City Approves Route for Naperville Marathon

View: Marathon Route High Resolution

View: Half Marathon High Resolution

The route for the much-anticipated Inaugural Naperville Marathon and Half Marathon was approved by Naperville City Council Tuesday night.

Get news in your inbox. Sign up for the Patch newsletter.

Like Naperville Patch on Facebook.

The Naperville Marathon, which sold out within one day back in January, will take place Sunday, Nov. 10 and will be a qualifying race for the Boston Marathon. The marathon will start and finish at the North Central College athletic complex - near South Loomis Street and East Porter Avenue - and run through an extensive loop in central, south and east Naperville.

"This is going to be a great event," said Councilwoman Judy Brodhead during Tuesday's Naperville City Council meeting. "You can tell by the speed with which it sold out that there's really a hunger for this sort of thing."

Earlier: Inaugural Naperville Marathon Sells Out in One Day

Naperville Marathon and Half Marathon organizers planned the course with input from city staff. The course will cause road closures on some main streets in Naperville, such as 75th Street and Washington Street, but roads will reopen as runners clear each section.

The city plans on notifying residents and motorists by placing electronic message boards along the route a week prior to the inaugural marathon. Effected neighborhoods will also receive information regarding the marathon and closures.

Registration was nearly split in half, with 1,846 runners signing up for the half-marathon and 1,654 for the marathon.

Of the 3,500 registered for the marathon, 96 percent are from Illinois and four percent are from other states. Naperville residents account for 41% of the participants.

After facing criticism in January, registration was cut to $105 for the marathon and $75 for the half marathon. Originally, registration fees were $150 for the 26.2-mile marathon and $115 for the 13.1-mile half marathon. However, the marathon's Facebook page was flooded with comments from runners who said prices were too high, especially for an inaugural race.

Depending on the success of the marathon, organizers said the runner demand could reach nearly 16,000 participants over the next five years.

Naperville Marathon Road Closures Sunday, Nov. 10:

• Washington St., from Chicago Avenue to Edgewater Drive – Closed from 6:45 a.m. to 7:25 a.m.
• West St., from Hillside Road to Rickert Drive – Closed from 6:45 a.m. to 7:45 a.m.
• 75th Street, from Rickert Drive to Book Road – Closed from 7 a.m. to 8:15 a.m.
• Northbound Book Rd, from 75th Street to 83rd Street – Closed from 7:15 a.m. to 8:30 a.m.
• Washington Street, from Foxcroft Road to Naper Boulevard – Closed from 7:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. (Note: as runners become more sporadic, the Naperville Police Department will open this roadway and stop traffic intermittently as runners approach.)
• Naper Boulevard, From Riverwoods Drive to Boughton Road – Intermittent closures from 7:30 a.m. to 12:20 p.m.
• Royce Road, from Route 53 to Naper Boulevard – Closed from 9 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. (Note: as runners become more sporadic, this road will reopen with traffic stopped intermittently as runners approach.)

Naperville Marathon Route Details:

• From North Central, the route runs southwest down West Street to 75th Street. A portion of lanes on 75th Street from Plainfield/Naperville Road to Book Road will be closed for 15 minutes during the marathon.
• Runners then travel south on Book Road to 83rd Street before entering a path in Springbrook Praire Forest Perserve traveling east. The route briefly travels south on Modaff, east onto Cedarbrook Drive to 87th Street and then south again on Washington Street. 
• The marathon splits at 87th Street and Washington, when the half marathon route turns north and travels along Washington Street and the DuPage River toward the finish line.
• The full marathon route continues from Washington and 87th Street, stretching south on Washington Street to Weber Road and then east into a portion of Woodridge.
• In the final stretch, the route makes a small loop in northwest Woodridge, turns north to Washington Street and hugs the DuPage River before finishing at North Central.

For more information and details, visit www.naperville26.com.