Your Stories
RUNNER QUOTES: “We had an absolutely fantastic time… We have never run in such beautiful country… The most fun we’ve had in years… One of the most scenic runs I have ever run… Can’t say enough about the volunteers, friendliness, cheerfulness and support… Congratulations to you and your staff on another great event… Course was spectacular… Aid stations were most excellent… Great trail marking… My favorite run… We’ll be back every year… just a quick note to thank you for one of the most extraordinary experiences I’ve ever had. This was my first ultra, as well as my first trail run and I couldn’t be happier right now.”
2011
Glenn Christenson
Just a quick note of thanks for the most challenging, most beautiful race I have ever run! the trails were breathtakingly gorgeous, so well marked from beginning to end (which had to be a major undertaking for you to complete) and the stream crossings were just plain fun! My Garmin showed 4,200 feet of total ascent. Such a sense of accomplishment to finish it, and the variety of sights along the way contributed to an experience I won’t ever forget! And one last note — your volunteers were the friendliest I have experienced in any of my 55+ races. The aid stations were also stocked with such a variety of items including Advil I needed for a swollen ankle and delicious pbj sandwiches, skittles, m&ms, pringles and assorted drinks including COKE!! The post race chicken was as delicious as promised!
Thank you THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!
Dave Woll
I just wanted to say I had a great time this past Saturday running the race. What a beautiful place to run. I just wanted to pass on my thanks to all the people that put this race together and for the volunteers being out there providing support. They were all really great people and friendly. I also wanted to say you have some great folks in your town. There was one gentleman sitting out on his deck (lot’s of pickup trucks in the yard) watching as we went by saying hello to everyone and asking if we needed anything and then further along (I believe when we crossed the road and over a small bridge to aid station 5) another individual left out a cooler with water bottles and a nice sign encouraging the runners. Last was getting to the finish and walking in to that great meal and just enjoying everyone’s company.
Again great job with the race – keep up the good work.
2009
William Potts
Thanks to you and ALL the volunteers for another GREAT Capon Valley 50K. This race has it all including small town hospitality, a great race venue, a FANTASTIC race course and an unbeatable post race meal. I want the recipe for the homemade curry salad dressing. Dang that was good. Almost as good as the table of incredible deserts, not to mention the half grilled chicken I inhaled before desert.
I drove up Friday evening and was greeted by some very kind volunteers who helped me swing my pop up camper around and get it all set up. Not too many campers this year because of all the rain. Moving up the race start to 7 am was perfect in helping runners avoid the mid-day heat. This year it was a bit humid, but luckily the cloud cover helped protect us from the heat. The course was wet from all the rain we’ve had this spring, and I rather enjoyed dipping my hat in the cool mountain streams to cool off.
People forget how challenging of a course Capon Valley can be. I really like it because it is ever changing and has a little bit of everything (nice single track, jeep trail, mountain trail, steep climbs, bombing down hills and gravel road). Just when you get tired of running one section, you make a turn and have something completely different.
But the best part of Capon Valley are its volunteers who generously donate their day to help us Ultra Runners enjoy a lovely day in the West Virginia Woods.
Scott Millar
I want to thank everyone involved in organizing the Capon 50K. This was my first time running it and everyone was so nice and helpful! The trails were beautiful and the water crossings were fun and refreshing! Please pass on my appreciation to everyone involved for their efforts and hospitality. I’m sure I’ll be back next year.
Gary Bruner
I had a fabulous time. The planning and all the support volunteers were great, plus the course markings were the best I have ever seen.
Heather Schaffer
I ran the Capon Valley 50K for the first time on Saturday. This was a great race and course. It was so well-organized. The volunteers were exceptional – so friendly and helpful. Also, the food was fantastic! I especially loved the chicken, salad dressings, and home made desserts (with perfect pie crusts). I liked being one of the first twenty-five finishers, so that I could pick from the ‘goody’ table. I chose a vanilla pound cake, which is great – but my thighs kind of wished I had picked the fresh eggs. They would have been a great treat, too.
