Mill Race Marathon participants take their places in their corrals before the start of the race in Columbus, Ind., Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024.
The city’s biggest event of the year is only a month away.
It’s not too late to sign up for this year’s 13th Annual Mill Race Marathon, which is Sept. 27, but runners wanting an early bird discount have until the end of Sunday to sign up.
The current cost is $90 for the full marathon, $80 for the half marathon and $35 for the 5K race. Starting Monday, it will be $105 for the full marathon, $90 for the half marathon and $39 for the 5K. Those rates will be in effect through Sept. 25.
Students in high school or younger can sign up for the 5K for $12 through Sunday and $16 from Monday through Sept. 25.
The latest registration numbers from last week are in an upward trajection, figuring out to about the same number of runners as in years past. There are 208 currently signed for the marathon, 839 for the half marathon and 623 for the 5K, totaling 1,670 runners.
“We’re excited. It’s in great shape. It gets us closer to last year,” MRM planning committee director Laura Dudukovich said. “It ebbs and flows when you compare week to week, where we were at the same point in time last year because sometimes you’ll have price changes that fall in a different week. It’s consistent, and it’s staying higher, which is fantastic. Driving around town, you see people are out running and training, which I’m so excited because I think you see that more frequently as we get closer to the end of September.”
The weather hasn’t been kind for the runners on marathon day the past few years with heat and then with rain and thunderstorms last year. This past week, the city has seen partly sunny skies and daytime high temperatures in the 70s and nighttime lows in the 50s, which is ideal for the runners.
If the weather is similiar a month from now, the committee is very optimistic about having more last-minute signups.
“I feel like we’ve got really strong momentum. I see that continuing to pick up as we get closer with just being a month out,” Dudukovich said. “We’re continuing our promotions and coordinating with everybody. I’m really thrilled the weather has come down this week, and that will also help.”
The Kids Fun Run will take place the day before the marathon at 6 p.m. Sept. 26. So far, 139 have signed up at the latest registration update.
“This early, that is really normal,” Dudukovich said. “We have been promoting it and trying to remind people, especially once school started, to remind parents that Fun Run is free for your children up to sixth grade. I’m predicting maybe 1,100-1,200, which will be consistent to previous years because many sign up at the last minute.”
If the weather cooperates like it did for the past week, more runners may be inclined to sign up for any of the three races or Kids Fun Run at the last minute.
“The people that have been training thus far are going to be so relieved,” Dudukovich said. “Especially a lot of times in the 5K, they will watch the weather as it gets closer and register by looking at the forecast. We’re excited about the numbers and trends, and I just want to continue to build that excitement and encourage folks to participate, or even if they don’t want to run or walk, they can volunteer and come on downtown.”
