Having run 6 road marathons previously, wasn't sure about what a trail marathon would be like. This one was great. Well organized, well marked (maybe a little TOO well marked), and great volunteers at all the aid stations. Beautiful trail, not many spectators (but who wants a lot when you're enjoying the woods). Just remember - start off a little slower than you think; the ending few miles are decievingly tricky. Fun stuff!

What a terrific race! Beautiful scenery, trail with some roots, streams with rocks large enough to step on and not get the socks wet, manageable hills, great organization, friendly and enthusiastic volunteers, well stocked aid stations, signs posted at every turn- impossible to get lost. Very important for those of us at the rear of the pack and this is from someone who has gotten hopelessly lost in the past.
Thanks to RD, Nicole, for providing parking accomodations to help my husband. They even checked up on him. This race cares about the welfare of its participants.

Nice uphill start, and a very nice trail. Nice place to bring family next year. I ran alone for awhile, and I enjoyed it. I did jump over water logs and a BIG SNAKE!!!

Loved this race. The course was beautiful, the aid stations were plentiful for a trail race and the food options were amazing. Throw in great company on the trail and great volunteers and it makes one of the best races I have done.

Congratulations to the race organizers!

A race I truly enjoyed in comparison to other larger and smaller road and trail events within VA.

Terrific communication! Easy packet-pickup! Well marked course directions! Stress-free parking! Beautiful State Park trails, lake, streams! FABULOUS volunteer support at all water/food stops, and countless locations throughout the course! There must have been more volunteers than runners! Wonderful charity to support our military families! Race organizers may want to consider limiting time to 5 or 6 hours, to respect volunteers' time. This course is a challenge for marathon rookies. Would be a groovy location for a 50K!

This was a small but well done marathon. It is obvious that Nicole and Michael, who organized this marathon, have done one or two (dozen?) before. The trail was well marked and the volunteers tended to the runners' every need. The first half was more technical than the second, which meant no roots and fewer "dips" to worry about. It is a rare trail marathon that was kind to first-time marathoners and interesting to those of us that may go overboard. Very well done and I look forward to next year.

This is a small race, but the enthusiasm of the race and support staff are outstanding. Beautiful course through a lovely wooded state park. Plenty of fluids and snacks at each aid station. If you want a peaceful race, this is it! This was my first trail run of any distance and I thoroughly enjoyed it. GREAT JOB!!!

If you're looking for big crowds and big medals, look elsewhere. This was an inaugural run and one of my favorites. Small, with 100 entrants max. We had 62 for the first running. The trail through Pocahontas State Park was very scenic and well marked. I think I saw 2 folks who got a little sidetracked though. There were about 4 small creek crossings, but no problem keeping the shoes dry. I suppose there would be a few more "challenges" in rain or if there had been a very recent rain. The weather was nice at the start, but a touch warm for my desires later on, but what are you going to do about that? The start is a little later than most, but I think that is because the park doesn't officially open until 7 a.m. The terrain map shows elevations between 100' and 300', but I would call this a somewhat hilly run. It was fairly flat from about 8 to 14, so you can get back on a somewhat normal pace there. Not the best course for a PR, but I would say I was maybe 5-10 minutes off of my flat-course pace. The food and water stations were great. Water, Gatorade, pretzels, Oreos, Skittles, GU, and other things at every single stop. That was pretty nice. When I looked at the map, I was a little worried that they were too far apart in some stretches, but turned out to be plenty. The RD answered emails promptly and sent out updates as needed. Very good communication. They offered race-day pickup. T-shirts were nice, long-sleeve, tech shirts and a little bit of other goodies. The post-race was really enjoyable. Lots of pizza and drinks that were actually nice and cold. Since this was such a small race, there weren't a lot of spectators, but the course lends itself nicely if someone wants to watch you. My wife, baby and dog were out on the course and easily found me 5 times and could walk to some points and drive to others. The volunteers were awesome and made up for the lack of crowds. As a military guy, I love the charity they picked. Fischer House is the military equivalent of the Ronald McDonald House. They figured out how to get 100% of your registration going to the Fischer House, so my hats off to the sponsors, volunteers and organizers. This race has a great feel and is lots of fun. Definitely worth repeating!!!

Post-race addendum: I checked the website just a few hours after getting home and the photographer has already posted a bunch of pictures. His rates are a lot more reasonable than most other marathon photographers too.