Train, race, party: Air Force Marathon sticks with familiar formula

One change this year: The finish line festival will be at the finish line

After nearly three decades, organizers of the U.S. Air Force Marathon and its bevy of associated races know what makes the event work.

A relatively flat, fast course on a big Air Force base, plenty of enthusiastic volunteers and the chance to hit the road with like-minded friends and fellow athletes are all part of the formula.

The focus for the Air Force Marathon this year — keep going with what’s worked in the past, said Chris Meister, race director.

“I think we do a lot well,” Meister said in a new interview. “This is our 28th year. We’re just continuing on, doing what we can, making it a lot of fun for everybody.”

The formula may be familiar, but it’s gotten bigger. The marathon, half-marathon and 10-K runs are on the morning of Sept. 21, starting near the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force, as usual.

The 5K and the Tailwind Trot (a one-kilometer event for children) are on the afternoon of Sept. 20 at Wright State University’s Ervin J. Nutter Center.

Of course, there’s a more. The virtual events started Sept. 1, and if you want to go that route, upload your results by the end of the month.

“We’re not just a marathon,” Meister said. “We’re much more than that.”

Registration for all events is found at https://register.usafmarathon.com. More information is found at the homepage, usafmarathon.com.

Last year, the marathon with its allied races had about 8,500 participants altogether, about 60% of them civilians. Meister expects similar numbers this year.

“People sign up for races later and later nowadays,” he said.

One tweak race leaders made from past events: Runners will cross the finish line into the waiting after-race festival, there on the base itself, with food, drink and musical entertainment. The festival or after-party will not be held at The Greene in Beavercreek or elsewhere off base.

“We wanted to kind of get away from that a little bit, instead of asking people to go somewhere else after they worked so hard all day to run a race, we just brought the after-party to them,” Meister said.

The event has about 1,000 to 1,200 volunteers, he said. Right now, the event is well situated with those.

Participants can expect a detailed email with race and parking instructions in coming days, but one rule of thumb really hasn’t changed from previous years. Arrive early. A shuttle service from the Nutter Center starts very early to help with that, and Meister says it’s a good idea try to be in place two hours before the start of your event, to relax and warm up.


More info

The two-day health and fitness expo starts at 3 p.m. next Thursday (Sept. 19) at the Nutter Center, continuing the next day at 11 a.m. It’s free and open to the public, whether you’re running or not.

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