Apparently a few runners did see a bear, I wasn't so lucky as the runner in front of me wore bells on her shoes and kept scaring them away! No worries though, all runners were ultimately accounted for. It's a very challenging course through the hills, backwoods and along trails with names such as Songbird, Enchanted Forest and The Gauntlet.

Other than the 1000' descent late in the race where my knees took a real pounding, I enjoyed the race. The weather was perfect, lots of shade and even up the mountain there was a nice breeze. I would warn that if you run this in wet weather, some of those rocky portions of trail will be slick! Some runners complained postrace about the directions at the 25K and marathon split, but to defend the organization, that was thoroughly covered in the pre race instructions and perhaps if so many runners weren't wearing ear buds they would have paid attention to the signs!

Anyway, the finish at Loch Haven Lake was nice; there was a little beach to relax or soak your legs in the lake while cheering the other finishers (plus the cookout and doorprizes). I liked the handkerchief in the goody bag that was printed with the map and elevation of the course! I never had to reference it during the race, but it was a useful bandana. Improvement suggestions would be maybe a couple portapotties at the start (restroom facilities were limited) and I'm sure there could have been a few extra yards added in somewhere to make this a proper 26.2 distance? Calling it a marathon when the race is actually short, at 26 miles, really screws up the 'bookkeeping' for those of us who take running a marathon as being an official marathon distance. Beyond that though, I do recommend the race and kudos to the organization and volunteers!