Marathon Details - Springfield Marathon

North America Marathons > USA > MO > Springfield > Springfield Marathon

Springfield Marathon & Half-Marathon, 10K, Kids Events

Springfield, MO USA

October 15, 2005

http://www.BodyMechanixAthletics.com

More Info:	News
Results:	2005 \| 2004 \| 2003 \| 2002 \| 2001 Top 3 Finishers by Year

Contact

Name:	Diane Hood
Address:	Second Baptist Church Springfield Marathon 3111 E. Battlefield Rd. Springfield, MO 65804
Phone Number:	(417)886-0924
Email:	Email the organizers



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Reviews

Course 3.5

Organization 4.8

Spectators 2.2

Write a review

Number of comments: 17 [displaying comments 1 to 11]

More Comments: [ < 1 2 > ]

Kory Kunze from St. Louis, MO (4/12/2006) "Unique course that is both scenic and challenging" (about: 2005) First Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 2 This was my first half marathon and I loved it. The course started through a hilly lake-side neighborhood, headed slowly downhill through a wooded valley back road, onto a narrow wooded nature trail, over an old steel bridge across a pretty river, onto another back road along the bluffs, and then turned around. The change in scenery added to the charm of the race. There were about 400 people in the race so it is not a large one, the pack thins out after the halfway point, and you may not see another runner in parts of the last third of the race. The PowerAde and water stations were plentiful, and the help was very friendly and did a great job of cheering us on. There are few spectators, except for smaller groups cheering on family and friends, so be mentally prepared. There is a very steep hill at the halfway point which is a real burner, and the race finishes going up a hill. It's a unique race that I definitely plan on racing in again.
Mark Myers from Lamar Missouri (3/15/2006) "Great mentally & physically challenging course." (about: 2005) 1 previous marathon \| 1 Springfield Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 This was my first marathon and I was greatly impressed with the physically challenging course. The spectators and volunteer support were great. They always challenged and supported you. This is a race I will do yearly.
Nicole Jarvis from Springfield, Missouri (10/18/2005) "Excellent race, very well organized" (about: 2005) 11-50 previous marathons \| 2 Springfield Marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 The October 15th race had perfect weather, and the course is challenging, but fun (it changes from winding trial to paved road, back to trail.... Keeps you mentally alive). Beautiful scenery, nice start and finish through scenic neighborhood with wide streets and no traffic. Volunteers are outstanding and crowd support is excellent.
C. W. from Arkansas (10/17/2005) "Great 1/2 marathon One of the best for me" (about: 2005) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Springfield Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 2 Great weather, great aid stations, and great scenery along the trails. People were very friendly. The food after the run was a special treat. The awards ceremony was great with the gospel message.
S. M. from Pittsburg, KS (12/28/2004) "Wonderful small marathon" (about: 2004) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Springfield Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 I was very impressed with this marathon! I enjoyed aid stations with water, Gatorade, and Gu; very friendly volunteers and fellow runners; well-marked miles (although some were not quite correct - slightly short or long); a great prize purse (I took home $750 for 2nd overall female, 1st overall won $1000); great plaques for age groups as well as overall placings; great recognition at the awards ceremony; Christian message/mission with a special speaker at the awards; good lunch of pasta, chicken, salad, fruit, and ice cream following the race included in the entry fee. The weather was ideal for fast times in 2004 (around 26 degrees at the start, up to maybe 