Nov 8, 2024

☰

Premium Listings

Verified Accounts

Free Race Organizer Account

Become An Advertiser

Marathon Details - Veterans Marathon

North America Marathons > USA > IN > Columbia City > Veterans Marathon

Veterans Marathon

Veterans Marathon & Half Marathon, 5K

Columbia City, IN USA

November 2, 2024

http://www.runveteransmarathon.com

News

Marathon Results

By Year:

2024 2023 2022 2021 2020 2019 2018 2017 2016 2015 2014 2013 2012 2011 2010 2009 Top 3 Finishers

Race Details

Starts/Finishes Downtown, flat to rolling hills. USATF Certified #IN 10036 MW and Sanction course. Aid stations, and chip timing. 23% of field qual for Boston 2011 21% of field qual for Boston 2010, 19% of field qual for Boston 2009

Contact Information

Name:	AJ Arnett
Address:	4039 North Clinton Street
Phone Number:	260-496-8000
Email:	Email the organizers

Race Organizer

Veterans Marathon ON FOR 2013 (2/1/13)

Race Director

We are pleased to announce that the Veterans Marathon is Back for 2013! For the 5th year we will be honoring the US Coast Guard. More info can be found at www.veteransmarathon.com

Runner Reviews (65)

Course 4.3

Organization 4.8

Spectators 4.0

Write a review

Number of comments: 65 [displaying comments 1 to 11]

More Comments: [ < 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 > ]

