ROAD RUNNING
MILLER LIGHT CHARLOTTESVILLE MARATHON
charlottesville, virginia
april 6, 2013
After more than a decade, the Charlottesville Marathon has become a legitimate destination race. The course takes you on a tour of Charlottesville, from the hip downtown mall to the gorgeous outlying wine country. The course isn’t flat, but it’s not tough either. The biggest hill is early on at mile six, before a vineyard. Other than that, it’s all rolling. “My favorite part of the course is the section along the Rivanna River, between mile 23 and 26,” says race director Francesca Conte. “You’re almost at the end, and the river gives you a boost exactly when you need it.” charlottesvillemarathon.com
FOOT LEVELERS BLUE RIDGE MARATHON
ROANOKE, VIRGINIA
april 20, 2013
Run one of America’s toughest road marathons. With 3,620 feet of total elevation gain and 7,234 feet of total elevation change, the marathon gives new meaning to runner’s high. Around mile 6, runners climb Roanoke Mountain on the Blue Ridge Parkway, one of the most difficult sections of the course—and also one of the most stunningly scenic. Not up for 26.2? Team up for a five-person relay. Running legends Bart Yasso, Frank Shorter, and Bill Rodgers will be on a relay team this year. blueridgemarathon.com
PEACHTREE ROAD RACE
atlanta, georgia
july 4, 2013
This 6.2-mile race through downtown Atlanta is well-known as the biggest footrace in the country. In 2013 and 2014, the Peachtree will host the men’s and women’s 10K USA Championships, solidifying the event as one of the best in the nation as well.
110—Number of runners at the inaugural Peachtree Road Race in 1970
60,000—Current race cap, making the Peachtree the largest race in the country
750—Number of port-a-johns at the race.
27:04—Course record, set in 1996
12,000+—Number of runners who will finish in under an hour.
30+—Number of runners who will finish in under 30 minutes
CRAZY 8S 8K
kingsport, tennessee
july 13, 2013
Not only was the Crazy 8s one of the first night races in the country (start time is 10:08pm), and not only is the course lit by candle luminaries, but if you beat the course record, you’ll get a check for $10,008. Good luck with that though, since the Crazy 8s course record is also the 8K World Record (22:02), set by Peter Githuka in 1996. The lure of the World Record has turned the Crazy 8s, in little Kingsport, into one of America’s must-run races, attracting the fastest runners from all over the world. Race director Hank Brown talks about the night that Peter Githuka ran the fastest 8K in history: “ We didn’t have crowd fencing back then, so once the crowd heard that someone was running at World Record pace, they filled the streets. You couldn’t see the finish line through the people. We had to dig a hole through the crowd for the runners. It was a crazy scene.” It’s at night, with candles everywhere, and runners finish in the football stadium with really loud music and the stadium lights. It’s like the X Games for road racing. crazy8.com
BLUE RIDGE RELAY
virginia / north carolina
september 6-7, 2013
A dozen runners pile into two vans and take turns rotating through 36 legs as they run 208 miles from Grayson Highlands State Park, in Virginia, to downtown Asheville via some of the prettiest country roads in the Southern Appalachians. “It’s 12 hours of suspenseful, dramatic, sleepless running adventure,” says Jerad Crave, who’s been on the winning relay team four times over. “If you want to win, each person has to run three hard races within 12 hours. You run your leg with no warm-up, finish, and jump in the van. There’s a chance to grab a few hours of sleep, but it’s so exciting, you keep going to see how everyone else is doing. It’s 3:30 in the morning when you finally try to doze off, then someone slaps your leg and says, “You’re up in 15 minutes.” blueridgerelay.com
Best of the Rest
Hilton Head Half Marathon
Hilton Head, South Carolina
February 9, 2013 • bearfootsports.com
Green Legs and Hamstrings
Danville, Virginia
March 9, 2013 • danville-va.gov
Shamrock 4-Miler
Abingdon, Virginia
March 15, 2013 • werunevents.com
Martinsville Half Marathon
Martinsville, Virginia
March 23, 2013 • milesinmartinsville.com
Cherry Blossom 10-Miler
Washington, D.C.
April 7, 2013 • cherryblossom.org
Knoxville Marathon
Knoxville, Tennessee
April 7, 2013 • knoxvillemarathon.com
Ukrops Monument Avenue 10k
Richmond, Virginia
April 13, 2013 • sportsbackers.org
Dismal Swamp Stomp Half Marathon
Chesapeake, Virginia
April 13, 2013 • dismalswampstomp.com
Charlotte Racefest Half Marathon
Charlotte, North Carolina
April 13, 2013 • charlotteracefest.com
Paris Mountain Road Race
Greenville, South Carolina
April 20, 2013 • parismountainroadrace.com
Fig Leaf 5K
Dawsonville, Georgia
April, 2013 • paradisevalleyclub.com
Run For The Dream Half Marathon and 8k
Williamsburg, Virginia
June 1-2, 2013 • runforachievabledream.com
Virginia Wine Country Half Marathon
Loudon, Virginia
June 1, 2013 • destinationraces.com/runvirginia
Maggie Valley Moonlight 8k
Maggie Valley, North Carolina
August 24, 2013 • maggievalleymoonlightrun.com
Asheville Citizen-Times Marathon and Half Marathon
Asheville, North Carolina
September 15, 2013 • citizen-times.com
Tucker Community Foundation Run For It 5k
Davis, West Virginia
September 28, 2013 • tuckerfoundation.net
The Genworth Virginia 10-Miler
Lynchburg, Virginia
September 28, 2013 • virginiatenmiler.com
Cherokee Harvest Half-Marathon
Cherokee, North Carolina
October 19, 2013 • cherokeeharvesthalf.com
Charlottesville Fall Classic Half
Charlottesville, Virginia
October, 2013 • badtothebone.biz
Tuna Run 200
Raleigh to Atlantic Beach, North Carolina
October, 2013 • tunarun200.com
Freedom’s Run Marathon
Sheperdstown, West Virginia
October 12, 2013 • freedomsrun.org
Anthem Richmond Marathon
Richmond, Virginia
November 16, 2013 • richmondmarathon.com
Philadelphia Marathon
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
November 22-24, 2013 • philadelphiamarathon.com