Jack Burckhart
Robin, just a quick note to thank you for one of the most extraordinary experinces I’ve ever had. This was my first ultra, as well as my first trail run and I couldn’t be happier right now. I didn’t start running until I was in my fifties and decided to lose some weight and start getting healthier. I ended up losing 80 pounds through the Weight Watcher’s program and become a leader myself. I started running as I lost my weight and signed up for a couple 5K’s in my area and liked the feeling it gave me to both be able to run and to help someone else out. A co-worker talked me into joining a local running club (FleetFeet Buffalo) and I eventually started running longer and longer. When someone mentioned trying a marathon I almost choked at the idea, telling them that I would never be able to do that. I should have known better having already been through several life changes. To date I’ve completed 5 full marathons and several halfs and now your run. I don’t know how I stumbled accross the site for this run but I am so glad I did. What an experience! The course, the runners and certainly not least of all the volunteers. I was truly touched by the caring nature of every one of them at the aid stations. In particular there was a young man at the last station that was very encouraging when I was struggling terribly. I wish I would have gotten his name, I would love to thank him (and all of them) personally. Thank you again for such a wonderful experience. Hope to do this one again in the future.
”Pain is temporary, pride is forever.”
2008
Kev and Faye Hawn
For 10 years you have put on a great run that we never want to miss. 10 years of sun and rain, mud and stream crossings good friends and good chicken! And for my 10th year I managed to finish 10th. Having run with the front of the pack and hiked the turtle position, I have had the opportunity to see all the hills and wonders of your little piece of WV country. Many thanks are due to all your folks again.
Peggy Ankney
I’m a 5+ hour road marathoner so I was a bit worried when, after my husband registered us for this race, I learned that the time limit was just 8 hours. I had most recently completed the Terrapin Mountain “Marathon” (29.8 miles; 7:54) and Promise Land (50k+; 9:08). The race starts late for an ultra, and last year it was hot and humid so this race could be my first DNF. Fortunately, the weather was cool and rainy, perfect for running all day. The scenery was so beautiful that there were times when I had to stop and briefly admire the view. I had a little trouble accessing the Clip2 from the jacket I had tied around my waist, and I lost one packet somewhere on the trail, so any gains I had made as I tore down the hills were lost fumbling at the aid stations. But the volunteers were extremely helpful and the M&M’s much appreciated, a feeling I don’t share about the steep but short hills. But the 40 stream crossings kept my feet cool and the soft, muddy trails cushioned my footfalls, which no doubt contributed to my ability to not only make the time cutoffs, but to PR with a surprising 6:55. As if that weren’t enough to guarantee my return next year, they served vegetarian BBQ ribs at the post-race meal. The money raised from the event supports the local community, and the course consists of a series of trails on private property, which likely explains why we couldn’t find a course map online. I met some wonderful people, both runners and locals, and I went away feeling that it was an absolutely delightful day. Thanks to the Capon Valley Ruritan Club for a terrific experience!
Kimberly Pack and Jill Montaquila
We just wanted to thank you so much for putting together such a wonderful event! This is the first time we’ve participated in the
Capon 50K, and will definitely become a yearly event for us. Actually, this was my first Ultra (ok, well the first time I ran a distance
longer than 18 miles), and I cannot imagine a more beautiful or fun course!
Thanks again, and we’ll see you next year!
Win Apel
Great job running this race. You even came up with great weather! I will recommend it to everyone interested in a WV run
Harvey Sugar
I just wanted to let you know that I had a wonderful time and a lot of fun running the Capon Valley 50K. Everything was well done. The course
was beautiful, challenging, and had a lot of variety. All of the volunteers were so friendly and helpful I felt like I was family. The
aid stations had the best snacks and drinks.
I didn’t mind the creek crossings at all. In fact, they added to the fun factor. I have to confess that near the end of the race, I just stood in the middle of one of the creeks for a few minutes because the cold water felt so good on my tired feet. Besides, there were just enough creeks to wash the mud off.
This was my first 50K and I don’t expect any in the future to be as fantastic an experience as this one was. I hope to make this a yearly event for me for as long as I’m able to run. Thanks to all.
Rhonda Hampton
Thank you and your volunteers so much for a beautiful, if wet, run on Saturday. The race lived up to everything I had read or heard about it. The only surprise I had was that the difficultly level was more challenging that I expected because of all the wonderful things I had read and heard. I guess that shows that ultra runners forget the hard if it is heavily out weighed by the really good. This run was all good from the friendly and helpful volunteers to gorgeous views, peaceful very run-able paths, cool feet healing stream crossings and the “not a better way to finish the race” barbeque dinner.
