Saturday, September 7, 2024 • Naperville, IL • Course Map
One of series of more than a dozen running events staged throughout the year around the Chicagoland area by All Community Events, the Naperville Trails Half Marathon is set for its 14th annual running in 2024, on an out-and-back course along the park roads and trails of the Danada County Forest Preserve just north of the city.
Designed as a benefit for the local chapter of the Special Olympics, the race starts and finishes inside the park just off Naperville Road near the Danada Equestrian Center, which was once owned by Chicago commodities trader Dan Rice and his wife Ada.
Both racehorse enthusiasts, they bred and trained champion thoroughbred horses here on their farm back in the mid-20th century, including their horse Lucky Debonair, whom famed jockey Willie Shoemaker rode to victory in the 1965 Kentucky Derby.
Today, the farm area is part of the Danada Forest Preserve, which spans more than 780 acres and features wide-open forests, prairies and wetlands areas.
Runners start the race near the equestrian center and head out onto the crushed limestone trails that wind their way through the preserve, heading first northeast through the park nearly all the way to its northeastern corner near the intersection of Butterfield Road and Leask Lane.
Once they reach the turnaround point, runners then head back along the park trails in the reverse direction back toward the equestrian center, and continue making their way westward through the preserve’s winding trails, eventually making their way to the areas just south of Arrowhead Country Club.
Runners make their way around three loops around what is roughly a figure-eight section of the trails around this part of the preserve, first with two loops around the lower trails and then a single loop around the upper section before heading back toward the equestrian center for the race finish.
Runners can expect some rolling hills along the park trails, though much of the course is otherwise flat terrain, as the elevation for the race route ranges between a low of about 720 feet above sea level and a high of just over 780 feet.
Race Weather & Climate
Located in the northeastern part of the state, roughly 37 miles west of downtown Chicago, Naperville typically experiences mild to moderately warm (and occasionally still hot) weather conditions in the late summer season, as September temperatures average between 51°F and 75°F.
- Sept. 7 average low temp: 58°F
- Sept. 7 average high temp: 76°F
Past Results
- 2023 Results
- 2022 Results
- 2021 Naperville Trails Half Marathon Results
- 2020 Naperville Trails Half Marathon (Virtual) Results
- 2019 Naperville Trails Half Marathon Results
- 2018 Naperville Trails Half Marathon Results
- 2017 Naperville Trails Half Marathon Results
- 2016 Naperville Trails Half Marathon Results
- 2015 Naperville Trails Half Marathon Results
- 2014 Naperville Trails Half Marathon Results
- 2013 Naperville Trails Half Marathon Results
- 2012 Naperville Trails Half Marathon Results
Course Map
See the Naperville Trails Half Marathon course map here.
Starting Time
8:30 AM
Fees
$50 – $75 for the half marathon
Registration
To reserve your spot in the 2024 running of the Naperville Trails Half Marathon race, register online at the official race website below.
Official Race Website
Comments
Ever run in the Naperville Trails Half Marathon? Share your impressions here, or post your review in the Comments box below.
will there be a race this year?
Two comments. I was given a women large instead of a man’s large half marathon shirt but was unaware until I wore it two weeks hence. Please correct. I am a half-marathon finisher in 6 of the 7 races and I think the oldest at almost 79. There was no category above 70+ as there was in the past