When the Marathon Was Run on Belle Isle By Dr. Edward Kozloff

The Detroit Free Press International Marathon was to have celebrated the 43^rd annual race on October 17^th this year.  The race starts near downtown Detroit, crosses the Ambassador Bridge into Canada, continues through downtown Windsor, returning back to the United States through the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel, continuing through historic parts of the city to the finish.  It is the only race to offer two international border crossings. (more…)

2020 Shirt Designs Are Here!

 

Our 2020 participant shirts designs are in! If you haven’t already gotten a sneak peek of our shirts in the Detroit Marathon Runners or Rookie Round Up Facebook groups, we are so excited to share some pictures of the designs here! This year’s shirts are inspired by the stars and maple leaves of the U.S. and Canadian flags as well as the Spirit of Detroit. Every shirt will showcase the distance on the front and back!

• Each distance has a unique shirt, showcasing the distance and/or name of the event on the front and back.
• All shirts will be long-sleeved.
• Each shirt is made of a technical, dry-fit fabric (Kids Fun Run shirts will be a cotton blend).
• Shirts are gender-specific sizing.
• The Men’s shirts will have a crew neck and a straight across bottom hem; the women’s shirts will have a V-neck and a rounded bottom hem.
• The shirts will be black.

Motor City Challenge Design

This year anyone completing the Motor City Challenge will receive this premium dry-fit pullover. Made from a slightly thicker technical material than the participant shirts, this is the perfect thing to throw on after your run. The Motor City Challenge pullover design channels the Motown spirit. The back of the quarter zip features a record player with the name and distance for each event. But that’s not all…

We heard you! This year, in addition to receiving this great wearable, Motor City Challenge Participants will be acquiring a participant shirt too! Each participant will receive a shirt for the highest distance they completed. This means The Temptation participants will receive the 5k shirt, The Wonder participants will receive the 13.1 shirt and The Supreme participants will receive the 26.2 shirt.

 

Let us guess what you’ll say next…

These shirts are awesome! I can’t wait to get mine!
Thanks! We’ve been working on them since February and are so excited to share them with you! Special shout-out to our designer, Kevin, who worked tirelessly on them.

How’s the sizing?
Great question! The women’s shirts run a little bigger and the men’s shirts run true to size. Click here for our size chart.

Who gets a shirt?

Everyone who is participating in any of our virtual events will get a shirt. More information about the virtual race packets will be available on Thursday, July 30, 2020.

 

2020 Detroit Free Press/TCF Bank Marathon

Detroit’s Marathon Weekend is not just any weekend. It’s a celebration of athleticism, perseverance, community and the best Detroit has to offer. In March when our world as we knew it seemed to change, we were hopeful that we would be able to run together in October.  As time has gone on, it has become clear to us that this will not be the case.  It is with a heavy heart that we are announcing we will not be gathering together at the start line this year. (more…)

10 Tips to Keep your Fundraising on Track

Tip #1: Post regular updates. Reached 50% of your fundraising target? Smashed your training run today? Use your online fundraising page alongside your social media accounts as your diary and keep friends, family and colleagues involved with your fundraising journey.

 

Tip #2: Show donors what their support will achieve by asking your chosen charity about the work they do. What could your charity achieve with a $10 donation? How could $50 change a life? Let donors know the impact their giving will have in a specific and understandable way.

 

Tip#3: Think outside the box. Why not commit to a dare if you meet your fundraising goal? Whether you agree to dye your hair or wear your pajamas to work, donors love it when you put your pride on the line for a good cause!

 

Tip #4: Get your workplace involved. Find out if your organization will match employees’ charitable donations – many do! Or simply let your colleagues know what good deeds you’re up to by posting on your internal channels.

 

Tip #5: Step outside your direct network. It may feel weird to ask for support outside your group of friends, but tons of people out there share your passion. So go ahead, post your fundraising project on that local community Facebook group!

 

Tip #6: Take your fundraising offline by downloading your project’s QR code and printing it in brochures, flyers and posters. And of course, there’s the most personal and powerful offline method of all – asking in person.

 

Tip #7: Enjoy baking, singing or dog walking? Put your hobbies to work for charity as your fundraising challenge! Everybody wins.

 

Tip #8: Be persistent. Don’t be afraid to ask twice. People often mean to donate but forget to do so. It usually takes more than one request to nudge someone into action, so don’t feel embarrassed to ask again.

 

Tip #9: A simple thank you can go a long way. Showing your gratitude to donors isn’t just a nice thing to do, it can encourage them to spread positive word of mouth about your fundraising – and maybe even donate again.

 

Tip #10: Your fundraising journey doesn’t end when you cross the finish line. Up to 20% of donations come in after race day, so make sure you keep pushing!

Runner of the Week is back in 2020!

We are so excited to announce the return of our Michelob ULTRA Runner of the Week program! Starting on April 24, we’ll be highlighting our runners and walkers up until race day and sharing their stories with you.

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At Home Core Workout

Can’t make it to our live workout? Here is a downloadable PDF to do it on your own!

core workout

Home Workout for Runners

We have been working at home for a full week now and like all of you, we are starting to get stir crazy. With gyms being closed, working out can be difficult but we are here to help with an at-home workout built with runners in mind. This workout will take about 30 minutes followed by some stretches to keep you moving through this period of social distancing. Under this downloadable PDF, you will find examples for each workout and modifications if needed.

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Bring Your Dog to Work Day: Race Staff Edition

Hi everyone! We have some exciting news over at HQ- our Downtown Detroit office is now dog friendly!

Since our staff has grown by 32 paws, we have thought it’s only fair that we introduce you to all of them too!

First: You’ve seen him before but have you seen him looking this stylish?

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Podcast or No Podcast? That is a question.

As you may have heard by now, we started a podcast at Marathon HQ (if you haven’t, you should totally check it out here)! Going behind the scenes, we’re covering different aspects of the race from the Ladies of COBO to how the medical tent runs so smoothly over a five-part series.

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Jams to Help you Breeze through Summer Training

As the weather gets hotter, you might find yourselves needing some extra inspiration to get those miles in every week. We are here to help!

Below, specially curated for our runners, are two playlists that are sure to give you a burst of energy while training.

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