Reverse Ring

Information

Entry is open ONLY to members of the Fellowship of The Ring. Please read through the event details and then, if you are eligible and available, we know you will want to join us for this highlight of the winter running season!

This late February tradition is back again to haunt a handful or two of trail runners this year – the Reverse Ring. 2025 will be the 19th running of this invitational event. The Reverse Ring is a roughly 71-mile counter-clockwise circuit of the Massanutten Trail. The “invitational” label means that there is one important requirement to get in: a runner must have successfully completed a fall running of The Ring and be a member of the “Fellowship of The Ring.” Very simple — and an absolute requirement. (List of Fellowship Members)

If you have questions about the run, e-mail your Reverse Ring co-RDs Daisy Weill and/or Jesse Fuller. We will also be looking for a handful of volunteers to help on race weekend, so if you would like to come out and play for a few hours, please let us know.

2024 Volunteers

The Details for the Reverse Ring

The Reverse Ring is a fat ass run – there is no entry fee required, there will be no awards (though as of 2022, there are, of course, now stickers!). It should also be noted that any whiners will be heckled unmercifully. Actually, everyone will be heckled unmercifully, but as you have all run The Ring, you should be fully aware of that already. As the Reverse Ring runners are all members of the Fellowship of The Ring, we are confident that there will be no wimps or whiners in the group. Again, the ONLY qualification needed to run the Reverse Ring is a previous completion of The Ring. Some things in life just are what they are. If you can’t do it this year, just go do what you need to do to run the Reverse in the future: finish The Ring next Fall. Those who have completed the Reverse Ring in the past are, of course, eagerly welcomed to return for future Reverse Rings.

The run will start at 6 AM at the northern end of the Signal Knob parking lot (the Massanutten trailhead). Note the early start time - yes you will need a light for at least the first half hour of the climb up Signal Knob. Since all of the runners will be repeat offenders, there is no need for additional directions here, other than the reminder of the single directive needed to run the Reverse Ring: follow the orange blazes. Stay On Orange.

Each runner will be allowed a single, sturdy, well-marked drop bag, which will be collected prior to the start in the parking lot. By well-marked, we mean your name should be clearly emblazoned on the outside of the bag where we can easily see it. Please try to keep the size of your bag within reason! We will shuttle that single bag around the course for you. There will be aid available to the runners over much of the course – see the checkpoint list below.

There are two hard cutoffs for runners in the Reverse Ring:

• The first hard cutoff is at the Moreland Gap aid station, 30.4 miles into the run. Runners need to arrive by 4 PM in order to continue on the full course. That means that a runner who starts at 6 AM will have 10 hours to go those 30+ miles in order to continue. Runners who come in after this time can elect to be driven to Camp Roosevelt and continue their run from there (or you can run down that 4 mile stretch of Moreland Gap Road to Camp Roos under your own power to then be allowed to continue).

• The second cutoff is at the Camp Roosevelt aid station. Runners who wish to continue with the possibility of an official finish will need to arrive at the aid station no later than 10 PM. This gives the runner who makes the first cutoff another 6 hours to go just under 16 additional miles from Moreland Gap to Camp Roos. The 10 PM cutoff at the 46 mile mark in the horse parking lot at Camp Roosevelt gives the runner over 12 hours to tackle the closing stretch of the race. The goal is to get all the runners in to the finish at Signal Knob prior to what is our traditional closing time there of 11 AM. This makes for 29 total hours of race time to cover the 71 mile distance around the Fort Valley.

For runners who think that they may need more time on the course or who are concerned about making the cutoffs, there is an early start option. Contact Daisy and Jesse to discuss this if you are interested.

Check Points on the Ring

The access road to Powells Fort Camp is closed at this time of year, so there will not be aid at that very early point along the Massanutten Trail (for context, during the Labor Day weekend running of The Ring, this is the site of the last aid station). The spring at Mudhole Gap is open 24/7/365, so bear in mind that this delicious flow of water is available to you from the pipe on the right side of the course as you approach Powells Fort Camp and the Mudhole Gap trailhead (literally steps past a gate, and just over halfway through this first section of the run).

The first aid runners should anticipate will be after 14.2 miles at the Woodstock Tower Road crossing. On the off-chance that the Woodstock Tower Road is closed due to icy conditions, do NOT expect to find your drop bag at this first aid station. If we can drive it up to there, then your bag will be at this first aid station, but otherwise, you will just encounter volunteers with hiked-in aid.

The same situation will apply to the traditional halfway point on the orange trail, the Crisman Hollow Road crossing aid station, as the runners descend from the Kerns Mountain section of the trail. Crisman Hollow Road is closed at this time of year, so the aid will be hiked in the 3/4-mile from the end of the paved section of that road. That Crisman Hollow aid will not include your shuttled bag.

And of course, the notorious 25-mile long night section along the east ridge of the Massanuttens, from Camp Roosevelt to the finish back in the Signal Knob parking lot, did not have formal aid in the early years of this event. Thanks to Sarah Smith, a manned aid station is planned at the junction of the Milford Gap Trail and the Massanutten Trail, about 12.5 miles from the finish. But as with the Crisman Hollow Road aid station, your drop bag will NOT be here. After you utilize it at Camp Roosevelt (mile 46.1), your drop bag will be shuttled back to the Signal Knob parking lot, and should be available for your pick up at the Signal Knob Café after you finish. Have no fear, however, when it comes to the aid at MILFord - you will NOT be disappointed!

Keith Knipling has put together some very handy pocket charts. This two-page pocket chart is intended to be folded into quarters and placed in a sandwich Ziplock protective bag. Start the run with the first chart and then pick up the second at Moreland Gap. For those who prefer larger charts (and carrying more paper) there is a version that shows each segment on its own page. The .gpx track is also a very useful addition to your race day gear. You can download that from the side of this page.

Jim Harris continues in his role as the historian for The Ring and the Reverse Ring. His file with accumulated historic data can be viewed from the “Historical Data” link on the left side of this page. Jim helpfully provides the following synopsis of the results from The Ring and Reverse Ring (through the end of 2023):

“These Numbers are suspect …
421 runners have been out to Fort Valley to run our favorite Orange Loop.
Those 421 Runners have accumulated 61,112 miles.
119 have never finished the loop, with 147 total failed attempts for those individuals.
153 have never failed, with 60 of them having more than one finish.
11 individuals have been there 10 or more times.”

Heather Dougherty has also shared a Ring & Reverse Ring Results Google Sheet, with several tabs that display some interesting charts and raw data, for those of who love to wallow in that much more information about our favorite Orange Trail!

Directions to the start at Signal Knob

From the DC Beltway (I-495) take 1-66 West approx. 60 miles to US 340 south (Exit 6, - the second Front Royal exit). Follow US 340 south 1.1 miles to the traffic light at VA Route 55. Turn right onto VA 55 and follow it west for 5.2 miles to Waterlick. Turn left (south) onto VA Route 678. Follow VA 678 1.8 miles into George Washington National Forest, and a total of 3.4 miles to the marked entrance of the Signal Knob parking lot, located on the right-hand side of the road. Plenty of parking spaces are available in this lot. Map

Photos

• 2015 - Allison Holko
• 2014 - Jack Anderson (report)
• 2011 - Zsuzsanna Carlson
• 2011 - Mike Bur
• 2010 - Quatro Hubbard
• 2010 - Zsuzsanna Carlson
• 2009 - Quatro Hubbard
• 2007 - Mike Bur
• 2007 - Michele Harmon
• 2006 - Quatro Hubbard

Masters of the Ring