The 500 Festival Mini-Marathon Official Website

The "Nitty Gritty" Details (User Opinions)

Ray C.
Chicago, IL

  (05-13-2010)

"The 500 Festival Mini-Marathon was an OK race. The bottom line is that the race hinged on two key selling points of the race - 1) the fact that its the largest half marathon in the U.S. and 2) that you got to run around the Indy Motor Speedway.

Both selling points were affective, and it did add to the race experience, but ultimately, those two things were the only highlight the race offered. Dont get me wrong, the organization of the event and its volunteers were tremendous. But I felt that the following things contributed to this race as being a mediocre race experience for me at best:

1) Race Course - besides the Indy Motor Speedway, the course lacked any good scenery. I wish it could have taken us to more of the downtown Indy. Maybe around Lucas Oil or the Monument Circle also?
2) Race Capacity - there were 30K people that ran that race. It was congested throughout. They had us in starting corrals, but I think a wave start could have benefited the race. I found myself weaving through traffic from start to mile 4. In my opinion thats too long of a time to still be weaving through a crowd.
3) Medal - really? The design was good, but the quality was poor. It was thin and the actual clip that attached the medal to the ribbon broke while i was wearing it :(

Again, I thought the organizers and volunteers did a tremendous job organizing it, but they definitely have room to improve for next year. The crowd and bands were good also, although they were few and far in between.

I would not run this race again, its just tooo big for my taste. But I would recommend it to anyone to do at least once."

Reviewed by a: First Time Participant for 2010

Lauren S.
Willoughby, OH

  (05-12-2010)

"This is my second time doing the Mini and it was MUCH better the 2nd time around, mostly because of the weather this year (cool - upper 40s/50s - and cloudy). I didn't run a half marathon in 2009, so I didn't have a time to get me in the preferred start corrals like I did in 2008. (Details about the corrals can be found on the website - you have to provide proof that you can finish faster than 2:30 I think). Seeding in these corrals get you closer to the front of the pack and makes it easier to run because you're not dodging quite as many people. Don't get me wrong though - the course is PACKED for ALL 13.1 miles!

The course itself wasn't very scenic, other than running on the speedway (which is pretty cool if you're into the Indy 500 series). There weren't too many spectators along the course other than at the start and finish. There was more entertainment on the course this year - mostly grade school/high school cheerleaders and rock bands whose music didn't really pump me up :\

There are water stops about every 1.5 miles, but maybe only 4-5 Gatorade stops on the course, so be sure to study the course map the night before.

The finish area was very organized; things were set up to keep people moving through the area while still getting all 30,000 people their medals, water, food, etc. The post race party was set up in a big park - definitely would have been hard to meet up with friends/family if we hadn't made plans to meet by a specific stand/booth. Again - study the map the night before!

Overall, this was a great race for me - lots of energy from the runners, and with 30,000 people running with you, there's always someone to keep you going :)"

Reviewed by a: Repeat Participant for 2010

Chanthana T.
Chicago, IL

  (09-21-2009)

"This was my first out-of-town race, and I LOVED IT! Indy was so much fun as a race & host city. Everyone in town was so friendly and inviting. I was really excited about running the 2.5 mi around the race track, but truthfully it was boring! The best parts of the race were: corral starts (an absolute must for over 30k runners), weather (55 at the start & partly cloudy), course (lots of elbow room), grocery bags to carry our post-race food (BRILLIANT!) and the gear check (nice touch to have FedEx trucks hold our gear according to our bib number).
We had our pre-race dinner at Iaria's. It was yummy and off the main "touristy" area. The expo was excellent, too.
(I also loved this race because I set a half marathon PR - w00t!)"

Reviewed by a: First Time Participant for 2009

Megan K.
Indianapolis, IN

  (08-04-2009)

"This was my very first race & overall, it was awesome. With 35,000 participants,you know at any given time there are thousands of people in front of you & behind you. I saw some of the craziest things: guy running with no shoes, guy juggling & running, guy in a kilt, guy dressed in a banana costume, guy dressed in a monkey costume..and I also saw some of the most amazing things: a wheelchair racer pedaling with 1 arm because the other was amputated & 70 yr old women running like rockstars (I actually paced off of one!).
The course itself was nice & flat but the scenery wasn't the greatest. I guess I can't really say I was disappointed because I live & run in downtown Indy so it was right in my backyard. Running on the Indy Motor Speedway was a great experience & as most would say it's the worst part of the race...I think it's the best. (Especially when runners stop to kiss the bricks!) As far as I remember the water stations were so so. It did suck having to wash down a gel pack with gatorade...oh & I didn't use the pot so no comment there!
I do have to say the finish line area was very crowded & people weren't being told to move which was annoying to say the least.
All in all the 500 Mini was well organized & def a great race to say I was part of."

Reviewed by a: First Time Participant for 2009

Paul D.
Fort Wayne, IN

  (07-29-2009)

"Loved the crowd, bands along the course. Running on the track is cool at first but 2 miles is a long way on a scorching, sloped racetrack."

Reviewed by a: First Time Participant for 2009