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The Friends Of The Chessie Trail (FOCT) are making preparations for their eighth annual Run The Chessie day on the Chessie Nature Trail, to be held Saturday, Nov. 4.
The races cover nearly the entire length of the Chessie Nature Trail, and are the biggest fundraiser of the year for FOCT, with all proceeds going towards improvement to the trail.
The races include a marathon, half marathon, 10K, 5K, and marathon relay.
All registrants receive a custom tech shirt, race decal, and custom finisher medal. Aid stations with snacks, water and Gatorade are set up throughout the trail and food is provided at the finish line. Top finishers receive medals and prizes, and age-group winners also receive medals.
The marathon relay has three divisions, male, female, and coed, and the winning team in each division receives a trophy. Cash prizes are also awarded for any course records set.
Walkers are welcome in the half marathon, 10K, and 5K. All four race courses are USATF certified, and the marathon is a Boston Qualifier.
This year the 10K race has been selected by USATFVirginia to host its Virginia 10K Championship, which is part of the Virginia Fall Distance Running Grand Prix. USATF members competing in the 10K will be eligible for additional medals and scoring points towards the Grand Prix’s $3,500 prize purse.
Race director Eric Sheffield stated that FOCT is thrilled to have been selected to host the Grand Prix race, and it is an honor recognizing the hard work of FOCT’s race committee and volunteers in developing a top-quality race in just a few short years.
Sheffield reported that registrations so far are way ahead of last year, when 500 runners signed up.
Race registration is open online. To register, runners and walkers can go to www.runthechessie. org. The one-time discount of 15% will continue through Sept. 30.
FOCT also encourages area runners and walkers to take advantage of www.runrockbridge. org, which they describe as a comprehensive collection of everything anyone who runs, or is thinking about running in Rockbridge, would want to know. The site includes a listing of all scheduled races in Rockbridge, archives and results from past races, links to resources and organizations available to runners, and an ever-expanding collection of favorite local runs.
For more information, Sheffield can be contacted at runthechessie@ gmail.com.