40 degrees 3 hours later and little wind), but of course will vary from year to year. The course is hilly, but if you train on hills it's completely do-able (I ran a PR), so don't let the hills intimidate you... there are 2 that are about a 1/2 mile long and many other rolling hills throughout the course. Although there isn't a big crowd, the supporters and volunteers are very supportive and enthusiastic. There also is not a large crowd in the race so you may end up running alone at times, but there is no problem with congestion on the course. The course is very spectator friendly - the race packet even includes directions to several points on the course where friends and family can park and cheer for you. If you have supporters driving around they should be able to get to several points on the course (my dad made it to at least 20!). My one complaint about this race is that the awards ceremony was not held until 3:00 pm on race day. The marathon started at 7:00 am, so most runners had been finished for a substantial amount of time before the awards took place. Sure, it was nice to be able to shower and eat before the awards, but I got a little impatient waiting around. The half-marathoners and 10K runners also had to wait until 3:00 for awards, after a 7:00 start for them as well. However, this delay did allow for race organizers to put together a really cool highlight video from the morning's race. Overall this was probably the best marathon I've run... it was my fifth marathon, but I've been participating in road races since I was 11 (I'm 24 now) so have lots of experience with both poorly and well organized events. I'll go back to Springfield!
russ petelle from derby line, vermont (12/12/2004) "challenging, scenic, well organized" (about: 2004) 50+ previous marathons \| 1 Springfield Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 1 Loved the course from mile 6 on. The huge houses and beautiful country scenery made the hills palatable. I have never run a marathon with this many water stops and availability of Gu at all of them. Would highly recommend this race if you are looking for a small, friendly, challenging fall marathon.
Robert Boehm from Kansas City, Mo (12/6/2004) "Great Half Marathon" (about: 2004) 50+ previous marathons \| 1 Springfield Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 1 I have done the marathon and this year opted for the half. Both events use the same first 5 miles before splitting off. The half is relatively flat except for mile 6, 12 and 13. This marathon has the most water stops of any I have done. They are also well manned by volunteers. However, there are not a lot of spectators, so be sure to have someone to run with, if needing encouragement.
Michelle Jackson from Ottawa Kansas (10/18/2004) "This will be my third year in a row1" (about: 2001) 11-50 previous marathons \| 2 Springfield Marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 I love this marathon. It is in my top 3 ever run. It is really hard. The volunteers are the best. Power Gel every aid station. There really aren't spectators. It is more of a rustic marathon. In my opinion, one of the best.
A Runner from Iowa (12/12/2002) "Warm, Friendly People" (General Comments) COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 2 On the plus side were the warm, friendly people and buccolic route which is over 50% on safe, scenic, rolling country 2-lane. On the negative was the irregularity of the mile distances, some of which were off by a lot.
A Runner from Fayetteville, AR (12/8/2002) "Toughest marathon course you'll ever run" (about: 2002) COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 Believe everyone else who has reviewed this course. It is tough! About a third of the course consists of long, gradual hills. Don't let that scare you away, though. The volunteers are some of the nicest you will ever find and every single aid station serves water, powerade, AND power gel: Impressive. I would run this course again. Be warned, though, this is a very tough course to qualify on.

