The CNO Financial Indianapolis Monumental Half Marathon became my excuse to return to Indianapolis Indiana in the fall. As part of the CNO Financial Indianapolis Monumental Marathon, the Half Marathon in my opinion is the perfect option if you do not have the desire to run the Marathon which I did not have after having ran Bank of America Chicago Marathon last month. I have always had an interest in running this event, being that I have family that lives in the city of Indianapolis. And other than that, running it gives me the chance to explore the city the best way I know how in the form of running. For the Monumental Health & Fitness Expo and Packet Pickup, we were required to pick up our bib number and t-shirt from the Indiana Convention Center. Though it isn't as big as Chicago Marathon Health & Fitness Expo and Packet Pickup, it has just enough vendors that will keep you there on-site looking around and purchasing, tehehe. The Health & Fitness Expo and Packet Pickup gave me the chance to explore run events that will capture my interest to travel around America. Most of the run events I picked up brochures for were in surrounding states ranging from Illinois, Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky, and Missouri. Some of the events I have participated in before and some I have had an interest in for years now. With this being my first year participating in CNO Financial Indianapolis Monumental Half Marathon, I had to navigate to get to the start, but once I got near the starting line, the signage further guided me. I was part of wave D, but I did not complain because I knew once the run started I would weave my way through the congestion of runners to obtain my actual pace and eventually finishing time. The run course was relatively flat, with an incline feel at times. The battle I dealt with mentally was telling myself to keep my pace underneath a 9:30-minute mile pace, even with an uneasy feeling in my right hamstring which was likely due to my bike ride the previous evening. My legs felt tired around mile 8, but I was able to keep my pace in check and not fall beyond a 9:00-minute mile pace. I had to remind myself to be patient and take it mile by mile because I will eventually get to that finish line at some point. In spite of my mental and physical struggles, I felt grateful to be part of this growing event which was established by Carlton Ray in 2008. Along the course, each mile was accurately marked and there were hydration stations featuring just water given by volunteers. The volunteers working those hydration stations were supportive of all runners. And I cannot remember any portion of the run course that did not have any spectators on it, even if it were just one or two spectators. Highlights for me along the course were running through downtown Indianapolis, seeing Lucas Oil Stadium, and running through the classy neighborhoods of Indianapolis which had spectators cheering us on along the course. I always love running through the neighborhoods during events because it allows me to see the character of the individuals that live in that particular area. As for the swag, the Indianapolis Monumental Half Marathon t-shirt was red, with the event name written in the center along with the logo of the event. After completing the run, I was given a cute beanie along with my finishers medal which I kissed after it was draped over my head by the volunteer. The finishers medal featured the CNO Financial Indianapolis Monumental Half Marathon on it, with the city's skyline below. I am so grateful to add yet another finishers medal to my run medal collection, a collection that goes back to 2007 when I initially started running. With my Garmin 235 GPS watch on my wrist, sparkle in my eye underneath my sunglasses, camouflage leggings by Nike on, I took on this half marathon.... and conquered it! Yes, I would surely consider running the CNO Financial Indianapolis Monumental Half Marathon again because it is yet another excuse to revisit Indianapolis, plus my mother and sister would love me being in town for it. ~Gonna run 'til I don't jiggle. ~ Thomas G read more

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This was my first year doing the Indianapolis Half Marathon, but my 20th Half, and this race is likely to be a keeper in my annual rotation of races! It is a beautiful course winding through Fort Benjamin Harrison State Park, and most of the course is in the shade which was excellent given the sunny unseasonably warm day we had for the race this past weekend. The short sunny stretches emphasized this point! There are very few portions of the course that are in roads with traffic, and parts are even on a no-vehicles paved trail through the park. The course is a little hilly for those of us who have been training on totally flat terrain (for locals I'm talking about the Monon...). Let's just say if you've been doing no hill work, and maybe take the first few a little too ambitiously fast, you might be walking up some of those hills in the last miles of the course... The course was incredibly well marked, and support was great. Water stops were every 2 miles for much of the course and every mile near the end. Gatorade at every stop was much appreciated given the warm temperature. Volunteers were wonderful! The park restrooms were plentiful and open during the race giving a nice non-port-o-pot option for restroom needs along the course. The wave start was great. Just spacing groups out by 30 seconds helped a great deal! We had no bottlenecks anywhere along the course. This is also a relatively small race with only around 1600 finishers which was enough that no one ended up running alone, but small enough to avoid bottlenecks and general chaos. The post race cookout was a nice touch. A freshly cooked burger really hit the spot after crossing the finish line and chilling for a bit. Parking was easy and not far from the start/finish. Packet pick up was also quick and easy. No, there isn't entertainment along the course or cheering crowds, but there is a lot to be said for a smaller, very well organized, lower key race in a pretty setting. The medals are pretty nice too and mine is adding some much appreciated color variety to my collection! read more

