So I signed up for this in November of 2017 thinking it was at night and a half marathon in Virginia in June is no problem. Yeah right. Temps at the start were around 92 with no wind. It was going to be brutal.

I arrived in Farmville around 4pm and found a place to park. There's plenty of public lots in town so that was easy. Packet pick up was easy and quick with multiple lines based on preregister and walk up and the staff were super efficient. Before the race we had a few words about the course and what to expect for the half and ultra runners, then everyone lined up at the start at the trail head. The course is on the High Bridge trail, an old railroad bed that has been converted into a trail system and runs through High Bridge Park. The course was flat with few road crossing and crossing High Bridge over the Appomattox River is pretty awesome. The half marathon was out and back, simple enough, and the ultra runners went out further then came back and went out in the opposite direction at the start.

The aid stations were well stocked with the usually ultra goodies, pretzels, fruit, soda and water. Due to the heat they set up extra unmanned stops to refill water bottles which was great. The director sent out an email advising everyone to carry water, and if you didn't have a handheld or pack on it would be an automatic DNF. I have to appreciate a group that thinks about the runner safety that way.

Overall this was a simple low key event. No Expo, no fancy sponsors, just a group of people getting together on a hot summers night to run on the trails. And for that reason I would recommend this race, and I may try the ultra next year. As flat and easy as the course is it would be a good course to try for your first time.