Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon
Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon
( 50 reviews )-
Minneapolis,
Minnesota,
United States - October
- 3 miles/5K, 6 miles/10K, 10 miles, 13.1 miles/Half Marathon, 26.2 miles/Marathon
- Road Race
- Event Website
See more of our race!
Kori
Minnesota, United StatesOverall
T-Shirts/SWAG
Aid Stations
Course Scenery
Expo Quality
Elevation Difficulty
Parking/Access
Race Management
Expo/Packet Pick up: Great expo located in St. Paul. Plenty of ramp or on street parking available near by. There was a lot of vendors, and although it was busy, I didn't feel cramped, and could easily move about. Packet Pick up went very smooth.
T-shirts/SWAG: This year they had black long sleeve shirts for finishers. It did create a bit of a backup/bottle neck in the finisher's area, but I do like the fact you have to actually complete the race to get your t-shirt. (it felt more earned that way, vs. receiving at packet pick up.) At packet pickup racers also received a free running buff.
Parking: I was told ahead of time parking could be a pain, so I was able to convince my bf to drop me off near the start. He was then able to "chase" along the course and find a parking spot about a 1/2 mile away from the finish line. I know there are plenty of parking options, but it's definitely a good idea to carpool and get there early. They do also provide free green line light-rail passes to runners. (park at the start and get a ride back to your car from the finish area)
Course/Elevation: I thought this was a great course, with scenic views and great crowd support! There is one long hill starting around mile 4 going to mile 7 and then its flat with a great downhill to the finish line.
Aid Stations - Great aid stations/volunteers. They were located at miles 3, 4.5, 6, 7, 8, and 9, all of which had water and Powerade available, as well as port-a-potties.
After crossing the finish line, runners receive a Mylar blanket to keep warm. They also had water, chocolate milk, bananas, etc available.
Overall: The only negative I found was the start of the race - The corrals were nice, to space people out, but the first mile or two was still very bottle necked. There was a tunnel you had to go under that was more narrow than the course which made it worse. It took almost 2 miles to really be able to spread out and for me to be able to get on pace.
I would definitely run this race again. It was managed very well, had some decent SWAG, and the weather was perfect for racing! Oh, and you get a free beer at the end! :)
Since the 10 miler is such a popular race, sign up is a lottery system - unless you sign up for one of TCM's race series. I was signed up for the TC Summit Challenge, so I was guaranteed a spot.