Nebraska Half Marathon
Omaha, NE
- Half Marathon, 5K, Kids Run
- Road (Paved)
- Official race website
The Nebraska Half Marathon will take place at the beautiful Zorinsky Lake in West Omaha. This flat and fast course winds around the scenic lake with shaded trails and is very spectator friendly. The start/finish line is Zorinsky Lake Boat Ramp.
Local Historical Weather (May 09):
| 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | |
| H (°F) | 75 | 82 | 70 | 75 | 92 |
| L (°F) | 45 | 50 | 49 | 60 | 67 |
Find Nearby Lodging (hotel, rental, etc.):
Nice local race
I enjoy this race as a nice no-frills local race. Ample water stations and parking. An enjoyable out-and-back around Lake Zorinsky. Packet pickup at nearby Fleet Feet. My only complaint … MORE
I enjoy this race as a nice no-frills local race. Ample water stations and parking. An enjoyable out-and-back around Lake Zorinsky. Packet pickup at nearby Fleet Feet. My only complaint about the race is that with it being at a public park, the trail is still open to bikers, strollers, dog walkers, etc but it works. For Nebraska, I recommend Lincoln Marathon (May) or Good Life Halfsy (Oct/Nov) if you are travelling from out of town and want the big race vibes, but for a small local race, this one checks all the important boxes.
New picturesque course at Zorinsky
It was my destination race and I had booked a hotel in old market before they announced the course change from there to Zorinsky Lake. It was picturesque trail with … MORE
It was my destination race and I had booked a hotel in old market before they announced the course change from there to Zorinsky Lake. It was picturesque trail with beautiful weather. It was a small event without frills and I felt like it was a group run, instead of a race. Great experience !!
Change of venue--so worth it
I was just needing a Nebraska race and didn't want to do a repeat (Heartland the first time around my 50 states) so found this one. Was fine with the … MORE
I was just needing a Nebraska race and didn’t want to do a repeat (Heartland the first time around my 50 states) so found this one. Was fine with the original plan but due to construction, they had to move it to West Omaha around Zorinsky Lake. So, changed my hotel to one closer by (and cheaper because not downtown). Race day was cool and sunny. The course starts from the boat ramp and runs counter clockwise around the lake. It’s Nebraska. Nebraska is flat. There was a “hill” to get from the boat dock parking lot to the “levee” thing along the road and then the rest of the race was pancake flat. Because it was an out and back, the hill UP from the start was a hill DOWN to the finish, nice! The course was absolutely gorgeous. It’s spring in the midwest. You are running through the trees as they are just starting to leaf out, the redbuds are blooming and the birds are absolutely going to town. There were wild turkeys and deer in the woods. It’s a paved bike path the entire way. Really so much prettier than a downtown race would have been and exactly NO cars and no traffic noise. The finish line is meager as was the packet pick up but that’s fine. The medal was nice, it was a tech fabric hoodie and as an age group winner, you got your choice of baseball hats. The course made this race. I hope they consider keeping this venue
Good Race
This was a well organized race. I travelled into town and stayed at the suggested hotel. It worked out perfect. I could walk to the race start and did not … MORE
This was a well organized race. I travelled into town and stayed at the suggested hotel. It worked out perfect. I could walk to the race start and did not have to worry about parking.
Great organizers, tough course for me
Ran during COVID and they did a great job keeping everyone safe. CONS: non-stop rolling hills, all concrete course, no shade, STRONG winds PROS: Amazing organizers, easy course to follow, … MORE
Ran during COVID and they did a great job keeping everyone safe.
CONS: non-stop rolling hills, all concrete course, no shade, STRONG winds
PROS: Amazing organizers, easy course to follow, easy parking, out and back race, and a shirt and medal that I would do the race all over again for.
I can’t say enough to the organizers that waited for me to finish! I had a hard time on race day. I’m a flatlander, and the hills were relentless. Add winds that about knocked me over and it was very challenging. I’m also older, and the all concrete course made my joints ache and the sun glared off the concrete. Lastly, the temperature reached over 80 degrees before I finished.
