Deadwood Mickelson Trail Marathon
Deadwood, SD
- Marathon, Marathon Relay, Half Marathon, 5K, Kids Run
- Road (Paved), Trail (Unpaved)
- Official race website
The Deadwood Mickelson Trail Marathon is a point to point course, beginning in the hamlet of Rochford, the first 1.5 miles are on the road. At this point, the course becomes the Mickelson Trail. The next 12 miles are a mixture of gentle uphill and flat terrain. From there to … MORE
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Deadwood didn’t disappoint
Black Hills of South Dakota are gorgeous. Beautiful scenery on this course. Only thing about this marathon I wish was different is they didn’t start the race until 8 AM … MORE
Black Hills of South Dakota are gorgeous. Beautiful scenery on this course. Only thing about this marathon I wish was different is they didn’t start the race until 8 AM and wish they started it earlier as it got quite warm during the second half of the race. You get bused out to the starting line and run back to Deadwood. The Deadwood Mickelson Marathon is run along a portion of the Mickelson Trail which is over a hundred miles long. It was formerly a railroad track which was converted to a trail and is made up of crushed limestone so don’t let trail make you think it’s a single track technical trail race as it is not. First half of the marathon is a gradual ascent (over 1000’ of elevation gain) and the second half of the marathon is a gradual descent. Deadwood, SD is a historic town and well worth the visit. This was a well run marathon and I would recommend it if you’re looking to run a marathon in South Dakota.
Highly recommend this underrated race!
This race was recommended to me by someone who had completed their 50 states. Knowing nothing about South Dakota, I went for it, and so happy I did! South Dakota … MORE
This race was recommended to me by someone who had completed their 50 states. Knowing nothing about South Dakota, I went for it, and so happy I did! South Dakota blew my expectations away – beautiful state, deadwood is a super cool/cute kind of kitschy old western town. We got bussed to the start and it was a rolling start, which helped with congestion of runners. Absolutely beautiful trail – I didn’t even use music to take in everything, truly stunning. Net downhill made it pretty easy but there were some hills in there too. Recommend for sure! I visited the badlands and Mount Rushmore too
Amazing scenery, long downhill course
Extremely downhill course was rough on quads. Also dealing with high altitude if not from the Mountain time zone. Well organized. Open HM start line, go when you are ready … MORE
Extremely downhill course was rough on quads. Also dealing with high altitude if not from the Mountain time zone. Well organized. Open HM start line, go when you are ready which made sense since over 1400 runners would be hard to have a mass start on a trail. 30 porta-Johns near bus drop but long walk to start-line. Didn’t feel alone out there at all as I started 12 min into open startline. Didn’t notice much of a medical team presence, would be perfect for bicycle medics as an ambulance not gonna get there in remote areas
Aces and Eights
Expo was small, but they did offer free rock taping. Overall good race, nice atmosphere just wish the race would have started a little earlier. Walk to start line was … MORE
Expo was small, but they did offer free rock taping. Overall good race, nice atmosphere just wish the race would have started a little earlier. Walk to start line was a good warm up after a long bus ride that seemed to take forever. The rolling start was a plus, you didn’t have to stand around and could start when you were ready.
The course was scenic and had a good surface of hard packed crushed gravel with the exception of a couple areas. The weather was fantastic, but it did start to warm up as the day went on, the reason I wish it would have started an hour earlier.
Beautiful Course! Not Easy!
I was impressed with the beauty of the area, and the course was one of the more scenic ones I've done for the 50 states. The production was excellent, the … MORE
I was impressed with the beauty of the area, and the course was one of the more scenic ones I’ve done for the 50 states. The production was excellent, the expo and swag better than most races of this size. Pasta dinner was really good. I love point-to-points and the opportunity to talk to fellow runners on the bus. Staging area was great and just the right ratio of porto-potties to runners so that the lines moved quickly.
Now, I had not done my homework and didn’t realize that this race started at 5500 ft and rose 1000 ft. My body definitely felt the altitude and climb. The downhill at mile 13.5 was a welcome relief and I immediately gained about a minute per mile without extra effort. Still, the overall effects of the sun, altitude, and climbing eventually took their toll on me and many other runners so the last 7 miles was a struggle. Support was great throughout the race and no complaints. The only thing that I wish were different was the start time. 8am is a late start for this course. 7am or even 6am would be much nicer from a running perspective, and it would give us visitors more time to check-out of our motel. I was late checking out but lucky for me the Holiday Inn Express was very forgiving and hospitable.