B. F. from IN (11/18/2022) "Great Marathon for a Great Cause" (about: 2022) 50+ previous marathons \| 3 Veterans Marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 Veterans Marathon is very well organized with a good BQ course! Small town that honors and supports veterans while catering to all the runners! Prerace festivities to recognize and honor veterans from presenting colors and flags to the children's choir singing the National Anthem reminds everyone that others have protected our freedom to have the opportunity to run. Great volunteers and aid stations. Great race to run a PR!
M. B. from Ellicott City, MD (11/21/2021) "Best race director and awesome small-town USA vibe" (about: 2021) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Veterans Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 Excellent communication, wonderful people, nice scenery, cold weather. I love these small races. Joanne, the RD, was extremely nice to me and my son, who had to kill time waiting for me to finish the race. She was really awesome. Course support was also top notch. I have zero complaints. Super 8 (reluctantly) gave us a 1pm checkout. No frills hotel and under $70/night. I highly recommend this race to anyone.
N. S. from FL (11/15/2021) "Well Organized Farmland Marathon" (about: 2021) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Veterans Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 As former marathon directors, organization is critically important to us, and this one did not disappoint!!! Temps stayed between 36 - 39, wind was quite brisk and was a head wind for first few miles in loop and a tailwind in last few miles in loop. Busier road section at front end of loop wasn't bad bc either traffic was non existent (1st loop) or cones let drivers know there is a race going on. Beautiful country roads are like a bacon strip - it is rolling hills, but none of the hills are severe. Farmland scenery is very lovely & zen. Had light rain for the first half hour so the conditions did make it challenging, but we both still managed decent times for us (I did full, hubby did half). Very happy with the result, and not sore at all (I'm about to turn 60 & ran 3:53). Super 8 motel was accommodating with a 1 p.m. checkout, sizeable fridge, microwave, hairdryer, huge room. Columbia City is charming and tiny. Aid stations on course are awesome & plentiful, few spectators were nice but if you are the type that wants crowds (I prefer the small races), this is not your race.
Dave Walters from Lisle, Illinois (11/16/2020) "Outstanding small marathon" (about: 2020) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Veterans Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 2 Great race with super amenities! Race support on the course was top notch. Nice flat to rolling course. Love the race jacket and gloves. The post race soup/chili was over the top!!
b. K. from OH (11/15/2020) "Don't stay in Holiday Inn Express" (about: 2020) 50+ previous marathons \| 2 Veterans Marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This race, despite COVID, was well organized and, despite the cold weather, was great fun. I ran the half this year (back surgery a year ago) and will run the marathon in the future. I decided to stay in the new Holiday Inn Express. Bad news. Even though this hotel is new, this was far below the standards of Holiday Inn. The owners apparently want to save on every little item. The TV, direct TV, was almost impossible to work. Tried calling the front desk but, after a dozen rings, I gave up. The shower had a dismal flow - to save $$. The water was lukewarm at best. The toilet had a ring around it. Yuck. The breakfast muffins were stale - ?? bakery outlet?? A lot of other runners and I ran the race early Saturday morning and we all placed our orders the night before. But it was a Chinese fire drill the next morning. Felt sorry for the runners deep in the line. I think most of them gave up and went somewhere to eat. Last time for me in this place.
Rob Klein from Paradise, Michigan USA (11/12/2019) "Rolling Hills Through Farm Country & A Stiff Wind" (about: 2019) 50+ previous marathons \| 1 Veterans Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 In the mid-west in November, you can never be sure what you are going to get for weather. Since there was a weather system pushing sub-freezing temperatures down as far as the Gulf coast across the eastern United States, we were not going to have a pleasant and warm autumn day for this marathon. And by this time of year, there are not many folks holding autumn marathons in the mid-west. But this marathon focused on veterans and celebrated Veteran's Day. Some participants were saying how much worse the weather was for the event in 2018. Still, it was cold. Overnight low was forecast to be 23 degrees F, with a Saturday daytime high of 43, with clouds. Lynn is the RD for this event, and she was available for questions leading up to race day. She also provided club discounts for Marathon Maniac and 50-States Marathon Club member. Many thanks for that. Columbia City is a small town just west of Ft. Wayne, and it was pretty easy to get to. There is a small business district, and packet pick-up was on Van Buren Street, which seemed to be the main east-west street through town. Also, the court house was right there on Van Buren Street too, and the start line was there - in the middle of the road, which was closed for the occasion. The finish line was right at the same intersection, 90 degrees to the start line. This race used chip timing, but the runners did not cross a mat at the start. I guess everybody had the same start time at the sound of the 'gun', then when runners finished, they got their finish time recorded by the electronic equipment. Works for me. The course started down Van Buren St heading west. After several turns through neighborhoods, we were on a long straight road heading out of town to the west; I think it was US 30. Eventually we turned left off that road and kind of headed into farm country. The roads kind of meandered through rolling hills of the area farms to the west and south of town. Once we were out of town and turned south, the winds were quite extreme. And by now we were on pretty long stretches of road, and the wind kind of kept up thought the morning. There was plenty of opportunity to see farm work being done: silos being filled with corn, fields being plowed, and one being sprayed. One guy had a substantial bon fire going that was making a lot of smoke. Throughout the course, there were marshals at critical corners, police monitoring where automobile traffic might need to be stopped, and EMS people hanging out - just in case. There were adequate hydration stations with volunteers handing out water and Gatorade. They had gels too - at two locations on the course. The staff at the hydration station out in the country gave me their last gel as I was heading back to town on my second circuit. That reminds me to say that this is a 13.1 mile loop, and the full marathoners had to complete the prescribed course two times. The weather forecast was pretty accurate. It was in the mid-20s early, and it did warm up to the low-40s, but the wind was strong and unrelenting. Early on there was a total overcast. That overcast blew over, and then we had some sun and a scattered to broken layer of high cirrus clouds that the sun managed to penetrate