Drake Well Marathon & Half Marathon

Sunday, August 20, 2023 • Titusville, PA • Course Map

Set for its 15th annual running along the tree-shaded trails along the banks of Oil Creek just south of this small city in northwestern Pennsylvania, the Drake Well Marathon & Half Marathon combines gravel roads, paved trails along the creek and a finish at the Drake Well Museum, the birthplace of the world’s oil industry.

The race had its first running in December 2006, when a local runner named Dane Rauschenberg was looking to extend his streak of 52 consecutive marathons that year.

He created the race by running 105 times around the Titusville Senior High School track, and was joined by 21 other runners for a race that now takes runners through the Oil Creek State Park area, and is now run mostly along the park’s scenic, tree-covered trails.

The course for the race lies near the Drake Well Museum, which commemorates the birth of the oil industry in the United States and is the site of the first well ever drilled in Pennsylvania, where Edwin L. Drake built and drilled the first oil well that helped launch the petroleum industry back in 1859.

Known today as the Oil Creek Valley region, locals also call it the “valley that changed the world,” and the original Drake Well gives the marathon & half marathon its name today.

Runners in the half and full marathons start their race together at the Drake Well Museum, just south of downtown Titusville. From there, they’ll first head north into the city where they’ll run along its main streets, and then head south onto the Oil Creek State Park Trail, where they’ll spend the rest of the race.

Most of the race that takes place along the trail is fairly level, though runners can expect some rolling hills and a few climbs through the Drake Well and Oil Creek State Park areas.

Past runners add that because the race usually has a smaller field compared to bigger races, often the only sound you hear along stretches of the course through the park is the sound of water falling over the rocks in the creek along the route.

Race Weather & Climate

Located in the northwest corner of the state, roughly 45 miles southeast of Erie and about 100 miles north of Pittsburgh, Titusville typically experiences mild to moderately warm weather in the late summer, and its wettest weather of the year on average during the summer.

On race day (Aug. 20), the average low is 56ºF and the average high is 80ºF.

Past Results

Course Map

See the race route map for the Drake Well Half Marathon here.

Starting Time

7:00 AM

Fees

  • $50 – $70 for the half marathon
  • $80 – $100 for the full marathon

Registration

To reserve your spot in the 2023 running of Titusville’s Drake Well Marathon or Half Marathon race, register online at RunRace.net here.

Official Race Website

www.drakewell.org/events/marathon

Comments

Ever run in the Drake Well Half Marathon? Share your impressions here, or post your review in the Comments below.

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