Overall – beautiful course and production, grateful to have run it.
Great Trail Run
Pre race communication was sufficient Expo was small with several vendors, packet pickup was easy Pre race spaghetti supper was top notch with spaghetti, salad, bread, and fruit I was … MORE
Pre race communication was sufficient
Expo was small with several vendors, packet pickup was easy
Pre race spaghetti supper was top notch with spaghetti, salad, bread, and fruit
I was not a fan of the start, it didn’t have an official start, runners just started whenever between 7:30 and 8. No National Anthem and pre race excitement.
Course was on a trial, was mostly downhill, course support was sufficient. Scenery was awesome!
Post race snacks were adequate
Massage tables was a nice feature $1 per minute
Race swag was okay
We spent 5 days exploring the area, so much to do. Great destination race!
I would recommend this race.
Beautiful, but train for downhill
Gorgeous course, and nice smooth gravel to run on. The staff and volunteers were great. This was my 6th half and I was killing it until about mile 11. The … MORE
Gorgeous course, and nice smooth gravel to run on. The staff and volunteers were great. This was my 6th half and I was killing it until about mile 11. The downhill really got to my knees and I limped across the finish line. I will definitely come back tho, with some more downhill training. Definitely recommend
What goes up must come down!
Logistics: Deadwood is a cool little town. Parking at the rodeo grounds to catch the shuttle buses was easy. However, there are a few hotels directly across the street from … MORE
Logistics: Deadwood is a cool little town. Parking at the rodeo grounds to catch the shuttle buses was easy. However, there are a few hotels directly across the street from marathon parking (rodeo grounds), so it would be easy to walk to the shuttle buses, if you prefer.
Races: Except for the first 1.5 miles of the full marathon (on the roads), the entire course is point-to-point on a crushed gravel rail-trail. The Half marathon is WAY more popular than the full marathon. The biggest benefit of the half is that it’s the downhill half of the course! The marathon goes uphill for the first 14 miles, then goes down for the remaining 12. As expected, I had a significant negative split (about 10 minutes). However, even being conservative, the first 14 miles definitely took a lot out of me. This is a beautiful course, but it’s not a place to set a PR.
Swag: Medals and short-sleeve t-shirts are very nice. Free race photos are also a nice bonus. If it’s important to you, the shirts and medals are not race specific (even the 5K runners got the same shirt)
Finish line: Having the race director in a tuxedo to high-five you is an awesome touch! I also enjoyed the chocolate milk and beef jerky. Shuttle buses back to the parking lot were prompt and efficient. Overall, a very well organized event.
Beautiful Downhill Race
This was a wonderful race. The course was downhill and beautiful. It was in the 50s as well which was very nice. Don't let "trail race" scare you most of … MORE
This was a wonderful race. The course was downhill and beautiful. It was in the 50s as well which was very nice. Don’t let “trail race” scare you most of the course is well packed and cleared trail. There is one small down hill section that gets a little rockier, but only for a short time.
The swag was really just the t-shirt and medal which are nice, just no extras. There is great food and water at the finish line and then a fun after (with beer) part in town when the marathon finished.
If you are looking for a fun South Dakota race this is a good choice!
Great race!
This was my first half marathon and it helped me realize my love for running! The course was beautiful and was a nice course for a first-timer. There was a … MORE
This was my first half marathon and it helped me realize my love for running! The course was beautiful and was a nice course for a first-timer. There was a lot of community support and the after race celebration was great.
Stunning scenery!
The thing the surprised me the most was how fast the 2nd half went. The descent downhill after mile 14 is noticeable and really makes it easy to run negative … MORE
The thing the surprised me the most was how fast the 2nd half went. The descent downhill after mile 14 is noticeable and really makes it easy to run negative splits. The first half going uphill is also noticeable, but nearly as much. The area is remote and sometimes it felt like things could have been marked a little better, but that was part of the charm I suppose. I would also have liked to have seen different shirts and medals for the marathoners vs half marathoners, but thats ok. Both are nice enough. The real reason to run this race is the Hills themselves and they do not disappoint. The first two mile section on the road has a great view that I was not expecting. Another stunner around mile 20. The whole course was really great though. I would absolutely recommend!
