Race organizers are excited to announce that the Salina Crossroads Marathon has runners registered from all fifty states. The Salina Crossroads Marathon currently has 1507 runners including 1351 runners from outside of Salina, which includes 752 runners from outside of Kansas.
“We are excited to have runners registered from all fifty states,” said Co-Race Director Daniel Craig. “Last year we created a list of over 600 running clubs in all fifty states as well as some national running groups like the 50 State Marathon Club and we have been working hard to develop relationships with them in hopes that some of them will send runners to the Salina Crossroads Marathon every year. That strategy seems to have been very successful and will be key to reaching our goal of becoming one of the premier running events in the Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, and Nebraska region. Some of the highlights last year’s participants mentioned the most in the post-race survey included excellent pre-race communication, the vendor expo, an epic electric guitar performance of the National Anthem, music and entertainment all along the flat and scenic course, amazing volunteers, high quality custom designed medals by Vortex Companies, burgers by Cozy Inn, and post-race entertainment."
The 2023 Salina Crossroads Marathon weekend will feature seven events: marathon, half marathon, 5K run, 5K walk, half marathon relay, marathon relay, and new half-mile kids run. All participants will receive a Salina Crossroads t-shirt and custom designed medal by Vortex Companies. The marathon, half marathon, and 5K races will all be USATF Certified and the marathon will be a Boston Marathon Qualifier. The schedule of events for the weekend will be posted on the Salina Crossroads Marathon website and Facebook page as it gets closer to the race. There will be packet pickup and registration along with a pre-race vendor fair on Friday, November 3rd. Highlights of race day will include music stations at each of the aid stations, custom designed finisher medals by Vortex Companies, and a fun post-race celebration featuring music and great food. Organizations interested in supporting the race, being a pre or post-race vendor, or providing volunteers can reach the race directors at runsalinacrossroads.com. Individuals interested in volunteering or helping plan the event are encouraged to contact the race directors.
“When Chris Lehecka and I started the conversations around having a marathon in Salina, we wanted to create a high-quality event with fun race options for the entire family that could be a source of pride for the community,” Craig said. “Sgt. Chad McCary and Brent Buchwald helped us design a scenic course that does a great job of displaying the amazing art and murals in downtown Salina as well as features four of Salina’s parks. We want to say a special thank you to the City of Salina. Their staff have been amazing to work with and have been instrumental to our success. We also appreciate the support of the Salina Area Chamber of Commerce and Salina Downtown, Inc. We are excited to have Vortex Companies as our Title Sponsor this year and have been amazed at the incredible support we have received from the community and from our amazing sponsors. We hope that the Salina Crossroads Marathon will be a source of pride for the entire community."
Current Numbers
Registered Runners: 1507
States Represented: 50
Runners From Outside of Salina: 1351
Out of State Runners: 752
Runners from Salina: 156
Runners from Oklahoma: 251
Marathon: 425
Half Marathon: 813
5K Run: 109
5K Walk: 53
Team Relays: 36
Virtual Race: 52
Half Mile Kids Run: 19
Link to register: https://register.chronotrack.com/r/71793
Registration fees are as follows:
● Marathon-$75 ($85 after October 1st)
● Half Marathon-$55 ($65 after October 1st)
● 5K Run-$25
● 5K Walk-$25
● Half Mile Kids Fun Run-$15
● Marathon Relay ($25 per team member)
● Half Marathon Relay ($30 per team member)
About the Salina Crossroads Marathon
The Salina Crossroads Marathon began when two local runners (Chris Lehecka and Daniel Craig) started visiting about what it would look like for Salina to have a high-quality marathon and half marathon race. The City of Salina helped develop a fun and scenic course that also minimized disruptions to traffic and parking in Downtown Salina. The Salina Crossroads Marathon planning committee includes individuals in the nonprofit and for-profit sectors as well as local runners. The goals of the Salina Crossroads Marathon are to have a high-quality race that can bring in runners from across the United States, provide 100% of the race entry fees to local organizations, and provide fun family friendly events so the entire community can come be a part of a USATF Certified and Boston Qualifying Marathon weekend.
For more information about the Salina Crossroads Marathon check out the website at runsalinacrossroads.com or follow us on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1469896640070189.
