This is a great race to use as a tune up for your Spring marathon! OMRR does a great job putting this race on. The course is well marked, and … MORE
This is a great race to use as a tune up for your Spring marathon! OMRR does a great job putting this race on. The course is well marked, and the aid station is conveniently placed where each runner passes it twice during each loop. The course is not extremely difficult, but don’t expect a completely flat run. The loop has rolling hills throughout that can become tiring as the race progresses. However, it is still a fast course and I was able to run my first sub 1:30:00 HM with a time of 1:26:15. Another great feature of this race is the free race photos! The day after the race, all of the photos are uploaded to the Run For the Ranch Facebook page. I definitely recommend this race, and I will be back next year!
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Amazing Tune Up for Spring Marathon
This is a great race to use as a tune up for your Spring marathon! OMRR does a great job putting this race on. The course is well marked, and … MORE
This is a great race to use as a tune up for your Spring marathon! OMRR does a great job putting this race on. The course is well marked, and the aid station is conveniently placed where each runner passes it twice during each loop. The course is not extremely difficult, but don’t expect a completely flat run. The loop has rolling hills throughout that can become tiring as the race progresses. However, it is still a fast course and I was able to run my first sub 1:30:00 HM with a time of 1:26:15. Another great feature of this race is the free race photos! The day after the race, all of the photos are uploaded to the Run For the Ranch Facebook page. I definitely recommend this race, and I will be back next year!
Get loopy in the Ozarks
This is a fun, no-frills race near the campus of MSU. It does a crazy hourglass loop around a neighborhood that keeps you pretty flat but man does it wear … MORE
This is a fun, no-frills race near the campus of MSU. It does a crazy hourglass loop around a neighborhood that keeps you pretty flat but man does it wear on the hips with all those turns. The primary aid station is super convenient in the middle of the course and you can self-support off the back of your car trunk as you loop back near the parking lot. I love this race for its simplicity and value during an off-peak racing period in the Midwest when most everything has shut down for the year. Great race, great race club involvement, don’t discount this little race, and get ready to get loopy!
Flattest course imagineable
This was my second half-marathon, and of the eight I've run in the last six months, this is indeed the flattest. Some of the streets have slight inclines but nothing … MORE
This was my second half-marathon, and of the eight I’ve run in the last six months, this is indeed the flattest. Some of the streets have slight inclines but nothing I would call a hill.
It’s late December, so that limits the amount of festivities and spectators. It runs through a residential area and a park but there are not many people out to watch the race.
The course is kind of like a figure-8 hourglass, two loops with a connector street where the aid station is located. So, in running the 3.3-mile course, a runner passes they aid station twice each lap.
Runners also pass the start/finish line four times, and the chip-timed event gives runners a split for each lap.
The nice part is that one doesn’t feel alone on the course, in part because of the connector part of the course where you see other runners coming or going and because the race also includes a full marathon and endurance runs, so there are many runners at various paces throughout the day.
The post-race tent features pizza and plenty of food and drink.
Long-sleeve tech shirt and a great large medal.
It was chilly (28 degrees and overcast at the start, with a brief warmup when the sun tried to poke through) but comfortable with no wind, no snow to navigate.
For those who like cold weather and a flag course, I recommend this. If the weather cooperates, this is a good place for PRs.
A Very Cold, But Very Memorable Marathon
One of the last marathons run in the calendar year, I did this race in 2017 to cross Missouri off my list for state marathons. Leading up to the race … MORE
One of the last marathons run in the calendar year, I did this race in 2017 to cross Missouri off my list for state marathons. Leading up to the race their was ample communication from the race organizers via Facebook and through email. They were also prompt to answer questions I had. Packet pickup was a breeze the day before. Parking race day morning was plentiful at Missouri State University (being the college is out for the winter break). In fact we parked very close to the start / finish line! The course itself is easy physically (very flat run around the University and local neighborhood), but challenging mentally in that you do 8 full loops for the marathon. While not like this every year, in 2017 it was freezing cold (18º with wind chills in the single digits), and that added to the challenge of the race. While there is little to no crowd support along the race route (again this could be due to how cold it was in 2017), there was great support at the aide stations though as they fought to keep the water / gatorade unfrozen and also provided plenty of other fuel. One of the best parts of the race that I will always remember was crossing the finish line and provided with a nice hot cup of chicken noodle soup in the post-race aide tent. Yum!
Easy loop-type race. Flat.
The race supports a local boys ranch. They volunteer at the race and make it a lot of fun. The race is put on by a local running group. Can't … MORE
The race supports a local boys ranch. They volunteer at the race and make it a lot of fun. The race is put on by a local running group. Can’t beat a race put on by runners. Water stations? No, more like buffet tables for runners! And the post-race food is excellent. I love running this race and do it every year.