Which marathons do you consider as 'must run' in the pursuit to running a marathon in all 50 states.
Here are a few that I have run that I consider 'must run':
- New York City, NY
- Chicago, IL
- Marine Corps, VA
- Deadwood, SD
- Ceour d'Aliene, ID
Nice to run: Flat course but has become a crowded field as of late
- Rock n Rolll Mardi Gras (New Orleans), LA
Looking for a sujggestion for a Colorado marathon? I do like trail runs but nothing too severe.
Must run - so far, Marathon2Marathon in Texas was my favorite. The course wasn't exciting, since it was on the same stretch of highway out and back, but, it was beautiful and so much fun! It was my slowest marathon, but that didn't matter.
Second to that was the Harpeth Hills Flying Monkey Marathon - (Trent's race) in TN. The hills were brutal, but it was a challenge that was well worth the pain I was in for the days that followed. Another beautiful course, filled with familiar faces of people from RA.
Michelle
Nice tool that was posted in the other thread - I wonder why we have 8 marathons in May in WI?
Avenue of Giants - CA (although I aready of CA)
Not on my list
Chicago
New York
Marine Corp
Any Rock-N-Roll marathon
or any marathon that is > 10,000 people
Long dead ... But my stench lingers !
MM #5615
Dopple Bock--I completely agree with you on the big marathons. I've done a few big ones and the smaller ones are so much nicer. I just did the Wildlife Marathon in Michigan, last October--the same weekend as the Chicago Marathon--and, as I was running through the tree covered paths, I just shook my head and thought, "how could anybody choose to fight the traffic and the crowds and run through a smoke-filled city when they could be running here?"
So--Michigan--Wildlife Marathon is a must.
Swan Lake Marathon in South Dakota--it was nice--another small one.
Lost Dutchman Marathon in Arizona--a little bigger but not bad--beautiful desert scenery--the camp fires at the start are pretty cool.
Route 66 Marathon in Oklahoma--I did because I'm a Route 66 fan--but not that great.
Hatfield-McCoy Marathon in West Virginia/Kentucky (you can choose the state you want to count--I chose West Virginia)--another small one--really nice...I'd say a "must do"
Alpheretta Marathon in Georgia--on the larger size--not real spectacular.
Baton Rouge Beach Marathon in Louisiana--nice size--not great
Grizzley Marathon in Montana--nice marathon--a little hard to get to--and tough! I liked it, though.
Spirit of St. Louis Marathon in Missouri--too big.
Bismark Marathon in North Dakota--good size--surprisingly nice marathon--I'd say it's a must do.
Mayor's Marathon in Alaska--my son lives in Alaska so made it a nice trip--nice size--very pretty--yeah--a must do.
Eisenhower Marathon in Kansas--all I can remember is the wind! I paired up with a guy and took turns blocking the wind for each other which made it fun--nice size, too.
Chicago Marathon--Illinios--too big.
Green Bay Marathon in Wisconsin--I'm a Vikings' fan so I hate to admit it, but this one was nice. The people were very nice. Yeah--a must do--but there are a bunch in Wisconsin.
Flying Pig Marathon in Ohio--on the bigger side but nice.
California International Marathon--another nice one--but I'd always wanted to do the one through the Sequoia National Park--but I went with a friend that wanted to do this one.
Sunburst Marathon in Indiana--Okay.
Marathon to Marathon in Iowa--good size but long, straight, hot roads.
Pikes Peak Marathon in Colorado--It's fun to say I did it--and I had a really fun week out there--but I would not recommend it. I like to run--not walk--which is what I did for most of the first 13 miles up the mountain.
Boston Marathon--yeah everybody should do Boston...although it was not fun
Dallas White Rock Marathon in Texas--another "okay" one.
Minnesota--I've done Twin Cities 10 times, Grandmas 4 times, and the Edmond Fitzgerald 100K once. All three are great. But, if you don't like the big ones--then don't do them.
I guess I hadn't intended on listing them all, but when you get me started on running, I don't stop. Hope this helps.
I think WI has a lot of little gems out there - For different reasons
Journeys - Eagle River 100-200 runners - Better organized and all the aide stations of a large marathon. Kindof fun - On country roads (not closed - But The only trafic I saw was runners families) and your family could see you as many times as they want.
Rails to Trails - Norwalk. Very small town - The ladies of this 200 person town cook the pasta - the desserts - the chicken Q etc. Very nice marathon - Old RR grade - Yes it does out and back, but the unique part is a 3/4 a mile tunnel.
Ice Breaker - Milwaukee - Yes it is an indoorr marathon, But temps will be 56F and the track around the speedskaing oval is 443 meters - Well run and Hey its a marathon in January.
Paavo Nurmi - Hurley - YEs its hilly and hot - But a nice August marathon
Whistle Stop - Ashland, WI
But there are so many new marathons in WI - 26 total now.
Considering Grandmas in 2012 i hear it is fast and fun to run. Any commets or sugggestions on where to stay or what to visit while there?
Kalsarikännit
I have done 29 marathons with only one being a repeat. I would much rather see somewhere new, but there are definitely a few that I would like to go back to. My must-do's:
Washington- Yakima River Canyon I loved the people I met here. There are some real characters out running.
Oregon- Haulin' Aspen. Great course, well organized.
New Mexico- Bataan Death March Marathon. The whole experience is unreal. Best of the bunch.
Indiana- Tecumseh Trail Marathon. The repeat. Ultra-like atmosphere (very relaxed, no people freaking out about the t-shirts and medals).
Massachusetts- Boston- I hate big city marathons and I loved this. It is a logistical and financial nightmare, though.
Tennessee- Monkey. Because I am dumb. And it is wonderful (but don't tell Trent).
Also, I loved Pikes Peak. I like how it scared the hell out of me. I know it isn't for everyone, though.
I want to do it because I want to do it. -Amelia Earhart
I am doing go! St Louis in April and Bridal Veil (Provo) UT in June. Anyone run these and have suggestions or comments?
Of all the races I've pondered over the years, I'd only consider Bataan to be a must do... and it is very much a must do. Not just for what it represents, and the sea of marchers you will witness, but it is a pretty fun course too (well, parts of it).
I would like to run the Turtle marathon in Roswell, NM.
And go to the UFO museum.
"dancing on the path and singing, now you got away,
you can reach the goals you set from now on, every day"
Sonata Arctica
Okay--I have a must do marathon for you--the Light at the End of the Tunnel Marathon in North Bend, WA. You run 2 1/2 miles in a tunnel, it's beautiful....and it's all downhill!
Meat is Murder
It sounds like a Garmin disaster
Putin told me how to vote.
Are you suggesting my 1:55 mile isn't legit? (I ran this race in 2008 and it will remain my marathon PR: 3:54).