part of the time. The stretch later in the morning with the sun breaking through when the wind was at our backs was pretty pleasant for running weather. But weather can be so variable and change so fast. A couple of closing comments: There was a guy at the start-line with just running shorts and a rather patriotic tank-top - and no warm-up clothes. I simply do not know how he survived the cold while we waited for 8:00 a.m. to roll around. Afterwards, RD Lynn was there at the finish line, so I got to chat briefly with her and personally thank her for orchestrating everything. Also, there was a local business offering hot soup to the runners at half price. They even had a sign on the course about the hot soup at the finish line! Lynn sent me over there after I finished. The gal inside informed me that I was too late, they were no longer serving soup, and that the gal serving the soup had gone home. Too bad for me, for finishing so close to the end. The race organization still had food for the runners at the finish line: Bananas, fluids, crackers with peanut butter, fruit & grain bars, and gummy fruit snacks. Lynn and her volunteers did a great job, and this is one of the last outdoor mid-west marathons on the schedule now as winter approaches.
j. e. from Pennsylvania (11/12/2017) "small, rural, organized" (about: 2017) 50+ previous marathons \| 1 Veterans Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 Love the small easy to navigate races and this was it. Flew into FWA (Fort Wayne), got cheap rental car and drove 35 minutes to Columbia City. Quality Inn was $64 but upset that they wouldn't allow a late checkout so options for postrace shower are the YMCA (bring a towel) or try Super 8 for late checkout. Packet Pickup was easy, in town so near places to eat. Long sleeved Brooks tech shirt was very nice and socks with marathon logo were nice touch. Parking at start was simple (1 block away). It was bitter cold 23 degrees (13 windchill). Mostly flat 2 loop course with few rolling hills so dress accordingly because there is no protection from the wind. First loop was with halfers and there were any cars out. Second loop was lonely and many cars on road so you were forced to the side which was cambered (my hip hated that) but never felt unsafe. it was well marked and you were alone the bulk of loop 2. It is rural and well aided (every 2 miles or less). They advertised 1 gel stop at mile 13. There were actually 5 places you could get a gel, but you had to be on the lookout. That was awesome. Not much of a crowd, but anyone who was out in the cold was encouraging. Age group awards are in 5 year increments and go 2 deep. they are an incredibly heavy, very nice limestone plaque. It was really special. Not a ton of food at the finish, but I am never really hungry anyway. I was very pleased with my choice for an Indiana marathon. It was on Veterns Day, making it even more special. It was so organized and friendly. I thank the Race Director and all the volunteers, especially in that cold.
Bob Kroeger from Cincinnati (11/12/2017) "A Gem" (about: 2017) 50+ previous marathons \| 2 Veterans Marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 There's a first time for everything. This was marathon #84 and it was the coldest of them all, making me wonder if I should be concerned about frostbite, cramped muscles, glycogen loss, etc. So I decided - for the first time in a marathon - I'd wear compression tights. Except I didn't have any. So a few days ago I tried on four pairs and selected a cold weather Reebok. Some decisions are better than others and this was one of those good ones. Only rarely did my legs feel the cold - about 20 at the start and, thanks to a stiff breeze, which seemed to be almost continually in one's face - not much warmer at the finish. I made another important purchase - a heavy hoodie. While I pumped gas he day before the marathon, I noticed a Goodwill store not far away. So I bought the XXL hoodie, more than ample for my medium-sized frame. I pitched it after the second mile. It was nice being warm at the start. I also covered most of my face with a neck warmer scarf that was a finisher's gift at the Akron marathon. Another good decision. It warmed the air, which was cold most of the time. I must have looked like a bank robber, but, really, who cared? The Veterans Marathon, especially from my ex-Navy background, was a well-organized small marathon. Most of the runners did the half, which, I'll admit, seemed like a good idea instead of doing 26.2. In the second half of the double-loop course - on country roads through harvested corn fields and past massive barns and small farm houses - I ran mostly alone, sometimes without anyone in front to guide me. Yet, the topography was perfect, in my opinion. No hills and not flat - just gently rolling slopes, up and down, the best kind of route for marathon running. And no concrete, just asphalt. With a half mile to go, a younger runner caught up to me and, at a Y-split in the road, he went left - the wrong way. I shouted at him and shouted again. Lucky for him, he was not wearing ear buds and could hear me. He was headed down the wrong road, which he disputed. But red arrows on the pavement don't lie. The best part, though, came at the finish line, when, as I staggered across, two lovely young ladies, bundled in winter coats, grabbed me. One, holding a sheet, told me that I won my age division and would get a nice limestone plaque, which, of course, meant that no one else in the 70+ bracket was stupid enough to run in such frigid conditions. I never claimed to have common sense. I must thank my chiropractor, Dr. Richard Yost, for seven ART treatments to help rehab my ailing hamstring, and my favorite podiatrist, Dr. Stacy Osborne, for his orthotics, which I think about every time my foot strikes the pavement. If you don't need crowds to cheer you on and if you like running through a pristine patch of Americana, then you'll like the Veterans. If you need crowds, try the Flying Pig, my favorite fun marathon. And, if it's cold, dress warmly. I had no frostbite, no cramps, and no complaints. Thanks to Reebok, too.
A. H. from California (11/20/2016) "Beatiful run in the countryside" (about: 2016) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Veterans Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 Nice small-town race. Not a lot of swag, not a lot of crowds, just a nice little double-loop with mostly gently rolling farm scenery. The ups and downs are gentle enough such that you can run the ups hard and pick up a bit of speed on the downs, could be a fast course if you want a good chip time. The local Super 8 opened a couple rooms in the afternoon so guests could return and shower.
Bob Kroeger from Cincinnati (11/14/2016) "A Gem in Northern Indiana" (about: 2016) 50+ previous marathons \| 1 Veterans Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 I stayed at the Super 8 motel on Frontage Road, not far from the start and finish. Nothing's far in this little town. As others have said, this modest hotel was great. Beautiful flat countryside, with a few rises and dips, but nothing dramatic. Terrific weather - 28 at the start and mid-40s by noon. Well organized and friendly people. No traffic, no hassles with parking. Just you and the road. Plus lots of corn fields, barns, and a few cows. Not for those who like big city crowds and all that buzz.

