IMT Des Moines Marathon

I can’t say enough good things about this race! This was my first full marathon this past weekend, and I LOVED it! While the expo is a little small, as well as not much for extra gear selection (reason for the 4 vs. 5 star rating), it still gives you everything you could want in a race. My wife and I did the half marathon last year and really loved our experience as well!
The race shirt is a ¼ zip pullover that I love to wear! The material is great, sweat-​wicking, and not your average cheap polyester race T that never gets worn again. The course for the half marathon is VERY flat! It winds through both Waterworks and Gray’s Lake, which gives some great scenery in the Fall. with this being a mid-​October race, the weather has been perfect for the last two years, with temps starting in the 40s, and then climbing to the 60s by the end of the race. the half course was very well supported with aid stations every ¾−1.5 miles. the post-​race food is a feast and also offers free beer, so you can’t go wrong here!
In terms of the full, if you are expecting it to be flat, you are sorely mistaken. Miles 2.5−7 offer rolling hills, but once you get past about mile 9, everything really flattens out and even goes downhill for about a half mile at 16! As with the half, the course is VERY well supported, with numerous cyclists and frequent aid stations! I really could not have asked for a better first marathon. for folks who are a little slower, they offer a 7 hour cutoff time. While that’s not enough time to walk the full marathon, it does give you the opportunity to slow down if you would like, or if the day is not going well for you.
I can’t wait to come back and do either the half or the full next year! If you are looking for a Fall marathon, seriously consider this race!!!

It’ll be fun, they said. Really? 2 marathons in 2 days? Are YOU freaking kidding me?
That’s what I said. And speaking from experience, I couldn’t believe it when I found myself crossing the finish line on the 2^nd day and lived to tell about it. While my performance was anything but stellar, it was a marathon finish that I would never thought possible, if it wasn’t for the prodding and coercing nature of a few marathoner friends whom do this sort of thing all the time. And so, if I was to do this 50 states marathon thing more economically, running 2 marathons in 2 different states in 2 consecutive days is a must. I proudly can say that I finished the 2011 version of the IMT Des Moines Marathon in Des Moines, Iowa on 10/​16/​2011. It was my 1^st «double» out of 6 of them completed over the course of my 50 states marathon journey. This was my 34^th lifetime marathon and 32^nd marathon state in a bid to knock off 50 marathons in 50 states from Hawaii. It was great to be in Iowa actually and Des Moines is the biggest city here and they have a nice race for me to enjoy and indulge in.
The IMT Des Moines marathon is definitely a well oiled machine and caters to everyone — runners and walkers alike. They do not cap registration, so that’s great. Everyone and anyone can participate, providing that they register officially up until the expo closes the day before the event. The marathon and half marathon is typically held in mid October, typically when autumn is in full effect and the weather is downright epic for a personal best and just great running weather. Cool conditions are expected and everyone has a fun time for all. It was about upper 40’s at the start that fateful morning and warmed up to about mid 60’s. It was almost ideally perfect for me. The IMT Des Moines Marathon starts and finishes in downtown Des Moines, but not before venturing outside the downtown area. The residential areas and the rural nature of the marathon makes you look at life outside the city of Des Moines and looks pretty nice. Makes you want to move here or something. I particularly liked running around Gray’s Lake Park and the lake itself. The marathon course is deceptively hilly, especially at mile 6 – 7, where you start climbing up gradually a rural residential area and it didn’t seem flat at all.
While the hills were nothing major, I just felt like I was told flat, but was presented something else. Still, the course was pretty and scenic. The overall course was good and authentic, but could have used more urban flavor. I didn’t visit the expo, as I had a friend pick up my race packet, as I had been running a marathon the day before in Indianapolis, IN and was traveling to Des Moines and could not get to the expo in time. My friend and I stayed at one of the downtown area hotels, so walking to the race start was just a short 5 minutes. The funny moment after getting back to the hotel after finishing my 1^st double is that my legs were super wobbly, that I fell down the stairs in the hotel lobby. I guess first time for everything! Haha. Nothing broken, just my pride I guess. I didn’t care. I finished 2 freaking marathons in 1 single weekend. That’s got to be pretty epic. There was live music on the course on certain spots and the aid stations were 2 miles apart, so that was great. Crossing the finish line was particularly gratifying, specially when I was a little tired from the day before and I just wanted it all to be done.
