I ran this marathon in December 2003. This race was first held in 1977 and has been run yearly, except for 2020 and 2021, due to COVID. The Huntsville Track Club manages the race, formed in 1971 as an RRCA Club.
Huntsville, Alabama, was the home of Redstone Arsenal during World War II. After the war, the German rocket scientists worked in the area, managing the Army’s missile program.
In the late 1950s, the German designers were recruited by NASA to join the space race. The Saturn V rocket, used for the Apollo missions, was developed in Huntsville.
Huntsville is near the Tennessee River and is the largest city in Alabama.
The race is usually held during the second full weekend in December. The weather at that time of year is ideal for a marathon with average temperatures in the 40s.
My run was on a Saturday. I don’t recall any additional races in 2003. Now, races extend over two days with a 5km and 10km on Saturday, and a marathon and half-marathon on Sunday.
The marathon has a 7 am start in downtown Huntsville. The first half of the race is east of US 231. The half-marathon starts at 9 am and merges with the marathon course at mile 16, running the same course for the final 10 miles. The second half of the marathon is west of US 231, continuing until it finishes downtown.
When I ran, there were about 900 finishers. The race was manually timed, using pull tags and time machines. The finish line was located in the parking lot of the Holiday Inn, with an indoor expo.
Currently, the marathon has approximately 1,500 finishers, and the half-marathon has an additional 1,500 finishers. I doubt they are still finishing in a parking lot with manual timing.
I don’t recall any significant hills. I remember long stretches of straight flat roads, mainly in the race’s second half. It appears that the current race has the same feel..
The marathon has a six-hour time limit, but also allows for a one-hour early-on-your-own start to extend the limit to seven hours.
There are direct flights from Washington to Huntsville. We left Saturday night after the race to avoid a Sunday snowstorm in DC. The planes were smaller regional jets. On the return flight, there were three passengers.
While in Huntsville, visit the US Space and Rocket Center, which features some excellent exhibits on our space program and explores the future of warfare being developed at Redstone.
Hotels and restaurants are plentiful in the area.
According to their 2025 webpage, the current prices for the marathon and half-marathon are $85 and $75, respectively. That’s a deal for a second half at $10.
Knowing the RRCA race standards, the race was and should be a good running experience.