft., most of which was crossing over the river twice from close to water level.
Production by Personal Best Racing was excellent as usual. All the road crossings were staffed by volunteers and police together. The course was well marked and well thought out for a very enjoyable run. They even coordinated with Calhoun’s restaurant to have a section open early for post race food, really a great idea with the low temperatures.
The swag was great, who wouldn’t want the tshirt and “squishy” medal with a unicorn? Definitely time well spent today.

I enjoyed every part of this marathon. Pre-race communications were good. Packet pickup was in an empty store space next to a sponsor – Fleet Feet, so if you needed supplies, it was easy to pick them up. The start and finish were at the Ike Hamilton Expo center, more than enough parking and close to two hotels, which were within a 10 minute drive of many good restaurants. Our hotel was a walk across the large expo parking lot.
Weather was clear and 38 at the start, and 70 5 hours later. Perfect and judging from past photos, not unusual. The course was a figure 8, sharing the first part with the half marathon. It went thru residential areas and the old downtown, along a bayou that had nice houses on either side. It crossed the river via a draw bridge at the middle of the 8. The course was well marked with cones, staffed with police at key intersections, and had a very sufficient number of water stations with very nice and encouraging volunteers. Around miles 23-25 the route was a long a narrower 2 lane road with a very small grass shoulder between the road and a ditch, but I don’t see this as an issue – if you are relatively fast you will hit it before traffic picks up, and if you aren’t, you are going slowly enough to navigate the shoulder. I thought the entire course design was thoughtful and great. The finish line medal person had you lean over and they put the medal around your neck, the kind of touch that was typical of the whole experience.
The ascent on my watch was 390 ft, pretty much all in bridges. There were 58 marathoners signed up but only 32 finished, and 165 half marathon finishers. The event is deserving of a higher turnout; maybe being in rural agricultural NE Louisiana and sharing a race weekend with bigger marque events? We used the trip to stop by the World Heritage Poverty Point Mounds, and enjoyed our whole time in the area. You can tell, I think this is a recommendable race and hope lots of people get to enjoy it in the future.

I was expecting a scenic run on a beautiful fall morning. Johnson City sits below Buffalo Mountain, the end of an impressive series of Appalachian crests, it was 52 at race start and clear, leaves were just starting to turn on some trees. What added so much to that was an impeccable race production.
So many volunteers at intersections, with police support. Marked off lanes where needed (some roads thru neighborhoods were very low traffic). Well stocked and spaced water stations. Start and finish at the Farmers Market in the old city, with plenty of parking and easy access. Bluegrass bands at the 3 relay team places. Great swag – nice cotton poly blend shirt, 2 note books, Blue Lizard sunscreen samples and this year the medal was a guitar pick theme, with the distance and date on the ribbon.
The course was thoughtfully laid out and again, well marked, supported, and separated from traffic. Probably enough hairpin bends to take it out of the really fast category but the turns kept it in the old city area and university district. My watch had 486 ft of ascent due to a couple hills, nothing too steep.
There were 240 finishers so it was a nice sized race. Post race was a generous layout of water, gatorade, fruit, and carb type stuff. Definitely a recommendable half marathon.

I can’t top Lorelei’s review of this race so please read hers. This race lived up to all that I had heard, and then some. The weather in 2021 was perfect, 54 at the start, low 70s at the end. Perfectly clear. It is hard to describe the scenery, it was all fantastic. There were 1,116 finishers. It was so much fun to be part a large group of runners enjoying the event so much.
The production was fantastic. The water stations classic, with Amish children handing out water. The swag you have probably heard about – the medal made out of a used up local horseshoe on a strip of leather from a local harness shop. And a nice short sleeve tech shirt with the distance and date, a whoopee pie, and a souvenir quality race book.
Depending on where you are from, the course may or may not have hills. My watch had 525 feet of total ascent, coming from east Tennessee they mostly seemed like inclines rather that steep hills.
This is definitely an event in it’s own class. If you enjoy a rural setting and well run event, this must be one of the best.

