Roanoke Valley Weighted Race

Enjoy the beauty of Fables and Feathers vineyards while logging some miles with friends and supporting the furry friends at Southwest Virginia Wildlife Center! This beginner-friendly four-mile route winds in and around the vines and property at Fables and Feathers, and the epic finish line of sipping and socializing awaits you! Rather than traditional timing for this event, Wine 4 Wildlife 4-miler overall male and female winners will be crowned based on closest to their PREDICTED FINISH TIME. That's right, all participants who wish to be eligible for the prediction run prizes will leave all watches/phones/devices at the start line and wind through the vineyard without any technology. Participation in the prediction run challenge is optional, but you must denote prior to race day whether or not you wish to participate in the challenge. The male and female participants closest to their predicted finish time will win a prize package from Hoka and our friends at Fables and Feathers Winery!

ALL finishers receive a limited-edition Wine 4 Wildlife wine-stopper medal- then present your medal at the tasting room for a free glass of Fables and Feathers wine! Additional tastings and purchases available onsite. Tasting room stays open late just for us, let's thank our event hosts at Fables and Feathers by supporting their small business! Event merchandise will also be available for purchase as well so bring your trail shoes and your thirst for fun- it's going to be a great day to walk, jog, run, and have fun for a great cause! Don't forget, our event overlaps with the Christmas in July event at Fables and Feathers so wear your festive Santa gear and earn $20 in store credit just for displaying your holiday spirit!

The 2026 High-Performance Distance Academy is scheduled for July 13th to the 18th, 2026.

The focus of the camp is training and is recommended for motivated runners. All abilities are welcome; the only requirement is the desire to be better. Camp Website: www.CrossCountryRunningCamp.com

HOUSING AND DINING | All campers will eat, sleep, and live in the same manner as a student-athlete at Virginia Tech. Campers will be housed in an on-campus air-conditioned Tech dormitory located close to training facilities. On-campus dining facilities will feed our campers and are only a short walk from both the dorms and athletic fields. Meals are all-you-can-eat and have an impressive variety of culinary styles and options to choose from. Virginia Tech’s Dining Facilities have been ranked #1 in the nation for college campuses for several years!

TRAINING WEEK | Training will be based on individual experience. Our goal is a motivating and meaningful week of camp without injuries or over-training. Most days of camp will include two-a-day runs, but each run provides athletes with a choice between three distances and or often an option for yoga instead of running. Campers will also complete a pool workout, circuits, plyometrics, and daily strength training. Run routes throughout the week include time on the Virginia Tech Cross Country Course, Jefferson National Forest, and a vast network of trails surrounding Blacksburg and the Virginia Tech campus. There will also be plenty of free time to rest and hang out with new friends or jump into games of beach volleyball, ultimate frisbee, or pick-up basketball. Additional camp-wide activities in the past have included Mt. Lake recreation area, river tubing, hiking to the picturesque Cascades waterfall, and a day on the beach at Claytor Lake.

ELIGIBILITY & COST | Girls and boys entering grades 8th – 12th are eligible to come to camp, whether you are new to the sport of running or a seasoned veteran. We also allow graduating high school seniors entering their freshman year of college to attend camp, as long as the participant is under the age of 19 when camp starts. Middle school-age campers can attend camp but are strongly urged to have an adequate training base before attending. A $75.00 deposit is paid when registering and then the remainder is due when you receive your packet in late June. The cost of attendance is as follows (the deposit is subtracted from the total). So the prices below include the deposit.

Athlete - $775.00 ($760.00 for 5 or more of the same team, $745.00 for 10 or more!)

Commuter Athlete – $625.00 (includes breakfast, lunch & dinner/ NO room)

Sunday early drop off (July 12th) - $160 additional fee; includes lunch, dinner, campus room, and chaperone coverage.

Coaches – $705.00 ** Coach free with six athletes and assigned camp position. Another coach can also come with 12 athletes.

Commuter Coach- $550.00 (includes breakfast/lunch/dinner/ No room) **

ATHLETES CHALLENGED | The goal of the Academy is to challenge each athlete and get them started off on the right foot for the summer. We don’t do 100-mile weeks, but we do train smart. With the help of the counselors, athletes choose both which runs to do and how far to go during each run. Given all of the options, a typical week of camp accommodates around 18 miles for beginners and up to 60 or more for experienced athletes. The campers will run with some of the best distance runners in the country and learn to train their way. we want everyone to leave the Academy motivated, excited, healthy, and ready for a great season.

