Sunday, September 15, 2024 • Minneapolis, MN • Course Map
Designed both as a warm-up for upcoming fall marathons and as a way to get in a more strenuous workout that’s also easier on the body thanks to the fact that most of the race takes runners on dirt and grass trails, the Surly Trail Loppet Half Marathon winds through a combination of challenging hills and trails inside Theodore Wirth Park, just west of downtown Minneapolis.
Named for the Swiss-born Theodore Wirth, whose legacy as a horticulturalist and park designer and planner has earned him fame as one of the most influential figures in the movement to build local parks and urban green spaces across America in the early 20th century, the park today offers a multitude of trails that wind through its 759 acres, for hikers, walkers and runners as well as mountain bikers.
The 13.1-mile race — officially titled the Surly Half Marathon — also features a 7-mile race, which will share the same starting line as the half marathon and the event’s Finn Sisu 5K, with a starting time a half-hour later after the half marathon.
From there, runners make their way along a route that follows roughly a clockwise loop through the park, leading runners down from Wirth Lake toward the Eloise Butler and Erickson trails in the park’s southeastern corner, and then westward toward the Norm Oakvik Trails on the southwestern side of the park, where they’ll make their way along the hilliest section of the course.
Runners then head back in the direction of the lake, near the middle of the park, along the Jar Hill trail, starting a downhill stretch over the next few miles.
The second half of the race brings runners up into the golf course area at the northern end of the park, where the course gets hilly again, especially between mile markers 7 and 9 on the park’s northwestern side.
The final few miles are generally flatter than the rest of the course, bringing runners in to the finish line along the eastern edge of the park, between the golf course and the neighborhoods the line Bassett’s Creek Trail.
Just over 1,300 runners crossed the finish line in the half marathon, 13.1K and 5K combined in 2014, and organizers also will offer what they call the Hoigaard’s Nordic Walk — instead of running the 13.1K course, entrants will walk the course and may (in fact they’re encouraged to) bring Nordic-style walking poles with them for the walk.
Race Weather & Climate
Nestled along the banks of the Mississippi River in southeastern Minnesota and adjacent to the state capitol of Saint Paul, Minneapolis typically sees mostly mild weather in September, which has brought record temperatures here as low as 26°F (in 1974) and as high as 104°F (in 1931).
On race day (Sept. 15), the average low is 48ºF and the average high is 68ºF.
Past Results
- 2023 Results
- 2022 Results
- 2019 Surly Trail Loppet Half Marathon Results
- 2018 Surly Trail Loppet Half Marathon Results
- 2017 Surly Trail Loppet Half Marathon Results
- 2016 Surly Trail Loppet Half Marathon Results
- 2015 Surly Trail Loppet Half Marathon Results
- 2014 Surly Trail Loppet Half Marathon Results
- 2013 Surly Trail Loppet Half Marathon Results
- 2012 Surly Trail Loppet Half Marathon Results
Course Map
See the race route map for the Surly Trail Loppet Half Marathon here.
Starting Time
- 9:00 AM – half marathon waves start
- 10:00 AM – 7-mile
- 10:15 AM – 5K
Fees
- $50 and up for the half marathon
- $40 and up for the 7-mile
- $30 and up for the 5K
Registration
To reserve your spot in the 2024 running of the Surly Trail Loppet Half Marathon, 13.1K or 5K race, register online at RunSignUp.com here.
Official Race Website
Comments
Ever run in the Surly Trail Loppet Half Marathon? Share your impressions here, or post your review in the Comments below.