Everything was well organized, so I can’t complain. There were sparse spectators in the 2^nd half, but there was plenty to see us off and in the first 10K, before dwindling. The finisher’s medal was great. Nice design and just a spectacular marathon for the city and community of Des Moines to rally around and support. Thanks to IMT Insurance company for being the lead sponsor for the IMT Des Moines marathon for many years. And so, if you would like to run a mid sized marathon in the Midwest USA in the middle of October, do give this one a chance. You’ll be pleasantly surprised at what Des Moines can offer you. I didn’t have a rental car on this one, but do feel free to explore the area before and after the race. This can be a destination race for y’all who want to run a fall race but don’t want to travel so far. I would definitely recommend the IMT Des Moines marathon to anyone and everyone who wants an enjoyable marathon or half marathon. Whether you want to BQ or PR, or just finish your first race ever, this one has it all. Check it out!
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If you’ve been reading my race reviews, you may have noticed a theme in my race recaps. I love pretty much every race I do… but I’m sad to say that I really wasn’t all that thrilled with the Des Moines.
Don’t get me wrong, there wasn’t anything WRONG with the race. It was well run, offered plenty of parking, had a place to stay warm before the race, had plenty of well-​stocked aid stations, offered a decent medal, gave away a pretty baller long sleeve pullover as the race tee and is in my absolutely favorite state. However, everything just stacked up to be mediocre and I really just don’t love it.
The race is sadly on a Sunday (man … nothing like running a ton and then having to just go home so you can go to work the next day). The expo was tiny, but decent for the actual size of this race. The race merchandise was weak. I didn’t buy anything, but they did give you a solid race pullover for your race tee and I’ve worn in probably 5 times so far.
We stayed at the Holiday Inn on Merle Hay which is our typical haunt for Des Moines races (Dam to Dam, HyVee Tri). There is PLENTY of downtown parking, so getting a close hotel isn’t a priority here.
Free parking was a win and we headed towards the start. Conveniently, the start is immediately adjacent to a YMCA. We cooped up in there to stay warm and use the restrooms.
The race started without much fanfare. Half and Full runners raced together for the first few miles until the split off. The race was tiny. Only 1586 marathoners (compared to 4900 halfers) so the split was welcome. Unfortunately those first few miles were really the most interesting of the whole race. Running through the downtown and seeing the buildings and the Capital were nice and then we spent the next 23 miles looking at people’s houses.
The half marathon is smooth and flat. The first half of the marathon is seriously hilly. Nothing crazy, but steep enough hills that if you aren’t careful, you are going to burn yourself out quickly.
Mile 12 brings you to Drake University. You get a thrilling 400 meters around the bright blue track that has a few straggling spectators in the stands. It gives you a slight change of pace. Especially exciting for me was that I did see Jeff Galloway here. I made it my goal to try and beat him (spoiler: I didn’t).
After the track, you get to go and look at more houses for another 5 miles. Perhaps this race is designed by the local real estate agency?
Coming up around 16/​17, you head onto some nice trails and get to run through the woods. It is a nice peaceful trail and since the crowd was so thin, I got some nice time to myself. Some nice time to question why I didn’t bring my iPod.
The on-​course entertainment is also the most unusual. There were some people early on playing drums on trash cans. Then on the trail there was a violinist. Classical music is the elixir for PRs, I hear. There were some actual bands thrown in the mix, so it wasn’t all atypical, but definitely a far cry from the entertainment of bigger races.
I get into Waterworks Park which gets a little interesting because there is about a mile stretch where you are running parallel to the runners who have just completed the lake loop. While you can definitely say there were a lot of spectators here, they were all just sitting in their lawn chairs staring at you while they waited for their own runner. Not awkward at all.
