The Mountains to Main Street Half Marathon is a net downhill 13.1 mile run that starts in Travelers Rest, SC and finishes on the TD Stage at the Peace Center along the banks of the Reedy River in world famous downtown Greenville, SC. The route begins with two miles on …
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The Mountains to Main Street Half Marathon is a net downhill 13.1 mile run that starts in Travelers Rest, SC and finishes on the TD Stage at the Peace Center along the banks of the Reedy River in world famous downtown Greenville, SC. The route begins with two miles on surface streets around the Town of Travelers Rest before entering the GHS Swamp Rabbit Trail for the next four miles. Then it is a 2 mile loop around the beautiful campus of Furman University before returning to the Swamp Rabbit Trail for the final 5 miles of downhill bliss. The run is entirely on paved surfaces and aid stations are placed approximately every 2 miles.
The Mountains to Main Street 5K starts at the Swamp Rabbit Cafe and ends on the TD Stage at the Peace Center along the banks of the Reedy River in world famous downtown Greenville, SC. The first mile of the run leaves the Swamp Rabbit Cafe on surface streets of Greenville before entering the GHS Swamp Rabbit Trail for the last 2 miles which are downhill and fast. All of the course is paved and a bulk of the final 2 miles offer a rubberized running surface alongside the paved running path.
So whether you want to accomplish your first 5K or even set a PR in the Half Marathon, this is your race festival. The Mountains to Main Street Race festival has something for everyone.
The cut off time in the 5K is 1 hour. The cut off time in the Half Marathon is 4 Hours. Please make sure you can complete the race in the designated time.
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Beautiful Course
Hilly at the beginning (first 3 miles). Current map on website is outdated. Final 10 miles are on the Swamp Rabbit trail. Only negative was lack of restrooms at the … MORE
Hilly at the beginning (first 3 miles). Current map on website is outdated. Final 10 miles are on the Swamp Rabbit trail. Only negative was lack of restrooms at the start line. Definitely plan on running again!
Some hills, but good race in Greenville
This race starts in the town of Travelers Rest, travels mostly along the Swamp Rabbit Trail (a paved rail-to-trail), and ends up in downtown Greenville right on the Reedy River. … MORE
This race starts in the town of Travelers Rest, travels mostly along the Swamp Rabbit Trail (a paved rail-to-trail), and ends up in downtown Greenville right on the Reedy River. There is a ‘net elevation loss’, which I’ll elaborate on later. I recommend this race even though I had a crappy run!
I’ll start off with the cons:
1. There are a few hills at the beginning and a big one thrown in for good measure when you loop around the Furman campus. This isn’t a negative unless you’re a flatlander like me.
2. I talked to a local runner who said that the weather is highly variable, especially in the humidity department. We had rain until about 15 minutes before the race started, so the humidity was killer. The local said that they have a half in February which is much better in that regard.
3. It’s advertised as a net downhill run. The elevation profile on my Garmin confirmed that to be the case, but it sure didn’t feel like it!! The key word is ‘net’.
4. Could have used another aid station or two in the middle section.
5. This is a point-to-point race, so there is a shuttle. However, it’s $20, even for runners. This didn’t affect me since I had a friend running and we both had cars, but…
Now, the pros:
1. Great looking tech shirt and medal. Nice swag!
2. Excellent organization and a nice finish at the TD Center.
3. Decent post-race food.
4. The Swamp Rabbit Trail isn’t super scenic, but it is definitely nice enough, mostly shaded, and well-maintained. The loop around Furman University’s campus is beautiful, however! And the town of Travelers Rest is quaint and charming.
5. Since it’s mostly on the Swamp Rabbit Trail, there isn’t too much concern with traffic; however, all of the intersections are manned by police.
A couple of other notes:
– Greenville has several events going on that weekend, so hotels are not as cheap as I expected. I stayed at an AirBnB in Travelers Rest, and that was a great option! We were only about a 3 minute drive from the race start.
– Re. the shuttle – fortunately, Greenville has plenty of parking garages, and two of them are free on weekends. If you need to park downtown, I recommend the Richardson St garage, which is about 4-5 blocks from the race finish. And it’s right near all the good shopping and eating in downtown Greenville. Greenville is a great little city to visit.