The Madtown Half was a great rolling course starting and ending at the Capitol. There was plenty of water and Gatorade at all the stations with gels at mile 8. … MORE
The Madtown Half was a great rolling course starting and ending at the Capitol. There was plenty of water and Gatorade at all the stations with gels at mile 8. There was no expo, just a packet pickup with no clear bag provided (provided morning of race if needed). Free race photos were fantastic!!
Overall it was a nice race with few spectators but great volunteers. We had a great time after, using the electric bikes and touring the area. It was a nice weekend!
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Nice smaller half marathon
The Madtown Half was a great rolling course starting and ending at the Capitol. There was plenty of water and Gatorade at all the stations with gels at mile 8. … MORE
The Madtown Half was a great rolling course starting and ending at the Capitol. There was plenty of water and Gatorade at all the stations with gels at mile 8. There was no expo, just a packet pickup with no clear bag provided (provided morning of race if needed). Free race photos were fantastic!!
Overall it was a nice race with few spectators but great volunteers. We had a great time after, using the electric bikes and touring the area. It was a nice weekend!
Run Wisconsin's Capital City
Run the southern half of the Madison Marathon course; through the Arboretum. The race producers offer several running challenges in Madison. Race starts on the square, heads up the Observatory … MORE
Run the southern half of the Madison Marathon course; through the Arboretum. The race producers offer several running challenges in Madison. Race starts on the square, heads up the Observatory Hill, through UWI Arboretum and finishes back at the capitol square.
Fun, well organized race
This was the inaugural running of the Run Madtown Half, though the race itself has existed for many years. It was renamed this year to avoid confusion with the Madison … MORE
This was the inaugural running of the Run Madtown Half, though the race itself has existed for many years. It was renamed this year to avoid confusion with the Madison Half Marathon in November. Packet pickup was in the Monona Terrace Convention center and was smooth. There was a small expo.
Races included a .6 mile Kids race, and Twilight 5K and 10K which occurred the night before the Half Marathon. Runners could choose to run the 10K and Half for an additional medal.
The half course started and finished in front of the State Capitol building. The morning was rainy with temps in the high 50’s but there was plenty of shelter to be found outside of the buildings in Capital Square. Gear check was near the finish line and quick. The course takes runners along the streets of Madison, the University, and then around Lake Wingra and the Arboretum. Most of the course is on streets that are partially closed as well as a short distance on a paved bike path.
The water stops were plentiful and full of super enthusiastic volunteers. The course has a lot of rolling hills and there was also one hill that was timed for an additional King/Queen of the Hill Challenge that also featured cash prizes for the top 3 overall fastest men and women.
There were timing mats at the start and at the hill, and split timers at the 5 and 10 mile mark. For some reason those timers did not record my splits, although the mats did. That was my only complaint about the race.
A full Panera bag lunch was given to finishers, as well as chocolate milk, milk, water, fruit and a complimentary beer. Race swag was a short sleeve tech tee and finisher medal. Race photos were also complimentary and there were many photographers on the course.
Overall, this was a very enjoyable race. It’s an interesting, challenging course. The city of Madison is a nice location to spend a weekend.