Charlottesville Fall Classic Half Marathon & 10K

Sunday, October 15, 2023 • Charlottesville, VA • Course Map

Runners get the chance to run through one of Virginia’s most beautiful cities here in the hills of Albemarle County, just south of Shenandoah National Park, at the Charlottesville Fall Classic Half Marathon & 10K, which saw just over 400 runners cross the finish line last year.

Here in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, at the home of the Thomas Jefferson-designed University of Virginia campus during the fall when the fall foliage should be around its peak, the race takes runners on an out-and-back course that starts near Charlottesville’s Historic Downtown Mall, at Lee Park. From there, the course heads first through downtown along Market Street toward Riverview Park.

Once runners meet up with the trail along the water’s edge in Riverview Park, the course heads north and west for the next couple of miles as it winds along the banks of the Rivanna River.

They’ll follow the paved footpath all the way to the area where Darden Towe Park looks across from the other side of the river, and then turn left onto River Road for a brief stretch, and then onto Locust Avenue.

The campus of the University of Virginia in Charlottesville. (Photo by Phil Roeder/flickr)

Next, the course begins the stretch that takes runners north into the residential areas north of downtown, with a long stretch along the Rivanna Trail through the Willow Heights, Stonehenge and Dunlora areas.

The course makes a counter-clockwise loop around Dunlora Drive, Loring Run, Farrow Road and Belvedere Boulevard before turning back onto Rio Road for a brief stretch, and then turning runners back onto the Rivanna Trail for the return stretch back toward downtown.

The home stretch of the race includes all the same roads and turns runners made earlier in the race until they reach Calhoun Street and Locust Avenue. Instead of turning left onto Locust, they make a right and head south back toward downtown.

They’ll cross Market Street and turn right onto Water Street, which is followed by a less-than-a-mile-long stretch on Main Street to head back to the race finish line at the downtown mall. The race features a number of stretches through some of Charlottesville’s most historic neighborhoods, organizers note.

Downtown Charlottesville, Virginia. (Photo by Payton Chung/flickr)

Race Weather & Climate

Nestled along the banks of the Rivanna River in northern Virginia, about 70 miles northwest of Richmond and roughly 115 miles southwest of Washington, D.C., Charlottesville typically sees cool to moderately warm weather in October, which has brought record temperatures as low as 26°F (in 2001) and as high as 89°F (in 2007).

On race day (Oct. 15), the average low is 48ºF and the average high is 67ºF.

Past Results

Course Map

See the race route map for the Charlottesville Fall Classic Half Marathon here.

Starting Time

7:00 AM

Fees

  • $80 and up for the half marathon
  • $45 and up for the 10K

Registration

To reserve your spot in the 2023 running of the Charlottesville Fall Classic Half Marathon & 10K race, register online at Active.com here.

Official Race Website

www.badtothebone.biz

Comments

Ever run in the Charlottesville Fall Classic Half Marathon? Share your impressions here, or post your review in the Comments below.

See more races in: October, Virginia

2 comments… add one
  • Merris Stambaugh September 28, 2016, 11:49 am

    Last year’s course was actually short of 13 miles, presumably due to move in the start/finish line. Has this been fixed?

    Reply
  • joseph varaksa July 16, 2016, 7:47 am

    I feel like I registered for this race but cannot find the confirmation in my email. How can I confirm?

    Reply

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