STAFF | The High-Performance Staff is one of the best groups of any camp out there in terms of ability, experience, enthusiasm, and excitement for the sport of running. Past editions have included Olympians, NCAA National Champions, NCAA and High School All-Americans, Footlocker and NXN finalists, and experienced and successful college and high school coaches. With a counselor-to-athlete ratio of just over 1:10, athletes truly get an unbeatable level of time commitment and guidance they deserve from an incredible staff.

INDIVIDUAL GUIDANCE | A hallmark of High Performance is the individuality provided to each of our campers. With our high counselor-to-athlete ratio, athletes can spend a lot of time getting to know their counselor and often continue to be mentored long after the conclusion of camp. Many of our counselors also return year after year and can continue guiding their past campers on an even more individualized basis. The week is capped off with a one-on-one meeting discussing each athlete’s specific goals and offering advice not only in the sport of running, but also in academics, recruiting, and life in general. Typically ranging from 30 minutes to over two hours apiece, these meetings allow campers to bridge what they’ve learned at camp to their own lives. Athletes leave camp with a personal evaluation of their physical skills (running form, general strength, endurance, etc.), goals, and words of encouragement from their counselor.

TIME FRAME | One of the biggest praises received from the coaches of our campers is the time frame during which camp takes place. Most running camps take place at the end of the summer just before the start of the cross-country season, a time that is too late to start training to have a successful season. High Performance occurs much earlier in the summer in hopes of getting athletes motivated to start training sooner in the year. Over and over again, we hear from coaches whose athletes have attended camp and show up to the first day of practice in great shape because of the training that continued after the conclusion of camp. They enter the cross-country season with a solid base and are ready for a great season as a result.

LOCATION | Blacksburg, Virginia is repeatedly chosen by multiple publications as both one of the Best Small Towns to Live In and the Best Place to Raise Children throughout the United States. Located in the heart of the Appalachian Mountains, Blacksburg offers ideal running weather dominated by warm days and cool evenings, as well as ideal running terrain at 2000 feet above sea level with both rolling hills and mountain climbs often dipping over 3000 feet. The Virginia Tech campus connects to extensive bike paths and trail networks and is surrounded by the Jefferson National Forest. During camp, athletes will have the opportunity to run on a grass cross-country course that played host to the 2012 and 2019 ACC Championships and 2024 VHSL State championships. Campers will also partake in a hill climb run and hike at Mountain Lake where the movie Dirty Dancing was filmed, and where Lance Armstrong won a stage race during the 1995 and 1996 Tour DuPont. This area of the country is an incredible

place to train!

VIRGINIA TECH | Virginia Tech has one of the most beautiful campuses in the country marked by the famous Hokie Stone buildings, state-of-the-art facilities, and historic tradition in strong academics and athletics. Athletes will be housed in one of Tech’s residence halls, giving them a feel for what life is like in college. Virginia Tech is famed for having one of the finest food establishments in the nation after being ranked #1 nationally for college dining. Campers will eat at Dietrich Dining Hall, which offers a wide variety of choices to keep athletes eating healthy and often!

WE RUN and HAVE A LOT OF FUN! | In between training, we will hike, swim, and play plenty of beach volleyball, ultimate frisbee, basketball, and giant soccer. Camp is capped off with a talent show full of laughs and, of course, forming lasting relationships with new friends from around the country. It truly is an incredible week!

Join our 10th annual Camp Bethel PEP! 5K Run and Walk fundraiser! This 5K race covers some of the many trails, fields, and forests on the 470 acres of Camp Bethel, making it ideal for runners who wear spikes. ​Your fee (and sponsors) will benefit Camp Bethel. $40.00 Participant Fee includes fully stocked water/aid stations, a race t-shirt and swag, pre-and-post-race snacks and drinks, BRUNCH, good ole fashioned PEP!, and fun for everyone. Register by August 21, 2026 to guarantee your race t-shirt! Sponsor the run to make it more fun! Join us: for health, for fellowship, and for Camp Bethel!

