Welcome to the heart of the Minnesota River Valley, where you will experience amazing fall views, great people and the bold race you’ve been looking for. Mankato has no shortage of spectators to cheer you on, including cheer teams, aid stops and spectators. Mankato has definitely embraced this as a community event and pulled out all the stops! This race is known for the finish line in the heart of City Center Mankato.
The Mankato Marathon was the 110th largest marathon in the U.S. last year and was the 183rd largest in 2022.
This year 4.9% of finishers qualified for the Boston Marathon and 10.3% of runners qualified for Boston in 2023.
This gives the Mankato Marathon the 174th highest percentage of Boston Marathon qualifiers in the U.S. last year and the 283rd highest percentage so far in 2024.
Its Course Score of 97.81 ranks it as the 339th fastest marathon course in the U.S. and the 7th fastest course in Minnesota.
The typical race time temperature and humidity levels are within the ideal range for optimal marathon performance. This, coupled with the Course Score, gives the Mankato Marathon a PR Score of 97.81. This PR Score ranks it as the 282nd fastest marathon in the U.S. and the 7th fastest in Minnesota.
Learn more about PR Scores and Course Scores on the FAQ page.
Mankato Marathon Elevation Chart
Max Elevation: 1016 feet (309m) Min Elevation: 763 feet (232m)
The first 10 miles are spent weaving throughout city streets, parks, schools, and neighborhoods. Lots and lots of turning corners. By the time you make it to the half you're on some wide open countryside. Mile 16 through 20 are spent in a beautiful woodland (former railway?).
Race Tips
It's Autumn in Minnesota so it could be 55 and sunny or 35 and raining. Be prepared for either.
They recently changed this course and I wouldn't consider this a downhill course by any means. Over 900 feet of elevation gain. Mile 17-18 is a hill and the first few miles are pretty hilly. When I ran there was also a pretty strong headwind for awhile. That being said it was a beautiful fall course and I would probably run it again!
Pretty fast course overall. They could improve the course by taking out some of the sharp turns, especially in the middle section. Long sections of open, exposed country roads, which caused some slowdowns due to headwinds. Well organized with nice crowd support for a race of this size.
Race Tips
Our pacer took us out too fast, and I think a more conservative up-front strategy would have been smarter for me. There are a couple of decent rolling hills in miles 4-8. Nothing insurmountable, but worth being aware of. There's a good opportunity to bank time between miles 17 and 19 with a good, steep decline.
3.8 Stars from 4 Reviews