More Comments: [ < 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 > ]



Getting ready for this event? Get a personalized adaptive training plan and 1:1 coach assistance.	Get Your Plan

Quick Links

Marathon Search
Upcoming US Marathons
Upcoming International Marathons
Search Marathon Results
Latest Running News
Recent Newsletters
Race Director Tools

Calendars

US/Canada

International

World Marathon Majors

B. F. from IN (11/18/2022) "Great Marathon for a Great Cause" (about: 2022) 50+ previous marathons \| 3 Veterans Marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 Veterans Marathon is very well organized with a good BQ course! Small town that honors and supports veterans while catering to all the runners! Prerace festivities to recognize and honor veterans from presenting colors and flags to the children's choir singing the National Anthem reminds everyone that others have protected our freedom to have the opportunity to run. Great volunteers and aid stations. Great race to run a PR!
M. B. from Ellicott City, MD (11/21/2021) "Best race director and awesome small-town USA vibe" (about: 2021) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Veterans Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 Excellent communication, wonderful people, nice scenery, cold weather. I love these small races. Joanne, the RD, was extremely nice to me and my son, who had to kill time waiting for me to finish the race. She was really awesome. Course support was also top notch. I have zero complaints. Super 8 (reluctantly) gave us a 1pm checkout. No frills hotel and under $70/night. I highly recommend this race to anyone.
N. S. from FL (11/15/2021) "Well Organized Farmland Marathon" (about: 2021) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Veterans Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 As former marathon directors, organization is critically important to us, and this one did not disappoint!!! Temps stayed between 36 - 39, wind was quite brisk and was a head wind for first few miles in loop and a tailwind in last few miles in loop. Busier road section at front end of loop wasn't bad bc either traffic was non existent (1st loop) or cones let drivers know there is a race going on. Beautiful country roads are like a bacon strip - it is rolling hills, but none of the hills are severe. Farmland scenery is very lovely & zen. Had light rain for the first half hour so the conditions did make it challenging, but we both still managed decent times for us (I did full, hubby did half). Very happy with the result, and not sore at all (I'm about to turn 60 & ran 3:53). Super 8 motel was accommodating with a 1 p.m. checkout, sizeable fridge, microwave, hairdryer, huge room. Columbia City is charming and tiny. Aid stations on course are awesome & plentiful, few spectators were nice but if you are the type that wants crowds (I prefer the small races), this is not your race.
Dave Walters from Lisle, Illinois (11/16/2020) "Outstanding small marathon" (about: 2020) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Veterans Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 2 Great race with super amenities! Race support on the course was top notch. Nice flat to rolling course. Love the race jacket and gloves. The post race soup/chili was over the top!!
b. K. from OH (11/15/2020) "Don't stay in Holiday Inn Express" (about: 2020) 50+ previous marathons \| 2 Veterans Marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This race, despite COVID, was well organized and, despite the cold weather, was great fun. I ran the half this year (back surgery a year ago) and will run the marathon in the future. I decided to stay in the new Holiday Inn Express. Bad news. Even though this hotel is new, this was far below the standards of Holiday Inn. The owners apparently want to save on every little item. The TV, direct TV, was almost impossible to work. Tried calling the front desk but, after a dozen rings, I gave up. The shower had a dismal flow - to save $$. The water was lukewarm at best. The toilet had a ring around it. Yuck. The breakfast muffins were stale - ?? bakery outlet?? A lot of other runners and I ran the race early Saturday morning and we all placed our orders the night before. But it was a Chinese fire drill the next morning. Felt sorry for the runners deep in the line. I think most of them gave up and went somewhere to eat. Last time for me in this place.