Thank you and all the race managers for taking time out of your schedule to pull this race together and providing a great gift to the ultra running community. .
Diana Boehm
I just checked out the website for results and read your comment about our emails concerning the creek levels. You know, going into the race I was concerned about the creeks since this was my first 50K and first trail run with water crossings. I have to say I thoroughly enjoyed them! The entire experience wouldn’t have been so memorable without the thick mud, rushing water crossings, steep hills (!) and beautiful scenery. What an awesome event! The volunteers were excited for each runner, even those of us in the very back. Keep up the good work and I’ll be sure to spread the word around the Austin, Texas area about this gem of a trail race!
Kendra Horger
You all put on such a fabulous race. From the friendly volunteers to the offering of vegetarian barbecue (which bbq I’ve enjoyed for 2 years now), the Capon Valley 50k is truly the most hospitable race I’ve run. This is my second year running, and my second time being pleasantly surprised at how downhill the last three miles were. I love running by the horses again at your barn towards the end.
Jason Bryant
A long workday, a five hour drive, pitching your tent in the rain after midnight sounds like a great start to a weekend. Most of the people reading this would probably say the same. Personally, I picked the Capon Valley 50K just try someplace new and get the bad taste out of my mouth from the last race. The choice turned out to be a good one. At the pre-race instruction, Robin tells us that the course is well marked. She and her crew had flagged it on horseback. She says that we should almost be able to see from one flag to the next and if we get lost it is OUR fault. I had heard rumors of such things before, but had never seen this bigfootesk phenomenon. It turned out to be true, which was actually a good thing on this unique course. The race is run mostly on private land, so lots of turns and lots of turns NOT to take. There is 2 miles or less on asphalt at the start and finish. The course is run on some gravel roads, single tracks, grass fields, and many old, seldom used, woodland roads. Some places the course ran over woodland that didn’t look like a trail at all, a rare experience. Having no idea of the course profile, I asked a returning runner about the course. His input was that it is flat… for West Virginia. West Virginia is called the Mountain State. So lots of up and down, some steep, some long, but actually nothing long and steep. An accurate description of what I found as my feet discovered this new course. I was surprised that no one mentioned the stream crossings. If you don’t care for water, don’t run this race because these people like to cross creeks. As one runner asked at the excellent post-race meal, “Did anyone count all those stream crossings?” Another runner replied, “I lost count at 18 around halfway.” If the course ran along a stream instead of just crossing it, we mostly likely would crisscross it 6-10 times. We were also blessed to be splashing through these streams after a night of regular rain. So small mountain streams were now knee deep large streams. The rain that started over night continued off and on through most of the race, so an added gratuity was the mud. Personally, I was pleased to have a comfortable smooth race and to come away with a win in 3:55:55. Robin Kane and Karsten Brown took second and third in 4:24 and 4:26. The top female was Kendra Horgeer in 5:07 with Bridget Wildt and Tina Genay rounding out the top three in 5:20 and 5:24. By the way, the timing was done with a bedroom alarm clock. It was held up at the start as we walked up to the line after the national anthem. The guy just simply said, “I guess you can start running.” A simple timing method, but it works as good as any. I liked it. The camaraderie of runners at the post-race meal was great as usual. We talked of living cheap to afford our acceptable addiction and traded stories of races and the ones we would recommend. This race definitely fits that category. It has a unique course, especially since it runs over several of the locals’ private land. If you are new to trails or ultras and concerned of getting lost, this is your course to try the trails. If you get lost, it truly is your fault. The race is put on by members of the Capon Valley community, assisted by volunteers from the Capon Valley Ruritan Club (which lets them use the building and grounds) and the Capon Springs Volunteer Fire and Rescue Squad. I was surprised to find they are all non-runners who do a great job. An excited community with the friendliness of West Virginia, they have a large group of volunteers with well-stocked and supported aid stations. You can camp at the start/finish for free and there are showers to go home clean. All of this makes Capon Valley 50K one of those little known races that really is a must do.
