Run as a benefit for the local nonprofit organization Literacy Volunteers of Marion County, the Run To Read Half Marathon takes the nearly 200 runners who show up each year along the winding trails of Prickett’s Fort State Park, which lies just a few miles away from nearby Fairmont at the confluence of the Monongahela River and Prickett’s Creek. Made up of a combination of blacktop roads and crushed limestone trail along the river, the course offers ample scenery along with mostly flat terrain.
Though it’s a smaller event, the race draws participants from every age group — between 250 to 300 runners every year.
At the 2008 running of the race, which with temperatures in the 40s was described by participants then as “ideal for running,” even with snow and ice on the ground in spots, the oldest runner crossing the finish line was 78 while the youngest was 13. In a nod to the weather conditions to allow some sun to peek through the clouds and warm things up a bit, the race starts at 1:00 in the afternoon.