More Comments: [ < 1 2 > ]

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Kory Kunze from St. Louis, MO (4/12/2006) "Unique course that is both scenic and challenging" (about: 2005) First Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 2 This was my first half marathon and I loved it. The course started through a hilly lake-side neighborhood, headed slowly downhill through a wooded valley back road, onto a narrow wooded nature trail, over an old steel bridge across a pretty river, onto another back road along the bluffs, and then turned around. The change in scenery added to the charm of the race. There were about 400 people in the race so it is not a large one, the pack thins out after the halfway point, and you may not see another runner in parts of the last third of the race. The PowerAde and water stations were plentiful, and the help was very friendly and did a great job of cheering us on. There are few spectators, except for smaller groups cheering on family and friends, so be mentally prepared. There is a very steep hill at the halfway point which is a real burner, and the race finishes going up a hill. It's a unique race that I definitely plan on racing in again.
Mark Myers from Lamar Missouri (3/15/2006) "Great mentally & physically challenging course." (about: 2005) 1 previous marathon \| 1 Springfield Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 This was my first marathon and I was greatly impressed with the physically challenging course. The spectators and volunteer support were great. They always challenged and supported you. This is a race I will do yearly.
Nicole Jarvis from Springfield, Missouri (10/18/2005) "Excellent race, very well organized" (about: 2005) 11-50 previous marathons \| 2 Springfield Marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 The October 15th race had perfect weather, and the course is challenging, but fun (it changes from winding trial to paved road, back to trail.... Keeps you mentally alive). Beautiful scenery, nice start and finish through scenic neighborhood with wide streets and no traffic. Volunteers are outstanding and crowd support is excellent.
C. W. from Arkansas (10/17/2005) "Great 1/2 marathon One of the best for me" (about: 2005) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Springfield Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 2 Great weather, great aid stations, and great scenery along the trails. People were very friendly. The food after the run was a special treat. The awards ceremony was great with the gospel message.
S. M. from Pittsburg, KS (12/28/2004) "Wonderful small marathon" (about: 2004) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Springfield Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 I was very impressed with this marathon! I enjoyed aid stations with water, Gatorade, and Gu; very friendly volunteers and fellow runners; well-marked miles (although some were not quite correct - slightly short or long); a great prize purse (I took home $750 for 2nd overall female, 1st overall won $1000); great plaques for age groups as well as overall placings; great recognition at the awards ceremony; Christian message/mission with a special speaker at the awards; good lunch of pasta, chicken, salad, fruit, and ice cream following the race included in the entry fee. The weather was ideal for fast times in 2004 (around 26 degrees at the start, up to maybe 40 degrees 3 hours later and little wind), but of course will vary from year to year. The course is hilly, but if you train on hills it's completely do-able (I ran a PR), so don't let the hills intimidate you... there are 2 that are about a 1/2 mile long and many other rolling hills throughout the course. Although there isn't a big crowd, the supporters and volunteers are very supportive and enthusiastic. There also is not a large crowd in the race so you may end up running alone at times, but there is no problem with congestion on the course. The course is very spectator friendly - the race packet even includes directions to several points on the course where friends and family can park and cheer for you. If you have supporters driving around they should be able to get to several points on the course (my dad made it to at least 20!). My one complaint about this race is that the awards ceremony was not held until 3:00 pm on race day. The marathon started at 7:00 am, so most runners had been finished for a substantial amount of time before the awards took place. Sure, it was nice to be able to shower and eat before the awards, but I got a little impatient waiting around. The half-marathoners and 10K runners also had to wait until 3:00 for awards, after a 7:00 start for them as well. However, this delay did allow for race organizers to put together a really cool highlight video from the morning's race. Overall this was probably the best marathon I've run... it was my fifth marathon, but I've been participating in road races since I was 11 (I'm 24 now) so have lots of experience with both poorly and well organized events. I'll go back to Springfield!
russ petelle from derby line, vermont (12/12/2004) "challenging, scenic, well organized" (about: 2004) 50+ previous marathons \| 1 Springfield Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 1 Loved the course from mile 6 on. The huge houses and beautiful country scenery made the hills palatable. I have never run a marathon with this many water stops and availability of Gu at all of them. Would highly recommend this race if you are looking for a small, friendly, challenging fall marathon.
Robert Boehm from Kansas City, Mo (12/6/2004) "Great Half Marathon" (about: 2004) 50+ previous marathons \| 1 Springfield Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 1 I have done the marathon and this year opted for the half. Both events use the same first 5 miles before splitting off. The half is relatively flat except for mile 6, 12 and 13. This marathon has the most water stops of any I have done. They are also well manned by volunteers. However, there are not a lot of spectators, so be sure to have someone to run with, if needing encouragement.
Michelle Jackson from Ottawa Kansas (10/18/2004) "This will be my third year in a row1" (about: 2001) 11-50 previous marathons \| 2 Springfield Marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 I love this marathon. It is in my top 3 ever run. It is really hard. The volunteers are the best. Power Gel every aid station. There really aren't spectators. It is more of a rustic marathon. In my opinion, one of the best.
A Runner from Iowa (12/12/2002) "Warm, Friendly People" (General Comments) COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 2 On the plus side were the warm, friendly people and buccolic route which is over 50% on safe, scenic, rolling country 2-lane. On the negative was the irregularity of the mile distances, some of which were off by a lot.
A Runner from Fayetteville, AR (12/8/2002) "Toughest marathon course you'll ever run" (about: 2002) COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 Believe everyone else who has reviewed this course. It is tough! About a third of the course consists of long, gradual hills. Don't let that scare you away, though. The volunteers are some of the nicest you will ever find and every single aid station serves water, powerade, AND power gel: Impressive. I would run this course again. Be warned, though, this is a very tough course to qualify on.

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Marathon Details - Springfield Marathon