Candy Cane Course North KC
Liberty, MO
- 12K, 5K, 1 Miler, Kids Run
- Road (Paved)
- Official race website
Join us for the annual Candy Cane Course 5K & 12K in Liberty, MO! A fun, Christmas-themed event that is perfect for the whole family. The fun includes: – Great Swag: designer shirt & custom medal– Chip-timing with live results and awards– Free photos– Delicious Treats waiting at the finish line– Plenty of fun! Grab … MORE
Local Historical Weather (Dec 14):
| 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | |
| H (°F) | 46 | 55 | 40 | 65 | 35 |
| L (°F) | 36 | 34 | 29 | 45 | 19 |
Find Nearby Lodging (hotel, rental, etc.):
Great mix of a course
The first mile or so of the course is in one lane of a closed down road then hard left turns into a park for a really nice, and admittedly … MORE
The first mile or so of the course is in one lane of a closed down road then hard left turns into a park for a really nice, and admittedly somewhat challenging (without being punitive). There are twists and turns and hills (though no real long ones) and woods and bridges, but whatever isn’t on the road is on a very wide paved park path, so no off-roading here. The loops and turn backs are actually nice on this one, as you’ll have plenty of other racers to watch and yell encouragement to as you weave through the park. One small hill about half a mile from the finish line, but crest that and it’s flat up until the last 100 meters which is downhill into a parking lot. The 12k is two laps with a turnaround a little further out than the 5k turnaround. My only gripe is the same as last year. The wooden bridges get slick in the morning dew and could use some sand thrown on them. I saw a couple runners go down on them so just accept you won’t PR here and walk the dozen or so feet across them. The sweatshirt was really soft and will probably actually get worn outside of races and the medal was a huge Rudolf in a snow globe design. It really was on par with a lot of half marathon medals I have, so if you are like me and like chasing the bling, this is a great race for you. I went back for a buddy who was struggling with a new distance, so no PR for me, but despite that it was a pretty fast course despite the hills. I’d be hard pressed to say it’s PR-able, but you won’t be disappointed with your time, and the production crew makes every runner feel like they’re arriving with the Olympic torch. Absolute do-again race.
Excellent park and road race
This one is hard for me. I was nursing a bad knee today so my time was off, but I feel like it could have been a fast course. Probably … MORE
This one is hard for me. I was nursing a bad knee today so my time was off, but I feel like it could have been a fast course. Probably not PR material because of the hills (none too bad, but many small ones), but a fast one none the less. I had a maximum time I wanted to come in under, and I did, but my splits were way off from normal. Overall I’m only saying 4 on difficulty because as a double out-and-back, you get just as much downhill as uphill, so race strategically. The first couple miles were in one lane of the road, but there was a parallel sidewalk as well that fast runners could take advantage of to pass the clog-ups at the beginning. The scenery was nice, both on the road and in the park, with plenty of varied terrain to take advantage of. This is not a “trail run” though, as it’s all on a doublewide (or wider) path once you hit the park. The swag was the same as yesterday, being another Candy Cane race, but the swag was amazing, so I’m not complaining there. My only gripe is there were with mile markers. There was a 5k and a 12k, so out to the 5k turnaround, then out another half km to the 12k turnaround, then do it twice. There were no mile markers after 3 and since they were for the 5k they didn’t correspond to the multiples on the 12. It would have been nice to have color coded markers out for both race, because I like seeing them on the course as motivation to maintain pace.
Also, the free coffee truck returned for another showing. Huge plus on that one.
I really loved yesterday’s Candy Cane course, and as much as it pains me to say it, if I could only do one next year it would probably be this one, but I’m hoping that both will be do-agains.