Much More Than Cornfields
The 2020 course was different from the one in previous years, so I'll just say that they should use it again, despite the uphill finish. Most of the miles were … MORE
The 2020 course was different from the one in previous years, so I’ll just say that they should use it again, despite the uphill finish. Most of the miles were on paved trails along two creeks in Papillion, southwest of Omaha. Construction in downtown Omaha forced the course change and the Covid pandemic forced other changes, but the race went on and the organizers showed that it can be done. Face coverings were required until you got to the start line, three runners started every ten seconds, and water stations had 10 ounce bottles of water or Gatorade instead of cups.
The course markings were the best I’ve ever seen. Every turn or trail intersection had multiple signs with big arrows to make it nearly impossible to go the wrong way. Most of these locations also had a volunteer stationed there. Not many spectators, but all were enthusiastic and supportive. Same energy from the volunteers. Nom-nom bag at the finish had some tasty goodies inside, but no protein bar or other source of good post-race protein, so bring your own. Maybe they can get a sponsor for that in the future.
Everything from packet pick-up to the finish line was very well-organized. This group does a great job.
Not bad, but could have been better
The Nebraska Marathon was held in Papillion, NE, a suburb of Omaha. The start was at Papillion-LaVista South High School, and dropped down to Walnut Creek Lake on a concrete … MORE
The Nebraska Marathon was held in Papillion, NE, a suburb of Omaha. The start was at Papillion-LaVista South High School, and dropped down to Walnut Creek Lake on a concrete bike path and then went around the lake. This was actually the best part of the trail and I enjoyed looking at the native prairie grasses that were tall as me along the trail. After we ran around the scenic lake and watched the sunrise, we then did two long out and backs in opposite directions. The concrete bike path went along Papillion Creek, which was more like a ditch than a stream. I was disappointed that there were no trees, so no shade. The trail was flat however, until we got back to the lake and climbed the steep hill back to the high school. The aid stations were 2-3 miles apart, but only had water and flavored water and no food. I forgot to bring my favorite energy gels, but luckily found two of them in my running bag that were left over from my last marathon. I still started hitting the wall in the last 6 miles, which may have been avoided if they had something to drink that had some carbohydrates. I’m not sure why, but due to the Covid-19 pandemic, they gave us our finisher medals at the packet pickup. It seemed to me that they could have let us pick one up at the finish without putting the volunteers at risk. I hope I’m not being too critical, because it was a good day for a run and I’m appreciative for the opportunity to run a marathon within driving distance from where I live. I hope I get a chance to provide some input to the race organizers, because I think this could be improved from a ho hum marathon to a very nice one. Don’t take my word for it though, give it a chance and give it a try.
I see that in prior years, this race was run through part of the old town in Omaha. I think that I liked the location for this race this year rather than running in old town Omaha.
Great race through Omaha
Course covered a lot of key points of interest in Omaha. It was well-managed, and you get a great 1/4 zip, medal, and tree sapling for participating. MORE
Course covered a lot of key points of interest in Omaha. It was well-managed, and you get a great 1/4 zip, medal, and tree sapling for participating.
I loved this race!
I really loved this race. I ran it in 2017 and then 2019. Both courses were in Omaha, I think they changed the location in 2020?? Everything from packet pickup … MORE
I really loved this race. I ran it in 2017 and then 2019. Both courses were in Omaha, I think they changed the location in 2020?? Everything from packet pickup to the start is super easy. I enjoyed the course a lot…flat with a few challenging hills. I think the big hill is like either mile 4 or 6. The first year I ran it, the medals were in the shape of Nebraska, which was pretty cool. I loved running across the Pedestrian Bridge. The after-party was pretty good. Had to walk a little way to have access to the buses, but overall a good, fun race!
Kind of Neat - Old Market Area of Omaha
This was a pretty small race, we ran through the Old Market area of Omaha, past Creighton University and the home of the College World Series, crossed the river into … MORE
This was a pretty small race, we ran through the Old Market area of Omaha, past Creighton University and the home of the College World Series, crossed the river into Iowa and then back to Nebraska to finish. The packet pick up was the morning of the race, so that was nice.
The medal was the most disappointing medal of all the races I’ve done. Light weight, cheap, like something you’d give an 8 year old soccer team for participating. The T-shirt on the other hand was an under amour athletic shirt, so that was nice. Also, we got a sapling tree at the finish line, kind of a unique finisher gift.
Omaha is a very fun place to visit. If your traveling to the race, I’d recommend staying a few days in the Old Market area.