Missoula Kids Marathon

Wednesday, April 21st, 2010 in Stories

By Kathy Devlin, race director

Kids all over Missoula are running around their schools, their tracks, and their fields. You may see them in the morning, after school or in the middle of the day. Why are all those kiddos running? They’re logging miles for the 4th annual Missoula Kids Marathon! The final 1.2 mile run will be held on Saturday, July 10, 2007 at 11:00am at Caras Park in Missoula.

The Missoula Kids Marathon (MKM) began in 2007 in conjunction with the Missoula Marathon. A committed group of Missoula teachers decided to take on the task of organizing a marathon for kids. The concept was that kids ages 5-13 would log 25 miles before race day, and run the last 1.2 miles the day of the Missoula Marathon itself.

Now in its 4th year, the Missoula Kids Marathon’s race day has been moved to the day of the Missoula Marathon Runner’s Expo, July 10, 2007. The MKM committee wanted to try to accommodate more families by moving the race day to Saturday. If it works well this year, the MKM will continue to be the day of the Runner’s Expo; the day before the Missoula Marathon.

The course will be held solely on the riverfront trail this year. The fun run will begin on the trail by the Clark Fork Market under the Higgins Avenue Bridge. Kids will cross the Madison Street footbridge, round the Hellgate practice field, and loop back across the footbridge and to Caras Park where the Runner’s Expo is being held. This should ease parent pick up and drop off. When the kids finish their run, they will be greeted by our beloved Grizzly mascot Monte, and will be treated to root beer floats from Big Dipper Ice Cream and Kettlehouse Rootbeer. Monte will be available for a short time after the run for pictures.

Registration forms can be picked up at The Runner’s Edge, PEAK Health and Wellness, and the Missoula Family YMCA. Registration forms and logs can also be downloaded at www.missoulakidsmarathon.org. Visit the website for more information, nutrition tips, contact information for questions, and a course map. If you are interested in volunteering to help on race day, please contact race directors Kathy Devlin or Wendy Melvin through the website.