⏵ Course guide · Elkridge, Maryland loop 50K
The Mid-Maryland Trail Festival keeps it simple: 6 loops of about 5.179 miles through Rockburn Branch Park, all starting and finishing at the same pavilion, with the flexibility to run anywhere from 1 loop to the full 50K or split it as a relay. I will walk you through the format, the cutoff, and a pacing and fueling plan built around a repeating loop, with free calculators along the way to dial in your own numbers.
These facts come from the official Bullseye Running event page for the most recent (15th) edition, held March 7, 2026. The next edition's exact date had not been published at the time of writing, so confirm it at bullseyerunning.com before you commit.
Start and finish are at the Rockburn Branch Park pavilion. The full 50K is 6 loops of about 5.179 miles each, but the race builds in real flexibility around that number.
You do not have to commit to the full 6 loops before you start. The event lets you run 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 loops as a standalone option, which means a rough day does not have to mean a DNF, you can simply finish your current loop and call it. That flexibility is unusual for a 50K and worth knowing about going in.
Teams of up to 6 people can run the same 6-loop 50K as a relay, exchanging at the pavilion after each 5.179 mile loop. It is a good way to experience the event and its aid station atmosphere without carrying the full distance solo.
Because every loop returns to the same pavilion, you pass a single well-stocked aid station, food and drinks all day, including pizza and soup from Tino's, every 5.179 miles. That is a real logistical advantage: your own gear, drop bags, and crew can all stay in one spot.
An 8:00 AM start and a 4:00 PM close give you an 8 hour window for the full 50K. Divided across 6 loops, that is an average of a bit over 1 hour 20 minutes per loop, including any aid station time, so use your early loops to calibrate rather than guessing.
Because the loop repeats, your first lap tells you almost everything you need to know: if it takes noticeably longer than roughly 1 hour 20 minutes including a stop at the aid station, you should plan to either pick up the pace on flatter sections or scale down to a shorter distance rather than push into a cutoff fight late in the day.
⏵ Free tools to plan your effort
With one aid station stocked all day and a stop every 5.179 miles, this is one of the easier ultras to fuel well, since you are never far from real food.
Aim for roughly 40 to 60 grams of carbohydrate per hour and sodium in the 300 to 500 mg per liter range as a baseline, then adjust based on how your gut handles the pizza, soup, and other aid station food available every loop. Early March in Maryland can swing from cold mornings to a milder afternoon, so layer your clothing and adjust your fluid intake as the day warms.
⏵ Build your fueling plan
Get a carb, sodium, fluid, and caffeine plan per hour built for your weight and an early-March Maryland loop effort 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 the repeat 5.179 mile loops at Rockburn Branch Park. Summit Line reads your real training, builds the pacing consistency this format rewards, and rehearses your fueling so race day is something you execute, not guess at.
The full 50K is 6 loops of about 5.179 miles each, all starting and finishing at the Rockburn Branch Park pavilion. You are not locked into the full distance either: the race lets you run just 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 loops if that is the day you are having, and relay teams of up to 6 people can split the loops between them with exchanges at the pavilion after each one.
The event runs on an 8 hour time limit, from an 8:00 AM sharp start to a 4:00 PM close. Since the loop is fixed at about 5.179 miles, that gives you a clear per-loop pace target: if a loop is taking you noticeably longer than roughly 1 hour 20 minutes on average, you are cutting it close on the full 6-loop 50K.
The repeating loop format is genuinely beginner-friendly: you pass the aid station, your own gear, and other runners every 5.179 miles, which keeps the logistics simple and gives you a built-in decision point to drop to a shorter distance if the day is not going well. That flexibility, combined with a single well-stocked aid station always in reach, makes this a forgiving venue for a first 50K attempt.
The course runs on the wooded trails of Rockburn Branch Park in Elkridge, a rolling, forested county park setting rather than a mountainous one. Because you repeat the same 5.179 mile loop up to 6 times, you will know the terrain intimately by your last lap, which is a real advantage for pacing compared to a point-to-point course you only see once.
The event has run in early March recently, most recently on March 7, 2026 (its 15th annual edition, after a weather postponement). The next edition is expected around the same time of year, likely early March 2027, but Bullseye Running had not published an official date as of this writing, so check bullseyerunning.com directly before you plan around a specific date.
Yes. Relay teams of up to 6 people can split the 6 loops between them, exchanging at the pavilion after each 5.179 mile loop. It is a good option if you want the day-of atmosphere and the aid station support without committing to the full distance solo.
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<a href="https://runsummitline.com/guides/mid-maryland-trail-festival">The Mid-Maryland Trail Festival course guide</a><iframe src="https://runsummitline.com/embed/race/mid-maryland-trail-festival" style="width:100%;max-width:420px;height:180px;border:0;" loading="lazy" title="Mid-Maryland Trail Festival course guide by Summit Line"></iframe>This guide is independent and for planning only. The next edition's date was not officially published at the time of writing; the March 2027 date used here is an estimate based on the event's recent pattern, not a confirmed date. Confirm the current specifics with Bullseye Running before you register or run. The fueling and pacing advice is general and not medical advice.
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