Finally I start approaching mile ²¹⁄₂₂. I was excited for this part of the course around Gray’s Lake because it follows a lot of the same course as the HyVee Tri. I try to pump myself up, only a few miles left! There is an announcer near Grey’s Lake and some loud music and this was probably the highlight of the on-​course entertainment.
I trudge on through a trail that takes me closer to the city. I assumed once I got downtown the area would pick up and the spectators would bring me in strong. Eh. The spectators didn’t pick up enough to be motivational until the final .2. I got a high-​five and kiss from the husband and then I «sprinted like a coked out orangutan in hopes that everyone couldn’t tell that I just walk/​jogged the last 26 miles».
I grabbed a water and then surveyed the demolished food tents and just left. The beer was long gone and most of the food was as well. The start and finish are right next to each other so the car was very close (a nice perk of the smaller race), but Downtown Des Moines does have tons of nearby restaurants and bars, so we didn’t have to go far.
So, like I said. I’m not thrilled with Des Moines. It is a nice little race that doesn’t have anything wrong, but just doesn’t have oomph to it. I’m not saying it needs to be gaudy and give you a dinner plate sized medal or throw colored powder at you, but I think the course is the problem. I can run through my own neighborhood any day of the week. the thrill of racing is partially the chance to get to see things and run places you can’t just do on your own.
Course — D
Medal — B
Race Tee– A

I’ve ran this race for several years. While I like running it, I do not think the race is very well-​organized. This year there were cars being directed by police across the course in front of runners and other agitated drivers driving on the course fast, near runners. Every year there’s a conflict in the downtown area with the Des Moines Symphony — one year runners were stopped on the course while cars turning into the Symphony parking were directed in front of them.
A big problem for some in our group was that there were no medals left for relay teams who finished near the end of the race. They were told by race staff to call the race director as they crossed the finish line. Small things were poorly thought out too — the bibs were regular paper, not Tyvek so they crumpled and tore a little during the run.
The race has it’s pretty parts and there is some music and are some great locals cheering. It’s local and not a Rock N’ Roll or another corporate race, so that’s good. But every year it is kind of disappointing. I’d probably not recommend it unless a runner is from the area.

The Des Moines Marathon has earned the title of Best Small Marathon in America (given by me).
Expo: Extremely well organized. Held at Hy-​Vee Hall in downtown DSM Friday afternoon and Saturday, it is easily accessible. Parking can be a bit of a trick with either paid city lots or street parking (free after 6pm during the week and all weekend). Last year I went Friday afternoon and walked right up to get my packet and tshirt, no waiting. There was plenty of room for a huge variety of exhibitors.
Before the race: A friend and I parked in a city parking ramp on Court Ave and walked the quarter of a mile or so to the start area by the river. (I’ve also found street parking downtown in previous years.) The MCs do a great job of pumping up the crowd, there are plenty of porta potties nearby, and there are few enough runners that it doesn’t take too long to cross the start line.
During the race: Entertainment everywhere! Lots of musicians of all genres. The aid stations and porta potties are frequent and stocked, and I saw bike support several times too. A big change this past year was the amount of support in Water Works. In previous years, Water Works was an oasis of nothingness… only runners. This past year Water Works had several musicians, spectators, and aid stations. A welcome improvement! The crowd along the route, while not being the biggest, is fun, energetic, and supportive.
After the race: Amazingly, my friend and I found each other immediately after the race, despite the crowded quarters. It seemed like the immediate area after the finish line where runners got their medals, water, and Gatorade was free of spectators. Like any marathon, the athlete food area was packed with both runners and spectators, and I grew impatient with the crowd and only grabbed a banana and chocolate milk. It looked like there was a large variety of food available, if I would have waited through the crowd for it. I can’t comment on the booze as I didn’t visit the beer tent… I can tell you it’s there and available.
In summary, the DSM Marathon is a great race. It has the conveniences of a small race and the amenities of a much larger one.
Full disclosure: I loved this race so much (I’ve run the half twice) that I joined the Race Committee. So yes, I now am a Des Moines Marathon committee member, but I joined because I think so highly of the event. That should say more than anything else in this review.