This was the Inaugural Luray Half Marathon. I picked up my packet the day of the race with no issues. I was dropped off, but there didn't appear to be a lot of accessible parking.

The start is in the middle of town and consisted of mostly rural, countryside terrain. The views were very nice and scenic. If you like to see crowds and have people cheering you on, then you will be disappointed. Much of the course is devoid of any people, and the cows will greatly outnumber any spectators. I prefer this type of scenery, so for me it was ideal.

There seemed to be a lot of water stations, at least every couple of miles. The course was had a few areas of hills. Despite the notice that it was all downhill after the second half of the course, the last mile has a very steep hill.

My only complaint was the course was open to traffic, and there was a couple of times that cars passed by going very fast, and very close. Most of the roads, are back county roads with no shoulder, so it can be dangerous when cars choose not to slow down.

The finish line was in town and ended at a local brewery which opened for the race crowd and provided the first beer for free. Sandwiches were also provided. The swag consisted of a shirt, nice medal, and socks. The race also provided free photos.

Overall, a very nice race that I would do again.

The race is a point to point race, starting and ending at two different parks, which is a nice change of pace from other races.

Arrival is at the finish line, where there is plenty of parking. Several shuttles (school buses) take runners to the start line. The run is mostly through the country side with great views of the mountains, and fields. The first half of the race on country roads with almost no traffic. After about the half way point, the traffic can pick up as you transition to larger roads with heavier traffic. The course is rolling and you have several hilly sections that can be taxing.

Aid stations are well placed, and one does provide GU packets. If you like cheering crowds, you'll be disappointed as most of the run is devoid of people, which I actually like.

As you get near the finish line and enter the park, you run on a gravel road that I found a little difficult. The gravel was large, and by this point my feet were hurting.

At the finish line you get a nice medal and a running hat which was very nice. Standard bagels and bananas at the end as well.

Overall a very nice race that I will do again.

This was my first time running this race, and I plan to run it again this year (2019).

Overall a well organized race. Packet pick up was the day before the race at the Freedom Center in Manassas. The provided shirt was high quality and nicely designed. They also have an extra shirt for sale that has all the runners names on the back. Very cool idea. They also have long sleeve quarter zip up shirts that are very nice. All the extra shirts are fairly expensive. I found out that the day of the race, all of these shirts are half price. There seem to be plenty left in all sizes, so I would recommend you hold off until after the race and buy any extras at that time. They also have pint glasses, and other swag for sale.

Parking is at Jiffy Lube live, so its a very large gravel lot. There are people directing you when you enter, so you have to park where they tell you. There are porta potties outside before you enter, however wait until you get inside where they have regular bathrooms. I didnt notice any lines for either the men's or women's bathrooms.

The race itself is self corraling, so you can line up anywhere. There is a fairly steep hill about a mile into the race (and the last mile as well since its the same return). The road goes up and over 66; not so bad starting, but seems to get steeper on teh way back. :) The couse is mostly rural and scenic with out and backs through various parts of the battlefield parks. I stayed with one of the pacers, and it was a great experience. He was very motivating, and hit every mile exactly on pace.

Post race, you get a meal and drink ticket. There are various vendors set up at the concession booths for Liffy Lube live. I used my ticket to get a BBQ pork sandwich and coleslaw. The drink ticket can be used to get a free beer from a local brewrey.

Overall, i recommend the race, and recommend using one of the various pacers. I was able to beat my previous half PR by also 10 minutes using the pacer.

I choose this as my first half marathon based on magazine reviews of this being a top race in Virginia. I can only assume there was a management change since that review as this was a horribly, bordering on criminal, managed race.

Since i live about 2 hours away from the race location, i choose to have my race packet mailed to me. It cost $20. About a week before the race, I received an envelope with just the bib. I still had to show up in person to get the rest of the swag.....thus defeating the purpose of paying $20 to avoid going to packet pickup in person. I spent the night near the packet pickup, so i was able to get there in time to get my packet. They provide a long sleeve, quarter zip up shirt which was very nice.

The race advertised a free shuttle since there was no parking at the race start location. I reserved my hotel within walking distance of the shuttle stop so i didnt have to have anyone drive me in the morning. A few days before the race, they announced that they were cancelling the shuttle due to a lower than expected attendance. I now had to coordinate to have someone drive me to the start.

The start seemed ok, and the race couse was nice. The entire George Washington Parkway is closed, and the views of the Potomac River where very nice. At about mile 10, you cross onto the Woodrow Wilson Bridge via a narrow path. For the next several miles everyone is shoulder to shoulder on this path until you exit the bridge with less than a mile until the finish.

The post party was suppose to include food, entertainment and a free beer from a local brewery. What we got was an ice cold hot dog, a choice of a bud lite or miller lite, and zero entertainment. They also announced that they didnt have any medals! They didnt arrive yet, and they would mail them to everyone. Initially there was good commuinication via email that medals had arrived and would be mailed out soon. Then zero communication. Nothing was mailed out, and they no longer replied to emails. They also ran out of shirts, and many people didnt get those. Be very wary of signing up for this race, if its held again. At the time of this review, the website was no longer up, so maybe its defunct.