Beautiful views of the black hills.
You follow the train route the Burlington Northern took through the Hills. Many creeks , wild flowers, old homesteads, mines and gorgeous outcropping of rock. MORE
You follow the train route the Burlington Northern took through the Hills. Many creeks , wild flowers, old homesteads, mines and gorgeous outcropping of rock.
Starts WAY too late.
Truly stunning scenery. Possibly the prettiest marathon I've run and I highly recommend this as a destination race. But the race started at 8 am. With blue skies and rising … MORE
Truly stunning scenery. Possibly the prettiest marathon I’ve run and I highly recommend this as a destination race.
But the race started at 8 am. With blue skies and rising heat, we lost focus on the scenery and battled the heat up the 14-mile grade.
Kudos for having volunteers on bicycles to offer assistance like the water I needed at mile 19.
Awesome race, too late of start!!
I love this race. The downhill is great, but it’s not too aggressive like a Revel. It has a pretty good hill around mile 6 that’s helps break up the … MORE
I love this race. The downhill is great, but it’s not too aggressive like a Revel. It has a pretty good hill around mile 6 that’s helps break up the downhill terrain! The most difficult part of this race for me, and from what I’ve heard others say, is the late 8AM start. We got to the start line at 7 and waited for an hour. At that time it started heating up significantly. Around mile 5 I had to take off my tank top and run in my sports bra bc I began overheating. I felt really badly for the full marathoners that had to start at 8AM and run in the heat. Overall, I recommend this course but I wish they would start it a lot earlier!
A Destination Race
Good logistics with shuttles from hotels to buses that took everybody to start of race. Absolutely loved running this course: point to point on gentle incline first half followed by … MORE
Good logistics with shuttles from hotels to buses that took everybody to start of race. Absolutely loved running this course: point to point on gentle incline first half followed by gentle decline second. All I heard the first half of the run was my feet on the trail and a babbling creek in the distance. Scenery is amazing and this is among most scenic courses I have run. Plenty or tourist stuff to do in and around Deadwood as well with Badlands and Wind Cave NP, Crazy Horse Monument, Mt. Rushmore and Custer State Park nearby. Did rock climbing in Custer State Park with my kids as a bonus. Amazing beauty, amazing race.
Run the Black Hills!
I continued my quest to run a marathon in every state by checking off South Dakota. Who would have thought I would finish both Dakotas before even starting the Carolinas? … MORE
I continued my quest to run a marathon in every state by checking off South Dakota. Who would have thought I would finish both Dakotas before even starting the Carolinas? The weather was warm. The course was one climb over the first fourteen miles then downhill to the finish. It was well supported and gorgeous.
Best scenery
Beautiful run great course. Friendly runners, great area to visit. Lots to see. Great courses. A must for runners of all levels I would highly recommend it for everyone. I … MORE
Beautiful run great course. Friendly runners, great area to visit. Lots to see. Great courses. A must for runners of all levels I would highly recommend it for everyone. I will run my first marathon on this course
Challenging, beautiful
Such a beautiful course! Challenging with the gradual uphill for about the first half. Pleasantly surprised around mile 20 at a fairly steep downhill but I got a second wind … MORE
Such a beautiful course! Challenging with the gradual uphill for about the first half. Pleasantly surprised around mile 20 at a fairly steep downhill but I got a second wind after that! I would do this race again. Early June and weather was nice. Enjoyed the point to point course.
Beautiful course; disappointing swag
The course is stunning. The production is seamless. Disappointed in the shirts this year as they're just a cotton tshirt vs athletic shirts of previous years. Also, the only thing … MORE
The course is stunning. The production is seamless. Disappointed in the shirts this year as they’re just a cotton tshirt vs athletic shirts of previous years. Also, the only thing you get is a tshirt in your race bag. Kind of a let down.
Best scenic race!
I loved this race! It is mostly downhill (half marathon) with an almost mile long uphill starting around 5.5 miles. This was a well organized race. The aid stations all … MORE
I loved this race! It is mostly downhill (half marathon) with an almost mile long uphill starting around 5.5 miles. This was a well organized race. The aid stations all had water, powerade, oranges, pretzels and one had m&ms. This was my fastest half to date. I would do this again just for the scenery.