A 50.5-mile loop starting and finishing at the Grayson Highlands Visitor Center, climbing onto the open highland balds -- treeless summits kept open by a managed herd of wild ponies -- with an out-and-back spur through Skulls Gap in the middle of the course before returning via Seed Orchard and Camp Store. 'This is not a hiker friendly course! You can be back of the pack but you MUST do some running to keep on pace to finish under this time.'
ATRA: 'more single track than you can imagine,' '100% on un-paved trails,' 'VERY rocky/technical sections,' waterfalls, streams, rhododendron tunnels and 100+ year old stone walls. Handbook FAQ ranks this course 'Advanced.' Weather: 'Famously this race and the Grayson Highlands can get insane weather. In spots, especially on the ultras, you are fully exposed on high mountain tops with no trees... High winds of 30-50 mph are common. Whiteout fog, rain and snow have all happened during our race.' Course shape: the middle of the course (Fox Creek mi 15.60 to Skulls Gap mi 25.75 to Little Laurel back to Fox Creek mi 35.65) is effectively an out-and-back spur off the loop; see _meta.notes. GPX track measures 50.02 mi against the published/chart total of 50.50 mi.
A 50 Mile, 50K and 25K trail race sharing one start/finish at the Grayson Highlands State Park Visitor Center in Mouth of Wilson, Virginia, crossing the open, treeless highland balds where a managed herd of wild ponies roams. The course runs over Little Pinnacle / Haw Orchard Mountain at 5,089 feet, described by the American Trail Running Association as the highest race in Virginia, with views of Mount Rogers, the state's highest point.
Run Bum Tours' own registration page calls the 2027 edition the '13th annual Grayson Highlands trail races,' implying a 2015 first year, corroborated by ultrasignup.com's own results archive for this event listing back to 2015. The American Trail Running Association's event page separately states a first year of 2018, a conflict recorded here rather than resolved (see _meta.notes). The 50K-specific results on UltraSignup go back to 2016 and the 50 Mile distance's results only as far as 2020, consistent with the event having grown its distance lineup over time, though no source states this directly.
| Mile | Station | Cutoff | Crew | Bag | Pacer | Med | To next |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0.00 | Grayson Highlands Visitor Center | ? | ● | ? | · | ? | 15.60 |
| 15.60 | Fox Creek | 10:10am | ● | ? | · | ? | 5.65 |
| 21.25 | Little Laurel | 12:00pm | · | · | · | ? | 4.50 |
| 25.75 | Skulls Gap (Crew Access) | 1:10pm | ● | · | · | ? | 4.65 |
| 30.40 | Little Laurel | 2:55pm | · | · | · | ? | 5.25 |
| 35.65 | Fox Creek | 4:45pm | ● | ● | · | ? | 6.60 |
| 42.25 | Seed Orchard | 7:15pm | · | · | · | ? | 6.25 |
| 48.50 | Camp Store | 8:35pm | · | · | · | ? | 2.00 |
| 50.50 | Grayson Highlands Visitor Center | 9:30pm | ● | ? | · | ? | ? |
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