RIP, Biltmore races

Sad news that the Biltmore 15k and 5k races will no longer be held at the Biltmore Estate in Asheville after this year -- and it's already full this year. Biltmore is creating some new attractions that will occupy the space previously used by the race staging and finishing areas. The races were a big fundraiser each year benefiting and organized by the Kiwanis Club of Asheville.

I ran the Biltmore 15k in 2007 and always hoped I would be able to go run it again. It is definitely a challenging course, with alternating uphill and downhill miles near the beginning, but when you make that right-hand turn and make the trip down the great entranceway to the Biltmore house, it's very, very impressive. (And would be an excellent spot for race pictures.) I was also very impressed when we ran through the gardens just behind the house; it seemed like a special treat for the runners, and it was just as much a highlight as running past the Biltmore front doors.

Congrats to you if you got into the Biltmore during its too-short life! Treasure that race shirt, because there won't be any more of them! (but let's hope the race comes back in some form in the future)