If you want big-city hype, stay away from this marathon. If you want a challenge, then this is for you. The course will test you every step of the way - this year even more than most, since it was long (my estimate was .7 of a mile). I knew this at 18 miles in and just figured I was going to get more for my money. A scenic and testing marathon.

It was 47 degrees at the start. A very nice temperature to begin with. It may have warmed up to 60 before I finished. At the start we skipped the 2.5 loops on the track and went out on the old route due to bridge work on the new course. I knew I would have to walk, so I walked a minute every mile from about 3 miles on. There was one hill that only a few folks could run and that was a longer walk. In the second half we started to notice that the mile markers were about a half-mile behind the old painted mile markers on the road. This was curious at first and made me wonder how the difference was going to be made up. There were a good number of water stations with water and a sports beverage. I carried some grapes with me, which helped. A volunteer gave me a 20 oz. Gatorade at about mile 18 - that hit the spot also. It wasn't easy but I finished on the track in under 5 hours and got the medal. That extra half mile was simply added on to the marathon and it appears that we ran about 26.9 miles. (Please correct me if I am wrong.) It was a suprise at the end. But now I can say I have done and ultra in under 5 hours.

I looked forward to this race for almost a year and it lived up to what I hoped for. The country was great and the views wonderful.

I can speak to the traffic as I had an issue at mile 11 where I was pretty much run off the road. In the process I sprained my left ankle pretty good and struggled over the next 15 miles.

If you want to challenge yourself, this is the course and I plan on running it again.

Mountain Challenge Supreme!!

The race directors had to change the route (back to the tougher, original course) at the last minute and could not put the profile on the website. So much for my game plan. The beginning featured one steep hill after another, the difficulty modified somewhat by the beauty of the Appalachian hills, small farms, and rolling rural countryside. Fortunately the temperature, mid-50s at the start and low 70s at the finish, and the tree-shaded roads helped keep everybody cool.

We stayed in a dorm at ASU, which was fun and reminded us a little of our college days. Unfortunately we had to make our beds, which for grown men is a real challenge!

Skip the pasta dinner: two tins of cheese-drenched lasagna, so heavy that one female runner looked at it and decided to try her luck at a local restaurant, of which there were plenty in this college and resort town. Salad and an icing-covered brownie rounded out the dinner, which was a major disappointment.

The roads were so curved that two-way traffic was not a hazard: the drivers were courteous and I saw no one being pushed off the shoulder. The drop-offs weren't bad. Much safer than Ocala, where cars breezed by at 50 mph. Support was fine: water and watered-down Gatorade and plenty of people with cars to help stranded runners. Not many fans till the finish when the tartan-clad Scots cheered us on the last few yards. But the shaded and beautiful mountain roads more than compensated for lack of fans. The scenery was OK: farm fields, log cabins, mountain spas, even a restaurant tucked in these hills. A small waterfall had formed on the side of the mountain road, which prompted me to take a photo. I guess I had expected more scenery, but it was sufficient to distract from the pain of the inclines, which many runners walked part way.

As if this route wasn't challenging enough, we ran 26.6 miles - the last 1.2 were actually 1.6, a fact that the race directors admitted. Why, I don't know. But what the heck, what's another half a mile after running up and down these steep hills?

The medal was another bit of irony: a tiny thing that looked as if it came out of a Cracker Jacks box, in no way a reflection of how wonderful this test was. Post-race food consisted of PB&J sandwiches, water, Gatorade, orange slices, and unripe bananas. Meager, but adequate for those Spartan enough to do this race.
Yes, the race directors skimped on many aspects of this race - in order to give half the proceeds to several charities: so that was rewarding, instead of being disappointing. And, in spite of these shortcomings, if I had to do it over, I would still run this one. Kind of a mystical experience, up these green hills of Appalachia, and, even though this was my most difficult marathon, it will be a memory my son, my running friend, and I will never forget.

This was my second marathon. I chose it because it was a challenge.

The course is quiet, peaceful, and beautiful! The hills are intense, as advertised. There are hardly any spectators. It is very easy to zone out and focus.

Safety:
I do all my runs on roads and am familiar with dodging traffic. This course is VERY dangerous. Most of this course is on open highways and drivers don't seem to want to slow down (even though there are signs). There are numerous blind turns and only a 8-12-inch shoulder to fall back to. Participants seem to insist on cutting to the inside of turns. So I often had the choice of running on the (correct) left side of the road, or choose the safety of the group.

