Before I get to number one, here are some races that would have made the list if my list was longer. In no particular order, races 10 miles or longer, excluding marathons.
RIR Race 13.1 – Richmond, VA, 2016, 2:14:17, Starts and finishes on Richmond International Raceway with a lap at the beginning and one at the end.
Hartwood 10 Mile – Hartwood, VA 1996 to 2007, 2011 to 2013, best time 1:12:54 in 1997, Bill Brook’s long run loop, in the first year, there were no subdivisions inside the loop
YMCA 4-Hour Run – Fredericksburg, VA, 1994 to 1998, best result 28.75 miles in 1996, laps on the dirt track around Pratt Park. Good long run for fall marathons.
Groundhog Fall 50 km – Punxsutawney, PA, 2001, 6:47:38, the last hill goes up 400 feet in ¼ mile. The local motorcycle riders call it “two beers,” as that is how much they drank before they tried it.
Stonewall Jackson 20 Mile – Spotsylvania, VA, 2003 to 2005, best time 2:44:48 in 2003, the original course started at Brock Road Elementary to the Courthouse via Route 3 and other back roads.
Children’s Hospital 24 hours – Woodsfield, OH, 1997, 90 miles, a one-mile loop with 9 left turns. 90 miles in 20 hours before the wheels came off.
MCM 17.75 km – Dumfries, VA, 2019, 1:54:27, beautiful mix of trails and roads in Prince William Forest Park.
Blue Gray Half-Marathon – Fredericksburg, VA, 2002 to 2006, 2020, 2021, best time 1:46:49 in 2006, the original Half-Marathon in Fredericksburg. The course has varied over time as the region has grown.
Charlottesville 10 Mile – Charlottesville, VA, 1995, 1998, best time 1:12:16 in 1995, a tour of the grounds, Vinegar Hill, and the downtown mall.
DHRT 50 km – King George, VA, 2021, 6:46:52, local, flat and fast with few tripping hazards entirely on dirt.
Over the years, I’ve run 146 different races and finished some of them multiple times. To some, this is not a large number of various events. Over the years, I’ve had some memorable races and have been able to rank my favorite races. If I couldn’t visualize the course and remember how I felt, I moved a race down my rankings.
Other races on my list