The Monument Valley Marathon, Half Marathon and Wildcat 4-Miler are all run within the heart of the Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park, one of the wonders of the world. The event honors all Diné warriors and our military heroes from off the Nation. A special pre-race program will recognize all …
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The Monument Valley Marathon, Half Marathon and Wildcat 4-Miler are all run within the heart of the Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park, one of the wonders of the world. The event honors all Diné warriors and our military heroes from off the Nation. A special pre-race program will recognize all of the veterans, and there will be a special tribute to the family of one of the Code Talker legends.
The Marathon course is ran on the main Valley Drive, with a segment in the backcountry section of the park. The stunning views and challenging terrain make for a once-in-a-lifetime running experience. The Half Marathon is completed on the Valley Drive loop road – a graded dirt road that traverses the heart of the park. The Wildcat 4-Miler is a challenging route between East and West Mittens. There is a Kids Marathon program in the local schools, and the students will complete a final mile on Friday morning.
Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park is located 23 miles northeast of Kayenta, Arizona and 20 miles south of Mexican Hat, Utah. The park straddles the Arizona/Utah border, and the races all start and finish in Arizona.
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Incredibly scenic and insanely difficult
This is one of the most beautiful courses I can imagine. It is absolutely stunning. The race organizers did a good job with preparations. It was particularly motivating to have … MORE
This is one of the most beautiful courses I can imagine. It is absolutely stunning. The race organizers did a good job with preparations. It was particularly motivating to have Navajo veterans in attendance and to hear some traditional Navajo music was really stirring.
However in my opinion race is not for average runners. 5 out of 5 difficult does not express how hard this course is. The first 6 miles or so we’re just what I would expect from a trail run. Hilly terrain with a mix of rough surfaces: dirt road, some sections with pockets of gravel that evened out deep potholes, sheer bedrock, and some shallow sand (couple inches). However from mile 6 to about mile 11 there were long stretches of very fine, loose and very deep sand. Most of those 5-6 miles were sand. There are two climbs on sand dunes / very sand steep paths that will sap whatever life your legs have left. Though both lead you to remarkable views of the valley.
For context I’m an average runner but felt well prepared for my first marathon. To get ready for the marathon I followed a Strava 12 week training plan to the letter and had an achievable race plan/pacing strategy. My goals for the race were modest (1) to finish the race, (2) run the entire distance, and (3) finish slightly under 4 hours. However I was utterly spent before the half way point of this race. After the halfway point the running surfaces were better (no deep sand) but sadly I was exhausted and could only muster running intermittently. Several people along the way spontaneously say this is the hardest thing they’ve done in their life. Overall in terms of placement among finishers I finished in middle of the pack (37 out of 84) so I’d have to think other runners shared my opinion.
If I had to do it all over again I would honestly consider not pushing as hard / or even walking on the sandiest areas and/or go out of my way to do some trainings runs on sandy beaches. Personally i would have benefitted from more detailed information about the terrain and will inform the race organizers about that. In the mean time I hope this review helps some folks out there.
Beautiful and challenging!
Overall Rating: Good. No issues, and started on time. Cold start, but warmed up nicely once into the canyon. Way more challenging than I thought it was going to be. … MORE
Overall Rating: Good. No issues, and started on time. Cold start, but warmed up nicely once into the canyon. Way more challenging than I thought it was going to be.
Course Difficulty: Really hard. Steep hills, lots of loose sand, about half trail and half packed dirt road.
Course Scenery: Some of the best in the US…made the challenge worth it.
Race Production: Good. A few things didn’t go as planned, but nothing to do with the race, just the extras.
Race Swag: Good medal and nice long sleeve tech shirt.
My Performance: I’m satisfied with it. I always have trouble running in high altitude, and combined with the demanding terrain, this one was pretty hard, so I’m happy with my performance.