I’ve detailed my ten favorite races and 40 more races I enjoyed. Now for my ten least favorite races, in no particular order.
Maple Leaf Marathon – Fairlee, VT 2021, 6:30:27, four hilly loops on a paved road around a lake. Not much shade with very few runners.
Lake Chicot Marathon – Lake Village, AR 2022, 5:54:36, 14 out and back laps with two 180-degree turns and 18 other turns per lap. Each lap had a quarter mile of potholed gravel road.
Loriella CC – Spotsylvania, VA, 2006, 2007, best time 24:24 in 2006, too many hills. The race used the same course as the Chancellor Invitational for many years.
Wichita Falls Cement Marathon – Wichita Falls, TX, 2013, 5:59:37, On a cement path parallel to a drainage channel. The surface was unforgiving, especially after running a marathon the day before. I spent the entire day DFL.
Vic’s Hurricane 5km – Fredericksburg, VA, 1999, 22:04, 12 ½ laps of JM’s track. I was scheduled to run a 5km that was canceled, and I decided to go out in the tropical storm and run a race alone. It was a little wet.
Herb Parsons Marathon – Collierville, TN, 2018, 7:04:49, a two-loop course on a winding single-track trail around a lake. 13 miles per loop in about 3 square miles. There were little ups and downs to make it more interesting. A frozen course on the first loop turned to mud on the second. My marathon PR is faster than both half-marathon splits.
FARC Cross Country 5km – Fredericksburg, VA, 2004, 2005, 2008, best time 25:08 in 2004, the same course at Pratt Park that JM uses. Never felt comfortable or fast.
Prediction 5km – Fredericksburg, VA, 1993, 1994, best time 20:59 in 1994, the course was not well measured to be close to a 5km, no traffic monitors. Start and Finish were at Kenmore Park. I don’t remember who organized the race.
Wichita Falls Dirt Marathon – Wichita Falls, TX, 2013, 5:50:36, a two-loop course using a mountain bike cross course. 13 miles per loop with 11 miles in 1 square mile. The trail construction kept bike riders entertained.
MCRRC Ekiden 5km – Rockville, MD, 1997, 20:32. There were ten teams of five runners each. The relay legs were 10km, 3km, 8km, 1km, and 5km. The Dead Runner’s Society formed teams and needed a runner to fill one of the 5km legs. I drove to Rockville for this event. By the time I got the baton, we were DFL. When I finished, all the other runners had departed, even my relay teammates. This race is my least favorite.
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Over the years, I’ve run 149 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.
The favorite races on my list
#1 JFK 50 Mile
#6 Marine Corps Historic Half Marathon
Honorable Mentions:
Races between 5km and 10 Miles