This September Richmond's runners will find Maymont Park more welcoming than ever.

For starters the park's marquee athletic event, the McDonald's X-country Festival in Maymont on September 26 and 27, will draw over 2,500 high schoolers from as far away as Ohio, Georgia, Tennessee and New Jersey for one of the nation's top cross country events.

The course is challenging. The competition is stellar. And the atmosphere is as wholesome and engaging as you could hope for from a gathering of thousands of dedicated young runners, their coaches, families and supporters. It's a great day for fans and runners alike as there are also numerous running events for non-high schoolers, and it all goes off in Richmond's prettiest park.

But don't let me blather on about it. Alec Ward, a former Sports Backers summer intern and current senior-year cross country runner at Douglas Freeman High School, has fond memories of his race last year which he was kind enough to share with us.

"Although the view of the rolling grass hills before us appeared serene," recalls Ward, "my coach kept reminding me, I would be running along with some of the best runners from across the state and country. I tried to use this rather intimidating information as an inspiration to give it my best, yet it surely did not help to suppress my pre-race anxiety.  

"Those rolling, handsome hills I mentioned earlier weren't very pretty or nice once I got to know them during the race. The course easily lived up to its challenging reputation … in retrospect, I've always regretted not being able to enjoy the scenery during many of our meets, and Maymont was no exception. During the race, I was able to marvel at the wind ripples on the majestic twin lakes as a blue blur with the occasional white splotch for a goose. My heart swelled with emotion as I was awed by the grayish tall thingy as I passed the picturesque Victorian Maymont House."

Well done, Alec. Who could ask for a truer high school perspective?

So far most of Richmond's top cross country schools -- including powerhouses Freeman, Midlothian and Maggie Walker, have either signed up or will be signing up. And there's still plenty of room in the open half marathon and 5k cross country run.

In addition to the McDonald's X-country Festival at Maymont events, this is also Marathon Month at Maymont as described by Amy Williams, the president of the Maymont Foundation Board of Directors and a dedicated runner who lives in nearby Byrd Park.

"We are putting together incentives for people to come and run in the park and get to know Maymont better," said Williams, who has scripted some run routes that incorporate the park's best features.

Williams is training for the SunTrust Richmond Marathon with the Sports Backers Marathon Training Team and has put together some incentives especially for her fellow MTTers. These can be viewed on the Marathon Training Team message board. But she thinks a tour of Maymont Park is a great way for runners of any affiliation to add some zest to their training. "If you are looking for ways to make it fun and different," says Williams. "Running in Maymont will do just that."

For directions to Williams' lovely Maymont run courses, go to www.sportsbackers.org, click on the Active Community tab and look for the Marathon Month in Maymont blog in OurSB.

For more about the McDonald's X-country Festival at Maymont, including sign-ups for the 13.1-mile half marathon, the 5k cross country race or the shorter distance elementary school and middle school events, go to http://www.sportsbackers.org/.