miniMarathon Route

If you are running the miniMarathon on Saturday, I'm sure that you know the course has changed slightly this year...so that the finish line can be on Preston and Witherspoon by Slugger Field and Waterfront Park. I don't mind the change, although the course planners got pretty creative once the race gets downtown...lots of quick turns during that last mile. I will enjoy running right past the new KFC Yum! Center (aka Louisville Arena).

As for the course elevation, according to MapMyRun, there's a total change in elevation of 411 feet (194' of ascent and 217' of decent, for a net total elevation change of -23 feet. So the race is downhill...keep that in mind as you head up those hills in Iroquois Park during miles 2-4! Here's the elevation profile:

As you can see, the first two miles of the race are where all the monster hills lie. So be sure and get those legs warmed-up before the race! You'll find some smaller hills when you go into and out of Churchill Downs through the tunnels, the overpass on 4th Street at UofL and then again as you turn onto River Road near the end of the race. That being said, once you conquer the park, it's basically cake.

If you want to see the whole route, click here.

Here's a cool image from Google Earth showing the last few miles of the race:

I'll talk about my goals for the race tomorrow.