Indianapolis Monumental Marathon

Indianapolis Monumental Marathon

Indianapolis Monumental Marathon

( 61 reviews )
98% of reviewers recommend this race
  • Indianapolis,
    Indiana,
    United States
  • November
  • 3 miles/5K, 13.1 miles/Half Marathon, 26.2 miles/Marathon
  • Road Race
  • Event Website

Mark Davidhizar

Elkhart, Indiana, United States
55 81
2015
"I Look Forward To This Marathon Every Year!"
Overall
T-Shirts/SWAG
Aid Stations
Course Scenery
Expo Quality
Elevation Difficulty
Parking/Access
Race Management
Mark Davidhizar's thoughts:

This is the third straight year that I have ran in the Monumental Marathon and I truly believe it is one of the best, non-marathon major in the country. This year featured course changes, while at first I was disappointed, proved to be great! The start now features a .75 mile stretch before the first turn, unlike in past years when you only had 3-4 blocks until you first turned. The finish was also another major change. I used to love finishing facing the state house, but moving the finish to another street allowed larger and louder crowd support. It felt like more of a true celebration.
Aid stations were placed at every mile, minus the first mile which allowed the pack to spread out a little first. There were also 3 aid stations with CarbBoom energy gels. The course is mostly flat with a few hills around miles 10-12 and 14-16 but nothing that should prove to be too difficult for a trained marathon runner. The volunteers were great as well along the course as were the law enforcement on making sure the runners stay safe.
The SWAG was good as well this year. The race shirt gets better every year and at the finish, not only are you given a finishers medals (which is on year 2 of a 4 piece set) but also a beanie to wear right away to keep your head warm along with a space blanket.
The expo is what I would describe as a midsize expo. It's not Chicago or Boston, but it isn't held in a small room with a handful of vendors either. I believe there were probably a little more than 50 booths. The race also brought in Bart Yasso to speak and hang out with the runners during the expo or maybe even a shakeout run the day before.
There are also a lot of down town hotels, many within a couple blocks of the downtown start/finish line. Can be pricy but it is very convenient.
Overall, this is a very fast course, and it seems to have gotten faster with a couple of course changes this year. This race is starting to also drawl some runners looking to make the Olympic trials (this may not be the case for the next couple years since the qualifying window won't be open for the 2020 trials yet).

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

Latest reviews

Loading Reviews...