Frequently Asked Questions
The Grasslands Trail Run is held in the Lyndon B. Johnson National Grasslands, more than 20,000 acres managed by the U.S. Forest Service and situated north of Fort Worth. The trails loop among rolling hills and through a mixture of pine and oak grove forests, open fields, and livestock. The trails are mostly single-track, multi-use trails.
Overall, the trails are not technical nor is there a significant amount of elevation change.
The trails in the LBJ National Grasslands are named by color. The Grasslands Trail Run uses the blue, white, yellow, and red trails. Each trail is marked using color-coded tree markers and streamers. Be sure to watch for these course markings—you should never go more than ¼ of a mile without seeing a marking. Keep your eyes open and remember—don’t just follow the runner in front of you. They might not be paying attention!
Aid stations are located every 3 – 6 miles on the course. All aid stations will offer water, Tailwind and soda. Remember, we are a cupless race. You must carry your own hydration system. In addition to drinks, each aid station will have a mixture of food offerings to fuel our runners–especially those running the 50-mile and marathon. Food items will include fruit, potato chips, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, M&Ms, cookies, and more. Food at each aid station might vary.
Runners will occasionally pass cows in fields and sometimes cows even wander onto the trail. Cows, like people, generally just want to be respected and left alone. Give them some space and definitely stay away from any young baby cows.
Sometimes you will find horseback riders either alone or in clusters. If you are running up to the horse(s), start speaking in a natural tone and volume to the rider to let them know you are approaching. This will prevent the horse from being startled by you.
Remember, although this is a race and we have a permit, we need to share the trail. Please represent trail runners well.
If you’ve run a road race, you have probably seen the streets littered with little paper or plastic cups. Imagine all of those cups on the trail–that would not be good for the environment or for any wildlife. Our goal is to leave the trails in the same shape as we found them.
One of the best ways to be environmentally responsible is to keep this race cupless. That means that each aid station will have plenty of water but you will need to carry your own hydration system. This might be handheld water bottles, fuel belt, or a vest. Another reason to use a hydration system is the space between aid stations. Because we use trails, we have a limited number of access points to put up aid stations. Throughout the Grasslands Trail Run, the space between aid stations is anywhere between 3 – 6 miles.
If you are unsure of what to use, here is one article to help you get started on your research.
We still run. Positive attitudes are required!
If the weather risks the safety of our participants or volunteers, the race director will make the appropriate decision to keep both runners and volunteers safe. If the race must be canceled due to unforeseen events, no refunds will be given because all costs will already be incurred. This is clearly something that no one wants and the Grasslands Trail Run has never been canceled in its 18 year history. We would like to keep that track record going.
Sure–as long as that distance hasn’t filled up. If you are moving to a longer distance, you will need to pay the difference in registration. If you move to a shorter distance, you will not get that difference back.
We understand that things come up. If you can no longer run the race, if you let us know more than one month in advance, you will receive 100% race credit for another Blaze Trails Running event. If you let us know between one month and two weeks prior to race day, you will receive 50% race credit towards another Blaze Trails Running event. We will not allow any refunds or transfers less than two weeks before race day. No exceptions.
We allow transfers* and it is important that you work with us to get your bib transferred correctly. It is extremely important that we have the new runner’s information, emergency contact information, and a signed waiver. The person accepting the transfer will be charged a $10 administration fee (plus transaction fee).
If the transfer occurs after we have placed the shirt order, we won’t be able to change the shirt size. They will be given the shirt in the size that you ordered. We will do our best to accommodate.
Steps to follow:
- The runner registered should send an email to grasslandstrailrun@gmail.com, copying the person they want to transfer their bib to and giving written permission of the transfer. Please send from the email that was used in the registration.
- The person accepting the bib will receive a code to register and pay the transfer fee. They must register within 48 hours of receiving the code.
- We do not get involved in any other payment transactions between the two people.
We require transfers to be completed no later than March 8. This allows us to keep our focus on the race course and other important race details during the race week. If you contact us during race week, we will not reply and the transfer is not allowed. No exceptions.
We do not allow transfers to another race (Rockledge Rumble) or another year. The costs of the race are sunk and do not can transferred to another event.
*We will not allow transfers if we have sold out of the race and have a wait list. In that case, we will follow the posted refund policy and allow the next person on the wait list to register.
We definitely want you to have a shirt that you can wear. Shirts are ordered based on the sizes given during registration. If you would like to exchange for a different size, bring your clean shirt to the start/finish area after your race. We will exchange whenever possible after shirts have been distributed to all participants and volunteers.
Note–this year, we will be providing shirts in unisex sizes.
We work very closely with our timing company to make sure that results are accurate but sometimes errors still occur. If you believe there is an error, please contact Chris Barnwell, race director, as soon as possible. (grasslandstrailrun@gmail.com)
The race company will provide tablets at the finish line to look up your finish time. We will also share the link to race results on our Facebook page before race day for your convenience.
Although chips are worn by all runners, your race time will be based on gun time. Chips are worn to help track splits, finish times, and to track runners on the course.
Anyone running the 50-Mile or Marathon can keep a drop bag at the start/finish aid station. Anyone running the 50-Mile race will pass through this aid station four times. Marathon participants will pass through the aid station one time.