⏵ Course guide · Central Pennsylvania trail race
The Dam Half is a volunteer-run Mid Penn Trailblazers race through R.B. Winter State Park in the Bald Eagle State Forest near Mifflinburg, Pennsylvania, offering a half marathon and, new for 2026, a friendly 4 mile option. I will walk you through the club and the course first, then give you a simple pacing and fueling plan for a shorter, community-focused central Pennsylvania trail race. There are free calculators along the way to dial in your own numbers.
These facts come from the Mid Penn Trailblazers official events page and the linked RunSignup registration page. The 2026 event copy names only the Dam Half and the new 4 mile race; confirm the current distance lineup, cutoffs, and course details before you commit. Race logistics change year to year.
Both distances run on single and double track trail through R.B. Winter State Park, tucked inside the larger Bald Eagle State Forest near Mifflinburg. This is genuine central Pennsylvania mountain-forest terrain, organized entirely by a volunteer trail club rather than a large event production company.
The Dam Half Trail Challenge started small, built for hardcore trail runners, and has since grown into a popular, family-friendly event with a few hundred participants taking on the trails each year. That evolution matters for how you should think about the day: the terrain is still real trail, but the atmosphere is welcoming, with great food, friends, and music after you finish.
This year the club added a 4 mile race option through R.B. Winter State Park, aimed at beginners who want to try trail running as well as experienced runners looking for a relaxed day with friends. If the half marathon feels like a bigger commitment than you want, the 4 miler covers the same terrain in a much shorter, lower-pressure package.
Profits from the race are shared with the Mifflinburg Hose Company and the Middleburg Boy Scouts, two genuine local beneficiaries. It is a good reminder that this is a community trail club event first, built and run by locals who maintain these trails, not a large commercial race series.
With no published elevation figures or cutoffs, the Dam Half is best approached as a genuine trail effort rather than a road-pace half marathon. Give yourself real margin against flat-ground expectations.
Single and double track through the Bald Eagle State Forest will run slower than a road half marathon, even without a published elevation number. Use a grade-adjusted pace approach on any rolling sections you know from training in similar central Pennsylvania forest terrain, and expect your overall time to run longer than a flat road half would suggest.
If you are running the new 4 mile race, there is little need for a detailed pacing plan. Use it as a chance to test your trail legs on this exact terrain, which can also help you calibrate expectations if you plan to come back for the Dam Half in a future year.
⏵ Free tools to pace this course
Late September in central Pennsylvania typically brings mild, cool conditions, well-suited to a half marathon or 4 mile trail effort without heavy fueling demands.
For the Dam Half, a straightforward plan of 30 to 60 grams of carbohydrate per hour and steady water intake covers most runners, since this is a trail half rather than an ultra-distance effort. A gel or two plus normal hydration is usually enough for a well-fueled runner heading into race morning.
At 4 miles, focus on a solid pre-race meal and normal hydration rather than in-race fueling. Save your energy for enjoying the new option and the post-race food, friends, and music the club promises.
⏵ Build your fueling plan
Get a carb, sodium, fluid, and caffeine plan per hour built for your weight and your goal time with the free ultra fueling calculator. Browse the rest of the free running tools at the tools hub.
⏵ Train for it with Summit Line
Get a training plan built around YOUR fitness and rolling central Pennsylvania forest trail. Summit Line reads your real training, builds the trail legs this course asks for, and rehearses your fueling so race day is something you execute, not guess at.
The Dam Half started as a small race built for hardcore trail runners, and while it has grown into a popular, family-friendly event with a few hundred participants, the terrain itself, single and double track through the Bald Eagle State Forest, still asks for real trail legs rather than road-race pacing. The club does not publish specific elevation or cutoff numbers, so treat it as a genuine, moderately technical central Pennsylvania trail half marathon rather than a flat, fast course.
For 2026, the race offers the Dam Half (a half marathon distance) and a newly added 4 mile race through R.B. Winter State Park, perfect for beginners trying trail running or experienced runners looking for a relaxed day on the trails. The registration page's web address still carries the historical name "Dam Half Dam Full Trail Marathon" from a past year when a full marathon distance was offered, but the current event copy names only the half marathon and the new 4 miler, with no marathon distance mentioned for this year. Confirm the exact distance lineup on the official Mid Penn Trailblazers page before you register.
Late September in central Pennsylvania usually brings mild, cool-morning conditions, ideal for trail racing. For the half marathon distance, a simple plan of 30 to 60 grams of carbohydrate per hour and steady water intake covers most runners, since this is a shorter trail race rather than an ultra-distance effort. The 4 mile race is short enough that pre-race fueling and normal hydration are typically all you need.
Mid Penn Trailblazers does not publish specific cutoff times for either distance on their official event pages. As a family-friendly club race with a few hundred participants and a relaxed atmosphere, expect a generous window for both the half marathon and the 4 mile race, but confirm the current cutoff details directly with the club before race day.
Expect single and double track trail through the Bald Eagle State Forest surrounding R.B. Winter State Park, classic central Pennsylvania mountain terrain with rolling wooded trail rather than exposed ridgeline. The club describes the event as great food, friends, and music after sharing the trails, a genuinely community-oriented race rather than a highly produced one.
Yes, especially the new 4 mile option, which the organizers themselves describe as perfect for beginners who want to try trail running as well as experienced runners looking for a relaxed day. The Dam Half itself has grown from a small, hardcore-runner race into a family-friendly event with a few hundred participants, so newer trail runners will find good company at either distance. It is also a nice way to support two real local beneficiaries, the Mifflinburg Hose Company and the Middleburg Boy Scouts.
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<a href="https://runsummitline.com/guides/dam-half-dam-full-trail-race">The Dam Half Trail Race course guide</a><iframe src="https://runsummitline.com/embed/race/dam-half-dam-full-trail-race" style="width:100%;max-width:420px;height:180px;border:0;" loading="lazy" title="Dam Half Trail Race course guide by Summit Line"></iframe>This guide is independent and for planning only. The course details, dates, distances, and cutoffs come from public sources and can change year to year, so confirm the current specifics with the official race before you register or run. The fueling and pacing advice is general and not medical advice.
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