QHR
The 6th annual women’s-only Queen of the High Road half marathon and 10k takes place in Wilsonville on Saturday, May 21st. This group was started in 2009 as a free training group for completing a half marathon, and soon started organizing their own race. The QHR Half has grown from just ten participants in the fall of 2009 to selling out all 250 spots each year.
The race starts and ends at the River Shelter in Memorial Park in Wilsonville. Check-in starts at 8am, and the race starts promptly at 9am. The course is not closed to traffic, and there is no chip timing, but the support along the way is amazing. The half marathon course starts with an uphill out of the park and up to Wilsonville Rd. Runners and walkers will head north until the 2-mile mark where they will turn left (west) onto Boeckman Rd. 10k runners follow Boeckman Rd to their turnaround point and only aid station at mile 3.1 (just before crossing over I-5) and will follow the same way back as they came. Half-marathoners cross over the interstate and turn left onto Boberg Rd, which they follow to the end, and then turn right towards the aid station at the WES train station, where they can find water, fuel, and bathrooms.
This aid station at the 4 mile mark is a dead end, and runners turn back around, run north on Boberg and re-join Boeckman Rd heading west across the Coffee Creek wetlands and into the Villebois neighborhood. Just a short mile later is the beginning of another green space at the trail head of Graham Oaks Nature Park. At the end of the mile long paved Tonquin Trail, participants can refuel at the Mile 7 aid station stocked with water, electrolyte drink and a variety of gels and chews. There also is a bathroom, and if friends or family want to cheer you on, this is a great place to park and wait for participants.
From the Mile 7 aid station (number 3 of 5 stations for the half marathoners), runners turn around and head back north on the Tonquin Trail into Villebois. This time the course takes a shorter path to the WES Station aid station, which will mark mile 9. From there, the course is known territory: north on Boberg Rd, then turning right onto Boeckman Rd over the interstate, and retracing the way back to the start/finish the way they came. After the race, stick around for some food and music and enjoy the beautiful forest by the river. Register by May 1st to be guaranteed a shirt.
Queen of the High Road details:
When: Saturday, May 21; 9am
Where: Wilsonville, OR (map)
What: half marathon, 10k
Registration: Online here
Registration cost: $45
Registration includes: well supported race, tech event shirt, finisher’s tiara, post-race food.
