courtesy of Grandma's Marathon
Grandma's Marathon Cancellation
Duluth's iconic Grandma's Marathon announced its June 19-20 race events are cancelled due to COVID-19.
For 43 years, runners all over our great state have trained, laced up their kicks, and pinned on their numbers for races ranging from 5 kilometers to 26.2 miles as part of the Duluth running weekend named for the local institution. But for the first time in its long history, Grandma’s Marathon, one of the biggest running events in all of Minnesota, announced the event’s cancellation early this week due to COVID-19 concerns.
“This is not the news that we wanted to be sharing with our running community,” the GM staff says in the announcement on the website. “We know this news is very disappointing, and all of us at Grandma’s Marathon feel the same, but we know that this is for the best.”
Minnesota’s oldest marathon, stretching from Two Harbors to Canal Park in downtown Duluth, attracted more than 18,000 people from all 50 states and 46 countries to the 2019 Grandma’s weekend races. And that’s just runners. A typical Grandma’s weekend looks a bit like the State Fair: people flocking from practically everywhere to Duluth to run, cheer, and indulge at local restaurants, breweries, and shops.
Grandma’s Marathon has faced its fair share of hurdles since the original 1977 crew of 150 people crossed the starting line. A short thunderstorm and traffic buildup caused a 15-minute delay for the 1980 marathon, and in 2002 heavy rain and lightning at the finish line caused a 27-minute race delay. Grandma’s faced unusually warm conditions for the Lake Superior-side course in 2006 (84 degrees by 11:30 a.m.) and in 2007, when a record 28 racers were transferred from the course. Runners persevered in the rain in 2015’s race. Over the last 43 years, conditions have threatened many Grandma’s Marathons, but only two were delayed, and none have been cancelled before. Just like the novel coronavirus, this is a first.
However, hopeful runners need not despair. Like many other cancelled events, the marathon will be moving online.
People who signed up for the marathon have been automatically entered into Grandma’s Virtual Race. You may be wondering, how does one run a virtual marathon? Participants can run the race wherever and whenever they want, as long as it’s before July 31st. (So, if coronavirus stress interrupted your training regime, you’ve got a bit more wiggle room than if you were to run on the original date of June 20th).
“We understand that the majority of our participants are well into their training programs with their sights set on crossing the finish line in Duluth on June 20,” the Grandma’s Marathon Staff said in a statement. “While that will no longer be possible, we want to recognize all of the time, effort and commitment that you have already put forth.”
If you finish your race—congrats!—you can submit your results to the Virtual Submission Platform starting May 4th. Everyone will still receive Grandma’s jackets, and winners will receive their medals and winner t-shirts, which can be picked up from TBD locations, or shipped.
Grandma’s Marathon, which is a non-profit, will be sticking to their no-refunds and no-deferments policy. However, runners who registered before March 31st will receive a 20 percent discount on entering one of the 2021 Grandma’s Races, including the 2021 Grandma’s Marathon, Garry Bjorklund Half Marathon, or William A. Irvin 5K.
“‘Doing the right thing’ doesn’t mean the same thing at every event,” said Shane Bauer, Grandma’s Marathon’s executive director. “With support from our runners in response to this crisis, we hope we’ll have the chance to try this again next year.”
Minne runners, clear your calendars for June 18 and 19, 2021, when the 45th Grandma’s Marathon will hopefully be celebrated in person with lots of hoopla after this year’s hiatus.
