Well, I should have done this months ago. I went for my first scouting run on the Quest for the Crest course and decided to go up the easiest of the 3 climbs. Clay told me it was a pretty runnable constant 8% grade for about 4.5 miles. At least he got the mileage right. The climb averaged 12% with about 3/4 of a mile that was runnable. The rest was 15-20% grade and a grinding power-hike. It was absolutely beautiful though. The first mile followed a creek drainage with dozens of waterfalls. The trail eventually ascended through some switch back to gain the Black Mountain Crest proper.
While it was not what I expected, now I can tailor my training to be a bit more specific. No more running. Find the steepest grade possible and hike as fast as possible. 
The other cool happening was the snow – Yes, North Carolina in May and it snowed. Crazy… I also ran into two other folks training for the same race. We were all a bit shell shocked by the grades and terrain. At least I still have a month to gain a bit more specific fitness.
https://www.strava.com/activities/296247944/embed/44fba4042d72fce9c7f080992ae9514cee8a828c
One More Mile 