This was only a few miles away and worth waking up for. From the looks of the other 54 runners, they felt the same way – local folks up to support a local high school.
It started on the track at the concession stand of the football field, went out on the greenway past historic Weigel dairy, past the post office to the turn around. It was fun to run where I have only driven so many times before. There are charming older houses or the dairy field/flood plain most of the way. A nice long wooden boardwalk or sidewalks basically. My watch had 52 ft of elevation gain. Excellent police, fire, and ambulance support. The fire truck at the high school played the theme from Rocky as runners returned, sounded like a phone held up to a mic but it worked. The start was the race director saying “Go” but it was chipped timed by an area company, Personal Best Racing, they always do a great job. It ended on the football field 50 yard line, I forgot to strike the Heisman pose as I crossed the finish.
The swag was a tshirt and if you placed in an age division, a ribbon. What more could you ask for? There was a town festival with a car show and booths of local merchants and craftspeople that we spent time at between the finish and awards.
Definitely a recommendable race and worth making the effort to go to.

The Scholars Run is a well done 5K in a scenic small college setting. Packet picket in the morning was at the rec center and smooth, there were indoor restrooms. 200+ runners made a nice size. The course was mostly on campus with about half a mile going out the entrance into a charming well kept older neighborhood of the type of nice houses you’d expect across from a small private older university. Streets weren’t closed but there were police on the main street off campus directing traffic. The one water/gatorade stop was here, put on in front of an Edward Jones advisor’s front yard, with him and his family serving, nice.
The course was well marked with volunteers at key spots. My watch had 167 ft of elevation gain. There were bananas, bagels and pastries at the finish with plenty of water bottles. Swag was a quality cotton tshirt with silhouettes of runners wearing mortar boards.
We ran this last about 20 years and it was so nice to run it again. I hope we can run it again next year, it’s that kind of race.

Gorgeous marathon settings seem to be a Utah standard, the Sand Hollow marathon is a really fun small town race that was a joy to run and delivers on scenery and rural settings. This year the marathon course was doing the half marathon course twice, road construction closed the regular course. It starts in the old town section of Hurricane at the charming community center – a square block of a small museum, park, playground and 50s era grade school turned into a well maintained community rec building. The course heads south out of town thru quiet neighborhoods into farm land, and then turns east against dramatic buttes rising above the fields. The north view on the way back is of the mountains that lead into the southern entrance of Zion National Park, more “jaw dropping” scenery (as the race website says). I was happy to run the same route twice with surroundings like that. The roads are open but traffic was sparse even into late morning, it all worked.
The original date was early March but was pushed back to June 5 this year from Covid concerns – no snow in the background peaks in photos this year. More water stations were added, they seemed like a sufficient number to me. There is very little shade and the sun rises over the buttes early, blacktop is warm, and there was a record high the day before the race, so it was warm, 95 in town by mid morning and probably warmer out on the course. But that should not be an issue in the future when it is back in March. I was pleased with my time since heat really slows me down. The scenery and setting really did make the heat much more bearable. It was so nice to sit on the lawn in the shade of trees at the finish line and drink a couple cold bottles of water.
The swag is probably going to be my all time favorite – an image of a running Kokopelli in minimalist shoes. He is on the medal and tech shirt. Could be my next tattoo. Your race results are handed to you in what seemed like under a minute at the finish, overall results are taking longer to post but again, this is a small town race with a few people working hard to get it done, I am sure they will be there with all the past results soon. My watch had a 1,040 ft elevation gain, that all seemed to be in the mile and a half leading up to the turn around point, so 520 feet twice was not that steep or bad.
I was very glad to be one of the people running the marathon, I had been looking forward to this since November and it definitely delivered.