Rob Klein from Paradise, Michigan USA (11/12/2019) "Rolling Hills Through Farm Country & A Stiff Wind" (about: 2019) 50+ previous marathons \| 1 Veterans Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 In the mid-west in November, you can never be sure what you are going to get for weather. Since there was a weather system pushing sub-freezing temperatures down as far as the Gulf coast across the eastern United States, we were not going to have a pleasant and warm autumn day for this marathon. And by this time of year, there are not many folks holding autumn marathons in the mid-west. But this marathon focused on veterans and celebrated Veteran's Day. Some participants were saying how much worse the weather was for the event in 2018. Still, it was cold. Overnight low was forecast to be 23 degrees F, with a Saturday daytime high of 43, with clouds. Lynn is the RD for this event, and she was available for questions leading up to race day. She also provided club discounts for Marathon Maniac and 50-States Marathon Club member. Many thanks for that. Columbia City is a small town just west of Ft. Wayne, and it was pretty easy to get to. There is a small business district, and packet pick-up was on Van Buren Street, which seemed to be the main east-west street through town. Also, the court house was right there on Van Buren Street too, and the start line was there - in the middle of the road, which was closed for the occasion. The finish line was right at the same intersection, 90 degrees to the start line. This race used chip timing, but the runners did not cross a mat at the start. I guess everybody had the same start time at the sound of the 'gun', then when runners finished, they got their finish time recorded by the electronic equipment. Works for me. The course started down Van Buren St heading west. After several turns through neighborhoods, we were on a long straight road heading out of town to the west; I think it was US 30. Eventually we turned left off that road and kind of headed into farm country. The roads kind of meandered through rolling hills of the area farms to the west and south of town. Once we were out of town and turned south, the winds were quite extreme. And by now we were on pretty long stretches of road, and the wind kind of kept up thought the morning. There was plenty of opportunity to see farm work being done: silos being filled with corn, fields being plowed, and one being sprayed. One guy had a substantial bon fire going that was making a lot of smoke. Throughout the course, there were marshals at critical corners, police monitoring where automobile traffic might need to be stopped, and EMS people hanging out - just in case. There were adequate hydration stations with volunteers handing out water and Gatorade. They had gels too - at two locations on the course. The staff at the hydration station out in the country gave me their last gel as I was heading back to town on my second circuit. That reminds me to say that this is a 13.1 mile loop, and the full marathoners had to complete the prescribed course two times. The weather forecast was pretty accurate. It was in the mid-20s early, and it did warm up to the low-40s, but the wind was strong and unrelenting. Early on there was a total overcast. That overcast blew over, and then we had some sun and a scattered to broken layer of high cirrus clouds that the sun managed to penetrate part of the time. The stretch later in the morning with the sun breaking through when the wind was at our backs was pretty pleasant for running weather. But weather can be so variable and change so fast. A couple of closing comments: There was a guy at the start-line with just running shorts and a rather patriotic tank-top - and no warm-up clothes. I simply do not know how he survived the cold while we waited for 8:00 a.m. to roll around. Afterwards, RD Lynn was there at the finish line, so I got to chat briefly with her and personally thank her for orchestrating everything. Also, there was a local business offering hot soup to the runners at half price. They even had a sign on the course about the hot soup at the finish line! Lynn sent me over there after I finished. The gal inside informed me that I was too late, they were no longer serving soup, and that the gal serving the soup had gone home. Too bad for me, for finishing so close to the end. The race organization still had food for the runners at the finish line: Bananas, fluids, crackers with peanut butter, fruit & grain bars, and gummy fruit snacks. Lynn and her volunteers did a great job, and this is one of the last outdoor mid-west marathons on the schedule now as winter approaches.
j. e. from Pennsylvania (11/12/2017) "small, rural, organized" (about: 2017) 50+ previous marathons \| 1 Veterans Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 Love the small easy to navigate races and this was it. Flew into FWA (Fort Wayne), got cheap rental car and drove 35 minutes to Columbia City. Quality Inn was $64 but upset that they wouldn't allow a late checkout so options for postrace shower are the YMCA (bring a towel) or try Super 8 for late checkout. Packet Pickup was easy, in town so near places to eat. Long sleeved Brooks tech shirt was very nice and socks with marathon logo were nice touch. Parking at start was simple (1 block away). It was bitter cold 23 degrees (13 windchill). Mostly flat 2 loop course with few rolling hills so dress accordingly because there is no protection from the wind. First loop was with halfers and there were any cars out. Second loop was lonely and many cars on road so you were forced to the side which was cambered (my hip hated that) but never felt unsafe. it was well marked and you were alone the bulk of loop 2. It is rural and well aided (every 2 miles or less). They advertised 1 gel stop at mile 13. There were actually 5 places you could get a gel, but you had to be on the lookout. That was awesome. Not much of a crowd, but anyone who was out in the cold was encouraging. Age group awards are in 5 year increments and go 2 deep. they are an incredibly heavy, very nice limestone plaque. It was really special. Not a ton of food at the finish, but I am never really hungry anyway. I was very pleased with my choice for an Indiana marathon. It was on Veterns Day, making it even more special. It was so organized and friendly. I thank the Race Director and all the volunteers, especially in that cold.