My Preparation:
I live in a completely flat area so I was forced to train on varying inclines on a treadmill. I did this once a week. I also drove an hour away from home every two or three weeks to run a long run on hills. I average 55 mile weeks. This is the minimum amount of hill training I recommend for a flat-lander (and I wish I had did more). I ran a 3:56, 27 minutes faster than my first marathon. My legs were trashed afterwards.

I never thought those words would come out of my mouth but yes, it's been my favorite marathon so far of the 6 I have done. The scenery is so absolutely breath-taking that you forget the pain of climbing up those hills. The other runners and you form a bond along the course because the race is small and intimate. You run into the Highland Games if you finish before 5 hours and when we did, the band played Chariots of Fire for us, how spectacular!!!! The race and transportation are extremely well organized and the surrounding town of Boone is a wonderfully eclectic, small artsy mountain town.

And yes it has a lot of hills but it is not as bad as the elevation map depicts, in my opinion.

If you're a high maintenance kind of runner and want throngs cheering you at every turn, go to Chicago, don't come to Linville. If you want to spend a beautiful morning, running on a majestic course with a handful of others who just like running, then Grandfather Mountain Marathon is for you.

I was intimidated by the idea of running a 'mountain' marathon. I really did a lot of hillwork in preparation and it paid off with a finish that was better than I had hoped for. While there were still a couple of hills that I saw no one running all the way up, the preparation paid off, and you CAN run this marathon.

As for the quirky nature of the course. Yeah, it's on a road with traffic -- what of it? As someone else said, if you want to run in the middle of the road on a course where they've told you to stay to the side, sounds like your 'bad'. The only thing that wears on you is that the road angle makes the hips a little sore and you're really wishing for a few more right runs than all the lefts around the mountain.

Cool finish at the Highland Games. I have to admit, that I tend to get a little choked up when I get close to the finish of marathon anyway, but this time with the bagpipes I'm surprised I didn't start openly weeping with happiness. Nice touch.

Strongly encourage anyone who wants a good challenge to run GMM!

It seems to me that this marathon has the 'feel' of a trail marathon even though almost every step is on the roads. It is advertised as a challenging marathon, and it is. Challenging means hills, sufficient but not excessive aid stations, and little fan support. Anybody who comes with the expectation of comparing the support for this marathon with some of the big-city marathons will be disappointed.

But... for a well run marathon that delivers as advertised, this is a great race. The scenery in the last 2/3rds of the race is wonderful. The finish in the Highland Games is a real kick. We also really enjoyed staying after to check out the games and concerts. I highly recommend this race to all with realistic expectations.

This was my 21st marathon, and was one of my favorites. Yes, the course was challenging, but nothing surprising given the setting. I felt the course was as safe as any - like any race, you need to be mindful of your surroundings. Staff and volunteers were all cheerful and helpful. Nice start line facilities, and seeing the Highland Games at the finish was an excellent way to wrap up the morning. Given the logistical issues (running on Blue Ridge Parkway, crowds at Highland Games), I give kudos to the race management. Everything was extremely well organized and seemed to flow smoothly. Plenty of refreshments/drink at finish line, nice shirt (love the elevation map on back), etc. Scenery and weather were absolutely perfect. Definitely a special race - I plan on coming back!

I have now run the Grandfather Marathon 17 times, consecutively. I can vividly remember the early years of this race when they had aid stations every 8 to 9 miles. It was someone on the side of the road with water from the trunk of their car. The Grandfather Mountain Marathon in my opinion is one of the finest marathons in the country. As a race director and co-race director of 4 races in NC, I fully understand why you are asked to show an ID for your race number. The race only takes 400 runners. If someone shows up and takes YOUR number, you?re going to be very angry. I know for fact I would raise hell if they gave my number to someone else. Requesting an ID makes good sense to me.

As for the course being dangerous, it?s no more dangerous than any of YOUR training runs on the open highway. Furthermore, you don?t have porta-potties on YOUR training runs or aid stations on YOUR training runs. Most people run on 2-lane, narrow roads when they run. What?s the big deal?

Running is one of the truest forms of freedom I can think of. It?s also one of the purest sports in the world. If running marathons makes you angry or mad at the directors, then maybe you should take up another sport. Or maybe some anger management classes.