Prairie Fire Wichita Marathon

I chose this race to see Wichita instead of going to Kansas City area again. The city has a bunch of museums, many restaurants and hotels. There is a nice path along the river for a shakeout where they hold a Parkrun and run by the Keeper of the Plains statue. The Expo was small but well organized so I spent about 15 minutes there. The race itself was very well organized. Parking by the start, bag drop well marked. The course was mostly flat with a few small inclines. There were many turns so I feel that will make for a slower time and many streets had uneven pavement so I spent a lot of time looking at my feet. Halfway we turned into a fierce headwind, but then soon turned out of it. There was a decent amount of spectators for a mid sized event. Volunteers were terrific, offering water, Gatorade, and Gu. For the finish we ran into the stadium on the baseball field. The medal was nicely done with the rabbit and baseball theme. Finish line food was plentiful for the entire race, even for the back of packers with pizza, sandwiches, and 2 beers. There were free photos to upload after. The weather was very warm this year and that slowed me down a lot but the race can't help the weather, unless they change the month. They tried to prepare everyone with pre race reminders to hydrate. The airport is very close to the hotels so logistics were easy.

I drove from Milwaukee to complete this event. This was marathon #21 and state #20. The 'old town' area of the city is where this event is located, and it is very nice. Lots of food options and the Courtyard Marriott I stayed at was about 200 yards from the start/finish line. Packet pickup was convenient but had very few vendors. Race t-shirt is cotton which I always appreciate. The weather on race day was PERFECT!!!! The 5k, half, and full had about 2100 runners so it was never too crowded. The race is a double loop course which I enjoy. The organization of the event was amazing as there were plenty of volunteers and the course was perfectly marked. Crowd support was good for a small city like this. Scenery was okay as most of the run is down a city street and then around the 'keeper of the plains' monument. Finishers medal was very nice as was the after party. The only complaint is that Mich Ultra was the only true beer option and after running 26.2 miles, I felt like I was drinking water.... I would HIGHLY recommend this event to anyone wanting to knock Kansas off their list of 50 states!

Ran as part of a 50-state quest. It's probably the only time I'll ever visit Wichita and nice to see a new city. Course was fast, race was well-organized, and I'd gladly recommend this race to anyone looking for a race in Kansas. The weather was a little warm and two loops isn't ideal. No controlling the weather and guessing city government mandated the limited course. Overall a good experience.