Bob Kroeger from Cincinnati (11/12/2017) "A Gem" (about: 2017) 50+ previous marathons \| 2 Veterans Marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 There's a first time for everything. This was marathon #84 and it was the coldest of them all, making me wonder if I should be concerned about frostbite, cramped muscles, glycogen loss, etc. So I decided - for the first time in a marathon - I'd wear compression tights. Except I didn't have any. So a few days ago I tried on four pairs and selected a cold weather Reebok. Some decisions are better than others and this was one of those good ones. Only rarely did my legs feel the cold - about 20 at the start and, thanks to a stiff breeze, which seemed to be almost continually in one's face - not much warmer at the finish. I made another important purchase - a heavy hoodie. While I pumped gas he day before the marathon, I noticed a Goodwill store not far away. So I bought the XXL hoodie, more than ample for my medium-sized frame. I pitched it after the second mile. It was nice being warm at the start. I also covered most of my face with a neck warmer scarf that was a finisher's gift at the Akron marathon. Another good decision. It warmed the air, which was cold most of the time. I must have looked like a bank robber, but, really, who cared? The Veterans Marathon, especially from my ex-Navy background, was a well-organized small marathon. Most of the runners did the half, which, I'll admit, seemed like a good idea instead of doing 26.2. In the second half of the double-loop course - on country roads through harvested corn fields and past massive barns and small farm houses - I ran mostly alone, sometimes without anyone in front to guide me. Yet, the topography was perfect, in my opinion. No hills and not flat - just gently rolling slopes, up and down, the best kind of route for marathon running. And no concrete, just asphalt. With a half mile to go, a younger runner caught up to me and, at a Y-split in the road, he went left - the wrong way. I shouted at him and shouted again. Lucky for him, he was not wearing ear buds and could hear me. He was headed down the wrong road, which he disputed. But red arrows on the pavement don't lie. The best part, though, came at the finish line, when, as I staggered across, two lovely young ladies, bundled in winter coats, grabbed me. One, holding a sheet, told me that I won my age division and would get a nice limestone plaque, which, of course, meant that no one else in the 70+ bracket was stupid enough to run in such frigid conditions. I never claimed to have common sense. I must thank my chiropractor, Dr. Richard Yost, for seven ART treatments to help rehab my ailing hamstring, and my favorite podiatrist, Dr. Stacy Osborne, for his orthotics, which I think about every time my foot strikes the pavement. If you don't need crowds to cheer you on and if you like running through a pristine patch of Americana, then you'll like the Veterans. If you need crowds, try the Flying Pig, my favorite fun marathon. And, if it's cold, dress warmly. I had no frostbite, no cramps, and no complaints. Thanks to Reebok, too.
A. H. from California (11/20/2016) "Beatiful run in the countryside" (about: 2016) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Veterans Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 Nice small-town race. Not a lot of swag, not a lot of crowds, just a nice little double-loop with mostly gently rolling farm scenery. The ups and downs are gentle enough such that you can run the ups hard and pick up a bit of speed on the downs, could be a fast course if you want a good chip time. The local Super 8 opened a couple rooms in the afternoon so guests could return and shower.
Bob Kroeger from Cincinnati (11/14/2016) "A Gem in Northern Indiana" (about: 2016) 50+ previous marathons \| 1 Veterans Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 I stayed at the Super 8 motel on Frontage Road, not far from the start and finish. Nothing's far in this little town. As others have said, this modest hotel was great. Beautiful flat countryside, with a few rises and dips, but nothing dramatic. Terrific weather - 28 at the start and mid-40s by noon. Well organized and friendly people. No traffic, no hassles with parking. Just you and the road. Plus lots of corn fields, barns, and a few cows. Not for those who like big city crowds and all that buzz.

Become a better runner

Marathon Details - Veterans Marathon