Fall is Marathon Season

Date Posted: Oct 11, 2016

Any running enthusiast will tell you that fall is the perfect season for marathons. Clocking miles in the crisp autumn air feels great after training throughout the hot and steamy summer. Across the country, there are plenty of chances to earn your 26.2 stripes, have a lot of fun, and while you’re at it qualify for larger marathons such as The Boston Marathon (in the case of our very own Pensacola Marathon). Each run has its own flair. Here are some of our favorites:

Baltimore Marathon

  • October 15, 2016; Baltimore
  • Part of the 16thannual Baltimore Running Festival, which features five distances: a marathon, half marathon, team relay, 5K and kid’s fun run
  • Run through the scenic Inner Harbor waterfront area, historic Federal Hill Fells Point and the Maryland Zoo’s penguin exhibit
  • The route delivers a challenging hill on miles 16-20 that’s been compared to the Boston Marathon’s Heartbreak Hill

Screaming Pumpkin Marathon

  • October 29, 2016; Peoria, Illinois
  • Evening run through Springdale Cemetery on a path illuminated by glow sticks
  • Part race, part costume contest
  • Event includes a 10K and 4-person marathon relay race
  • Relay teams provide a predicted finish time; the team that finishes closest to its predicted time wins

Pensacola Marathon

  • November 13, 2016; Pensacola, Florida
  • 12th-annual marathon starts near Admiral Mason Park near historic downtown Pensacola and ends at the city’s Vietnam Wall Memorial
  • Views include beautiful white sandy beaches, views of Escambia Bay and many charming historic neighborhoods
  • With a 6:30 a.m. start time, runners get to watch the sun rise over the bay
  • The marathon is one of multiple events tied to Pensacola’s annual 12-day Foo Foo Fest, which runs November 3-14

Seattle Marathon

  • November 27, 2016; Seattle
  • Largest combined marathon and half-marathon in the Northwest and one of the top-10 largest in the United States
  • Started by a group of friends at the University of Washington in 1970
  • Rolling course includes hilly sections and scenic views of downtown Seattle and Lake Washington
  • Features a kids’ marathon in one-mile increments

Mississippi Gulf Coast Marathon

  • December 10-11, 2016; Biloxi, Mississippi
  • This year is the inaugural run of the “Soak up the Run” Mississippi Gulf Coast Marathon
  • Course starts in Pass Christian and ends in Biloxi
  • Runners run along the coast, taking in views of palm trees, waves and sandy beaches
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