The Women's Half Marathon Course
Map | How will the course be marked? | The Do Loop
You should not need this map for the race. The course will be well-marked. The description and map on this page may be useful, however, if you want to train on the course or you want a general idea of how the course is laid out and where the aid stations are.
Points about the course:
- There are three aid stations that you visit a total of five times. The longest stretch between two aid stations is 2.8 miles.
- The very steep hills and rocky gravel of the bike trail (used prior to 2005) are eliminated.
- The first mile is on the park road to spread out the field before it enters single track trail.
- The course includes the famous Do Loop.
- The horse trail and Do Loop are generally the same trail surface as the trails previously used, but they have sections that have more leaves and that are not as well defined as the old trail.
- Because of the Do Loop, the course is not a complete out-and-back. You will only see most of the runners in front or behind you one time -- at the turnaround after the Wolf Run Shoals aid station.
The Course
| Women's Half Marathon Course Distances | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Section | Dist | Cum | A/S Dist |
| Start | 0.0 | 0.0 | |
| Park Road | 1.0 | 1.0 | |
| HT* | 1.8 | 2.8 | 2.8 |
| Do Loop* | 2.7 | 5.5 | 2.7 |
| HT | 1.8 | 7.3 | |
| HT to S/F* | 0.6 | 7.9 | 2.4 |
| BRT to WRS* | 2.1 | 10.0 | 2.1 |
| BRT to Turn | 0.5 | 10.5 | |
| BRT to WRS* | 0.5 | 11.0 | 1.0 |
| BRT to S/F | 2.1 | 13.1 | |
A/S Dist = Distance between aid stations HT = Horse Trail S/F = Start/Finish BRT = Bull Run Trail WRS = Wolf Run Shoals Aid Station Turn = Upstream Turnaround * = Aid Station at end of section | |||
The race starts in the parking lot of the park. (The parking lot is on the right, about .6 mile into the park from Hampton Road.) After a loop in the parking lot, the course follows the park road toward the entrance on Hampton Road. Just before Hampton Road, the course turns right off the road onto a blue-blazed horse trail. After a little less than two miles on this trail, you reach the first aid station. After this aid station, you enter the famous "Do Loop."
The Do Loop consists of a lollipop on a stick. You run out on the "stick," turn right, and do the lollipop in the counter-clockwise direction. Be sure to look for the Ford Fairlane and the Nash Rambler on the loop. When you get back to the lollipop's stick, go straight back to the first aid station. From the first aid station, you go back to the park road. You cross the road and stay on the horse trail back to the start/finish area where there is an aid station.
From the start/finish aid station, you take the blue-blazed Bull Run Trail for two miles to the third aid station. The aid station is at the two mile post of the Bull Run Trail and near Wolf Run Shoals Road. After the aid station, you continue running away from the start/finish, cross Wolf Run Shoals Road and then, after about a half mile, cross a stream on a bridge. After crossing the stream, you turn around where the course marshall tells you to. After turning around, you go back through the third aid station and back to the finish on the same trail that you ran out on.
(Remember that there is a cutoff time on the course. To ensure that runners will be finished by 12:30 P.M., we will have an intermediate cut-off time of 10:45 A.M. at the Fountainhead aid station. If you arrive after this time, you will not be allowed to continue as an official entrant.)
The Map
This map is not to scale. Its purpose is merely to let you know the relative layout of the course. The trails are marked in the color of their blaze. The first mile is on a road and not blazed. It is marked in red on the map. On the map, Hampton Road is on the top, the Occoquan River is off the map at the bottom, the first part of the course is to the right, and the second to the left.
How Will the Course be Marked?
Yellow Ribbon on Trail
The course will be well-marked with yellow ribbons hung from the trees. You should not go very far without seeing a yellow ribbon. Red ribbon will mark places you shouldn't go. Side trails will usually be marked off with red ribbon. The red ribbon will be horizontal. DO NOT step across a red ribbon!
The VHTRC is proud of its course marking. But we realize that we have not abrogated Murphy's Law. We will mark the course the morning of the event to reduce the chance for vandalism. As good trail citizens, we will have all the ribbons down within minutes after the last person crosses the finish line.
Remember, follow the yellow ribbons--"follow the yellow brick road!"
The Do Loop
The VHTRC held its first event on these trails in 1992. That is the first time we used what came to be known as the Do Loop. Back then, the trail in the Do Loop was primitive and not well marked. The loop was named after the propensity of runners to miss the loop's exit and repeat it. One runner did the loop three times before he got out. A computer nerd gave the loop its name.
The Nash Rambler in the Do Loop dressed up for the 2005 Bull Run Run 50
The Do Loop has always been part of the Bull Run Run 50 Miler whose runners have loved and hated it.
Part of the charm of the Do Loop are the relics of 1950's America that you will come across. Look for washing machines, a Ford Fairlane, and, the highlight of any trip to the Do Loop, the Nash Rambler.
More recently, the Do Loop has been better marked. You will note blazes on the trees and a more distinct trail. But you still have to cross hills that few people have traversed before you. Good Luck!
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