Course Info

Race Site location

The race begins and ends on 6th Avenue and 8th Street close to the Library and City Square Park, in downtown Marion, Iowa.

The Course

The 13.1 mile course will have a mixture of flat areas and there will also be hills.  It stays completly within the city limits of Marion.

This course will feature the past, present and future of what Marion has to offer.  You will start and finish in downtown Marion by City Square Park.  City Hall, the Library and the Heritiage Center are all in close proximity.  The start of the race head towards Thomas Park and the trail system.  Note for those who care: Start out fast, because a little more than a half a mile into the run there is a single file bridge to get onto the Boyson trail.  From there we head north into one of the newer sections of the city and will go by the Novak Elemantary School.  You will run on the new Tower Terrace Road, hit the trails again in Lowe Park before heading down 10th Street and around the new Linn Mar High School Football Stadium.  A Half Marathon in Marion would not be complete without a run through the streets at Hunters Ridge Golf Course and then over to the new round-about on 35th Street.  We finish this tour of Marion by heading into the Historic Distric before finishing back at City Square Park.

There will be five or six aid stations along the course.  Water and HEED (lemon lime flavor) will be available.  The exact locations have not yet been determined as we are still working on finding the best location for each aid station.

Timing mats will be located at the half way point of the run.   Timers at each mile will call out times as participants pass that area.

Click here for a web version map of the course provided by US Track and Field

or

Click here for a map in a PDF version to print