This was called a low key half and it delivered – a well done low key run on a greenway. Low key probably included 4 unsupervised road crossings, an open greenway, direction signs and mile markers in chalk on the greenway, swag = a shirt, and no direct police or medical support. All of which made for a really nice early morning run on a beautiful greenway. It also was geared toward runners with a 70 person cap and 2:30 time limit.
It started at Crossfit Pistol Creek, which is bordering the greenway. Plenty of nearby parking, heated packet pickup and restrooms (with supplemental porta potties). The 6:30 start time helped in many ways – I saw less than 10 people on the greenway that were not in the event, and it left a lot of Saturday to do all the regular things.
Race production was excellent – good prerace communication, smooth packet picket and race management. Makes sense though, Crossfit Pistol Creek knows athletic events and so does Knoxville Endurance, the two sponsors. There were 3 aid stations with water and gatorade, one also had syrup. Which made for 6 stops on the out and back course.
The Maryville area is known for its scenic greenways and the race segment lived up to it. My watch had 285 ft elevation gain, just some short inclines, no hills.
I would definitely run this again, a very pleasant and well delivered event that fits into a weekend smoothly.

The race theme was a do-over for the races we couldn’t run this last year: “ For those of you who have been disappointed by cancelled or postponed races, we’ve got your back!”. It started and finished at Percy Priest Dam park and went along the Stones River Greenway. Extremely scenic especially for being next to the Nashville Airport.
It was a certified half marathon but had gun timing. At the end 2 women peered at my bib and called out my number to the person writing down the time at the finish – I loved the personalized finish.
The production seemed flawless. Packet pickup the morning of the race at a shelter with heated restrooms, well organized with knowledgeable volunteers.
The course was beautiful, woods pretty much the whole way and along the Stones River. My watch had 666 ft of elevation but nothing really steep, just inclines. There were aid stations every 3 miles, just right.
The tech shirt and medal had a very nicely designed logo. I was pleased with my performance since my calf tightened up about 1.5 miles into it, but I was able to manage it thru paying careful attention to my stride. And really, I just don’t care much about time especially at a beautiful and fun event like this, it was nice just being there. There were about 90 runners and everyone was encouraging each other as we passed on the out and back course (with 2 small different loops put in).
I would recommend this and be happy to run it again. I hope it continues since in the future the name would connect to the odd year we just went thru.

I ran the 10k for the second year in a row. This is a popular area event, both distances. Fun to see hundreds of runners out in 24 degree cloudy weather this year. The course starts and ends in the small town of Strawberry Plains. The 10k (and half) is out and back thru nice river side farm country. My watch had 266 ft elevation gain. The shirt has been nice both years and there is even a medal, not standard in a KTC event, although maybe for an Eddie’s Health Shop sponsored one. Really a fun time.

The 2020 Dirty South Trail Half Marathon & 10K was part of the Knoxville Track Club’s annual trail running series. It takes place in Knoxville’s Urban Wilderness over bike and hiking trails, starting at Meade’s Quarry. The KTC does an excellent job putting races on. The trails were well marked, there were 2, maybe 3 water bottle tables, and friendly, helpful volunteers at the staging area. A tshirt was available – one for this year’s trail series, not race specific.
This year’s event had brilliant winter weather that was initially hidden by early morning river fog. The starting temperature was around 32 and was up to 50 3 hours later. The trails had mud from the rain 2 days earlier for a little extra challenge.
It was so nice to have an opportunity to run in the woods thanks to the KTC.

The Mach Tenn track club from Tullahoma puts on an excellent half marathon with sponsorship from the Jack Daniels distillery. 2020 was delayed until late October and the fall colors had started. The start and finish were in Lynchburg but the course winds thru farm country. The water stations were numerous and had themes, runners could vote for their favorite after the race. The tech shirt was very good quality and the 2 sided medal was made from an oak whiskey barrel- the OBH initials on it are also parsed into the race length, 13.1, pretty clever. Whiskey Hill is a fun feature that gives everyone something to talk about. I am glad I was part of the 845 lucky people running the race.

Fun out and back from Clinton High School. Course scenery gets a 3 because Clinton is a scenic area. The course goes out and up the divided 4 lane road thru Clinton. My watch had elevation gain of 69 feet. Very well produced, nice shirt, and age group medal. Would definitely run it again.

Fun half marathon winding along the Tennessee river in downtown Chattanooga. Starts in a nice park – plenty of room for all runners. The course was pretty flat, my watch had 449 ft. It was 59 degrees average and overcast on 10/20/2019. This was my first half, I have good memories of it.