The fourth annual running of the Youngstown Marathon sponsored by Chemical Bank, Mercy Health, and Second Sole will take place on Sunday, October 25, at 8:00 am. In addition to the full marathon, half marathon, and 5k distances, this year a four-person relay is being added to the options. Mark Lipinsky, Logistics Director, believes, “The relay will give more people the opportunity to see the furthest reaches of the marathon without the intimidation of running a full marathon on their own.”
The distances of the legs are approximately 7.4 miles, 7.6 miles, 7.4 miles, and 3.8 miles. The first leg of the relay will start with the marathon and half marathon runners on State Route 224 in front of Second Sole of Boardman. Runners will then proceed onto the hike and bike trail of Mill Creek Park and they will travel along the east side of Lake Newport.
Runners on the second leg of the race will get to see Lake Glacier and swing past Covelli in downtown Youngstown. For the third leg of the race the runners will be delighted with some of the most photographed portions of Mill Creek Park as they run past the Rock Wall and across Silver Bridge and over Idora Hill.
The fourth leg of the race will start close to the boat launch within the park. It is the flattest and shortest portion of the relay and will finish after a quick run through a quiet residential neighborhood. The relay shares the same finish line as all the other race events of the day.
All participants in the relay will receive a finisher medal, shirt, and access to the finish line party which will include food, beer, and musical entertainment.
An additional change to the marathon weekend festivities is the new location of the Health and Fitness Expo sponsored by NovaCare. This new location is the YMCA on McClurg Road, which will give us the opportunity to bring fitness even more to the forefront of the expo itself. Plus, the facility offers a safe and secure area to host the kids’ race on Saturday morning.
“The Davis Family YMCA is pleased to be an integral part of the Youngstown Marathon Expo. As the leader of health and wellness in our community, it just makes sense that we will be a rallying point for runners of all abilities, goals, and ambitions,” adds Tom Grantonic, Executive Director of the Davis Family YMCA.
The Youngstown Marathon Foundation Board is planning to host a pasta dinner the night prior to the race at the YMCA so participants won’t have to travel between locations. Logistically, we feel it helps runners to participate in more marathon activities when they don’t have to travel between spots, especially if they are not from the Mahoning Valley area. Taking the stress of how to find each location out of the runners’ minds will hopefully lead to positive results on race day. Speakers will be announced closer to the marathon itself.
For more details about the Youngstown Marathon, please check in with them on Facebook, Instagram, and on the Youngstown Marathon website www.youngstownmarathon.com.
The Youngstown Marathon
