Customer Snapshot
- Signature Events: 3
- Cap2Cap Participants: 1,500
- Cap2Cap Volunteers: 120
About Virginia Capital Trail Foundation
Virginia Capital Trail Foundation (VCTF) exists to protect, promote, and enhance the Virginia Capital Trail — including an active fundraising push for a 7.5-mile extension into Williamsburg and the organization’s long-term vision as a partner of Trail 757, a planned 200+ mile interconnected trail system across the state.
Steph Coolbaugh joined VCTF in January 2025 after starting a career in parks and recreation in Greensboro, North Carolina. A background in special events and programming made the move a natural fit, even though managing a race or ride was new territory. Steph now oversees all three of VCTF’s signature events on RunSignup: the Cap2Cap ride, now in its 22nd year; the Cap Trail Classic run, recently rebranded from the “Cap Trail 10 Mile and 5K” and expanded to two additional distances in its 8th year; and the Summer Challenge, a virtual event born during the pandemic and now in its 6th year.
Cap2Cap alone draws roughly 1,500 participants over a two-day, open-start format — many completing a full century (100 miles) across both days — supported by nearly 120 volunteers. It’s intentionally billed as a ride, not a race, for safety reasons, so no timing is offered. Rest stops double as community touchpoints; groups like Black Girls Do Bike run a music-and-bubble-machine station at Shiplock Park, and VCTF is adding a sixth rest stop next year.
How VCTF Uses RunSignup
- Email marketing — Steph’s most-used tool for keeping in touch with participants across all three events.
Cap2Cap Post Race Email
Cap Trail Classic Price Increase Email
Summer Challenge One Week Left Email
- Automated virtual results — Runs the Summer Challenge without any manual results tracking.
- Team registration — Introduced for the first time this year on the Summer Challenge, giving participants a way to register and ride together.
- Volunteer management — Automatically reopens a slot when a volunteer unregisters, replacing what used to be a manual spreadsheet.
- Integrated store — Sells merchandise directly through event and registration pages rather than a separate storefront.
- Reporting — Pulls t-shirt sizing, packet mailing lists, add-ons, and store purchase data directly, without manual data sifting.
Add-Ons & Swag Report
Participant Report
Packet Pickup or Mailing Report
- Role-based access — Gives outside partners, like the Cap Trail Classic’s timing vendor, exactly the access they need — without exposing financial data.
- Donation-linked discount — A $20 registration discount tied to donating has helped keep contributions climbing even as registration numbers hold flat.
The style of the dashboard is so much more comprehensive than other platforms I’ve explored..
Steph Coolbaugh — Virginia Capital Trail Foundation
Results
- Store purchase revenue grew 4x compared to previous years.
- Donations have increased year over year, even as overall registration numbers have held steady.
- 1,500 participants and ~120 volunteers power the two-day Cap2Cap ride each year.
- VCTF launched its first-ever charity partnership, with We Off the Couch, alongside two new Cap Trail Classic distances this year.
- Resolved a chip-timing malfunction caused by a tight U-turn near the start line with timing partner Commonwealth Timing — a fix that’s held steady for two years running.
Looking Ahead
VCTF is banking on the Cap Trail Classic’s new distances, course-side party zone, and partnership with We Off the Couch to reverse a registration plateau, while a sixth Cap2Cap rest stop aims to spread out the trail’s community energy even further next year.
VCTF’s growth story isn’t built on one big spike in sign-ups — it’s built on layers: automated tools that free up staff time, permissions that let outside partners plug in safely, and incentives, like the donation discount, that compound year after year.
I’m really happy that I’m able to give our timer access so that they can handle all of the results, because I think that was what was causing me the most stress for the Cap Trail Classic last year..
Steph Coolbaugh — Virginia Capital Trail Foundation
Asked what advice they’d give a newer race director, Steph didn’t hesitate: “don’t be afraid to ask a million questions and lean on the resourced team of RunSignup account managers… no question is a dumb question” — the same responsiveness they credit to RunSignup’s support team as VCTF runs three very different events on one platform.
