Run Crazy Horse Marathon, Half Marathon & Relay

The gorgeous and oftentimes stark and jagged natural scenery of South Dakota’s Black Hills will be on display at the annual Run Crazy Horse Marathon, Half Marathon and 5-Person Relay, set to start this fall at the Crazy Horse Memorial and finish in nearby Hill City, S.D. Designed both to raise awareness and interest in the area’s majestic tourist attractions — which include the Crazy Horse Memorial, a more than 500-ft.-high monument to the Oglala Lakota warrior that is still being carved from a mountain more than 50 years after its sculpting commenced, and nearby Mount Rushmore National Monument, one of the nation’s most famous landmarks — the race also serves as a fundraiser both for Habitat for Humanity and for the American Heart Association. The course for the race follows a point-to-point course that follows a mostly gentle downhill slope, starting near the Crazy Horse Memorial, where runners can see the monument in the distance, taking shape in the rock as sculptors continue work to carve it from the mountain. From there, participants follow the course on a brief loop up to the monument and then back again, where they then enter South Dakota’s George S. Mickelson Trail, which they follow for the rest of the half marathon route. Completed in 1998, the Mickelson Trail features more than 100 miles of gently sloped crushed limestone and gravel trails that wind through acres upon acres of national forest lands, and take runners across converted railroad bridges and through dense forests and meadows. Designed to offer people of all ages and fitness levels a way to take in the scenery throughout the Black Hills, the trail is open to runners, walkers, cyclists, hikers and horseback riders. Runners in the race follow the trail as it winds its way northward and eastward all the way up into Hill City, following a nearly all-downhill (and very gradual) grade from about the 2nd mile marker in to the finish line in Hill City. Organizers plan to keep the finish line open for as long as 7 hours, and the race is open to runners and walkers. The day before the 26.2-mile and 13.1-mile races, however, the Run Crazy Horse races will also host a 1K fun run for kids, which will start at Tracy Hall Park in Hill City. The Crazy Horse Memorial in Crazy Horse, S.D. (Photo by jimmers54/flickr)