The Shorefire 25K and 10K take runners on a scenic tour linking the Smith Mountain Lake State Park trail system. The park’s stunning lake views are easy to enjoy thanks to well-maintained doubletrack trails, with open stretches of shoreline and a variety of native forest terrain. Flat, fast sections are balanced with several punchy climbs to keep things interesting.

25K:

The 25K course starts and finishes at the Beach Pavilion. The first 0.2 miles heads up the main parking lot and along the road, giving runners space to spread out before turning right at the Playground parking lot and heading into a flat, runnable section of doubletrack trail. Overall, the course is fast and mostly nontechnical, with a little over 1800 feet of elevation gain spread across rolling hills. The biggest challenge may not be the terrain; it’s resisting distraction from the beautiful lake views along the way.

Because Smith Mountain Lake State Park has an extensive trail network with multiple connectors, the 25K includes several turns and a few lollipop sections. The route will be clearly marked with blue flagging and directional arrows, and an official GPX file is available for runners who prefer to follow the course on a GPS watch:

https://www.mapmyrun.com/routes/view/6673167949

As a general rule of thumb for the 25K, most (though not all) turns are right turns, and runners will spend much of the course with Smith Mountain Lake on their right-hand side. While the trail system is expansive, runners are never far from a road or connector trail.

10K:

The 10K course starts and finishes at the Beach Pavilion, with about 700 feet of elevation gain. The first 0.2 miles heads up the main parking lot and along the road, giving runners space to spread out before turning left across from the Playground parking lot and dropping into Walton Creek Trail.

This early section includes the only technical portion of the 10K, but it’s short-lived. Once runners reach the bottom of the hill, the course opens up into flat, runnable doubletrack. The route then passes behind the Visitor Center and connects to the Five Oaks Trail. About a half mile into the trail system, runners turn right onto a 3-mile lollipop loop before returning the same way and heading back up Walton Creek Trail to the finish.

The course will be clearly marked with pink flagging and directional arrows, and an official GPX file will be available for runners who prefer to follow the route on a GPS watch.

Both courses start and finish at the Beach Pavilion, with easy access to parking, restrooms, and spectator-friendly areas. Bathrooms are available at multiple points along the course, including: the Beach Pavilion (start/finish); the Playground area (near the start/finish); Discovery Center; and Visitor Center.

Note: Elevation gain shown on the MapMyRun link appears lower due to GPS smoothing. Official course elevation gain is approximately 1,800 feet for the 25K and 700 feet for the 10K, based on barometric data from on-course recordings.

Aid Stations

Several aid stations will be placed along the 25K route. The first stop will be an unmanned water-only station. All the rest will offer runner-friendly race fuel, including Tailwind, water, bananas, oranges, PB&J, chips, candy and more.

25K aid

Mile 3.5: Unmanned water stop

Mile 4.85: Campfire Amphitheater, featuring gorgeous lake views

Mile 10: Campground

Mile 12: Five Oaks Trail loop

Mile 15: Unmanned water stop

10K aid

The 10K will share the Five Oaks Trail aid station (mile 2.75) and the unmanned water stop where Walton Creek Trail connects to the Visitor Center parking lot (mile 1.5 and 5).

Volunteers will be stationed at key junctions. Aid stations are positioned to support runners through the most demanding -- and scenic --sections of the course. Many of these locations are also ideal spots for friends and family to gather and cheer runners on.

The race begins and ends at the covered Beach Pavilion. Spectators are welcome to enjoy the park while runners are on the course. Smith Mountain Lake State Park is very family-friendly, with a playground, picnic areas, and a sandy beach. Please note that no lifeguard is on duty at this time of year, and swimming is at your own risk.

Friends of Smith Mountain Lake State Park will be featured as the official charity partner for Shorefire, with an option to donate directly to their work during registration. Donations support park programs, educational events, and trail stewardship.

Detailed turn-by-turn directions will be sent to registered runners prior to race day.

Parking & Park Entry

Smith Mountain Lake State Park charges a daily vehicle entry fee. To avoid congestion and delays at the park entrance on race morning, the park entry fee will be included in race registration. This allows runners and spectators to drive directly into the park without stopping at the gate, helping ensure an on-time start. Runners who hold an annual Virginia State Parks pass should note that the entry fee is still included in registration and cannot be removed or refunded.