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Quite nice to be able to travel to Indianapolis, IN just for this marathon stuff. Anything is everything when passion hits the asphalt. Love to run. I finished the 2011 Indianapolis marathon in Indianapolis, IN on 10/16/2011. The race itself wasn't through the city streets of Indianapolis, but in a city park on the northeast corner of the city called Fort Harrison Park. We did 2 loops of 13.1 to satisfy the marathon distance requirement. This was my 30th lifetime marathon and 24th state in a bid to run 50 marathons in the 50 states from Hawaii. Being in the Midwest is always a treat, since The travel helps me to discover new and different things. The Indianapolis marathon has been gaining in popularity from its bigger brother - the Indianapolis monumental marathon, but still has the grassroots support of the larger running community in Indianapolis and the region. The Indianapolis marathon is typically held in mid October, whereas the Indianapolis monumental marathon is held in the early part of November. The race itself caps out at 3,000 marathoners and about 4,500 half marathoners, so it's a sizable race for those looking for a nice fall race to complement their schedule. Indianapolis marathon's course is basically flat, so you could realistically compete for a coveted Boston slot or just go for a PR (personal best) and run a faster time. Since the course is in a park, there's not much variety you could see while running through a city park, but I guess whatever scenery you can get - will motivate and inspire you to get to the finish line in one piece. The time limit here for the marathon is about 6 3/4 hours, but you may want to be done as soon as possible. The half marathon course time limit is about 4 hours. The Indianapolis marathon and half marathon has been around for a while. It's worth noting that I ran the 17th annual marathon event here in 2011. Not too shabby for a race to be over 15 years old and counting. While I do love the urban marathons, this one here in Indianapolis is more laid back and feels like a small town race, even though it's in a fairly large city - just tucked away in a large park. The Indianapolis marathon and half marathon had their packet pick up in a local high school when I did it. Since then, it had moved upscale to suit its capacity and growing needs. For what it's worth, I felt like this marathon caters to the beginner and the experienced veteran who is looking to have a great time. I know I had a good time trying to cover the 26.2 miles and trying to knock off the great state of Indiana for my 50 states marathon goal. The course support was adequate and the aid stations were about 2 miles apart. Gatorade and water were served with enthusiastic volunteers, which makes up the fun and the exciting part of any marathon. We can't do it without those amazing volunteers! Thank you to them! The Indianapolis marathon is very organized and I do like the finisher's medal they gave out. The design was nice and I do like their central design of the maple leaf and running shoes. I could tell you to run this one, if you are in dire need of a fall marathon to run. Flat and fast, which could make you qualify for Boston. For me, the finish line is always a great thing. Do yourself a favor, and if you are in the area, sign up for the half marathon to dip your toes in the experience of the half marathon. Or if you are wanting to step into the shadows of the marathon, that's always a great thing. I am glad I chose the Indianapolis marathon for my Indiana marathon. I had doubled up with the IMT Des Moines marathon in Iowa the next day, so I had to go directly to the airport right after the race with the help of friends. After a short layover in Minneapolis-St. Paul, I arrived in Des Moines that evening and planned to run another 26.2 miles the next day. Pretty crazy ain't it, but yep, definitely recommended if you love to run and don't mind any bumps along the way. Run more! Support local! B+ read more

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this review is for 2011! packet pick up = super easy. the expo is small, but there was enough vendors there to make it interesting enough. i forgot to pack my gels, and was having a minor panic attack when i arrived in indianapolis at about 8pm the night before the race. i didn't know where i would find a decent sporting goods store open that late, and i didn't know what the expo would have available. i sure didn't want to have to resort to walmart... and blech.... powerbar gel. i was pleasantly surprised to find that there was a vendor there that had just about every variety of gel under the sun, and tragedy was averted. race day traffic was easy to navigate. parking was ample and free. (bonus) being that it is an october race in the midwest, it is really cold at start time, but there were fire pits going in the race village pre-race. this was a nice touch. my husband and i huddled around one, and chatted with a girl who was attempting to run a half marathon after admitting she had only ever run 6 miles before. i hugged her before i left for the start, because i was pretty sure she was going to die somewhere along the race. i never did find out how or if she finished. she was super nice. her family looked awfully excited she was running. the race is a corral/wave star, but there are less than 1000 people running. this is a small race, and it doesn't take long to get across the start no matter what corral you are in. the course, itself, is really quite nice, as it winds through fort harrison park and fall creek corridor. it's fall. the leaves are changing. you're in the woods. you come in and out of residential areas. there are pockets of people, and then you duck back into the woods and you're alone again. the race was well marked. i never felt like i didn't know where i was going. aid stations were fine. the race was well supported by volunteer staff. there were spectators during certain portions. this is a small race though. it's not like running with 10,000 people, so i didn't expect the kind of support -- volunteer or crowd -- that i have experienced in other bigger, races. it was still ample enough. some parts of the path are narrow. i didn't like that when i was trying to gain ground and pass people. in fact, it kind of sucked. i had never run this course before, and didn't know that time on a bike path was, in fact, part of the fun. another thing i wasn't really prepared for -- some of the climbs. you can look at elevation charts before you run a race, and see where the climbs and falls are... but whatever. sometimes it's meaningless until you are running down the road toward a magnificent hill located just 3 sweet miles into this race. they weren't mountains, but there enough of them that it added up. also, this race has a lot twists and turns; something i personally like in races. however, if you are not good at running tangents, this can add extra mileage in the course of a marathon. and last in my bitch fest list.... the out and back.... my least favorite thing ever in races.... and this race had it a couple times. no fun. i hate seeing exhausted faces of runners ahead of me, coming down the path the opposite direction. i want to be in their shoes, but i don't want to think i will look half as tired as they do. i just want a totally linear path to the finish. no backtracking. the finish is great. plenty of mylar blankets to go around. massages. food. drinks. it was super easy to find my husband and get to my car. generally he finishes about 20 minutes ahead of me, and i spend time searching the finish line for him amongst the tired masses. with fewer people in this race and a more spread out race village, it was easier to locate him. that was nice. i would not run this race again, and it's not because it isn't a nice run. i just didn't love the out and back. if i were ever in indianapolis and just up for a good long run for the hell of it, i might take this course out for a spin. however, competitively, i found this course just required a lot of mental energy to get me through certain portions. i didn't enjoy that. the scenery is gorgeous, though, and it is super well organized. if out and back doesn't bug you, you'll love it. read more