Marshall University Marathon

I ran this marathon a couple of weeks ago (11/5/23) and really enjoyed it! I thought the people in the town were super friendly and supportive of the runners! It was a fun race and such a Great medal!!

I was excited to run this after viewing the movie We Are Marshall. I flew into a little airport, rented a car, attended the small expo and made my way to the hotel. There was no bag drop but I parked right at the stadium and kept my items in the car. The first loop was with the half marathoners and was awesome. We ran to a park, onto limestone, into Marshall University. The second loop was more sparsely populated with not many spectators. I couldn't wait to get my rose to place at the fountain. We were handed footballs to run with once we arrived at the stadium. The medal was a nice size and beautiful. It was a fun and very moving experience!

This was my 18th full marathon and 17th state completed. With that said, this event is near the best of the runs I've ever completed. I drove from Milwaukee and easily found the packet pickup on Saturday. Very small expo but pretty cool swag. I received a puffy/winter like jacket. I did not realize until I got back to the hotel that we were given a winter hat as well. Race morning was a breeze. Plenty of parking at the football stadium. Plenty of porto-potties as well. No gear checks and no corrals and that was fine with me. The race itself had only 183 full marathon runners and was mostly filled with half marathoners. While we all ran together until the mile 12 split, it never felt crowded. The course was AMAZING! Views running near the Ohio River, running on crushed gravel in beautiful Ritter Park, running through Marshall University, and the finish was on the football field while carrying a football the last .2 of a mile. The course was very well marked and there were plenty of volunteers to direct traffic. There were not many spectators, but I could care less about that. Please note there is NO Gu or food on the course. Carry your own like I always do. After finishing the event, I had my free beers while sitting in the football stadium watching all the other runners come in. It was 74 degrees, sunny, and a perfect postrace venue. If you are a 50 stater - DO THIS EVENT!!!!!