he transition from winter to spring brings the 41st annual running of Cincinnati’s Heart Mini Marathon & Walk, a race designed as a benefit for the local chapters of the American Heart Association and the American Stroke Association, which for decades has also hosted runners for the 15K, 10K and 5K distances.
The 13.1-mile half marathon distance was added to the event for the first time in its history starting in 2011 and makes its 9th annual running this year, sharing the same starting and finish line as well as much of the same route as that used for the other race distances.
From the starting line in downtown Cincinnati at the corner of 5th and Broadway Streets, runners start the race first with a long, out-and-back stretch that unfolds within sight of the waters of the Ohio River flowing by, as runners make their way along the Columbia Parkway, coincidentally overlooking the border between Ohio and Kentucky to the south.
Once runners follow the curve all the way to the turnaround point for the 15K just before reaching the intersection with Delta Avenue, they then turn around and head back along the route they’ve just run, all the way back into downtown.
When they reach the intersection between Columbia Parkway and the ramp to 6th Street, those running the half marathon split off for the final four and a half miles of the 13.1-mile route.
The last four and a half miles actually take runners through two states, as runners head down toward Pete Rose Way and then across the Purple People Bridge into Kentucky.
The route makes a few turns on the streets near the river in Covington, Ky., taking runners along Riverboat Row as they pass the Newport Aquarium and head back across the Taylor-Southgate Bridge back into Ohio and into Cincinnati.
Runners then make their way back into town for the finish back at 5th and Main Streets, where the finish line lies for the other races as well. Following the half marathon, there is a special 1K event called the “Steps for Stroke,” for heart attack and stroke survivors to walk a race at their own pace.
he transition from winter to spring brings the 41st annual running of Cincinnati’s Heart Mini Marathon & Walk, a race designed as a benefit for the local chapters of the American Heart Association and the American Stroke Association, which for decades has also hosted runners for the 15K, 10K and 5K distances.
The 13.1-mile half marathon distance was added to the event for the first time in its history starting in 2011 and makes its 9th annual running this year, sharing the same starting and finish line as well as much of the same route as that used for the other race distances.
From the starting line in downtown Cincinnati at the corner of 5th and Broadway Streets, runners start the race first with a long, out-and-back stretch that unfolds within sight of the waters of the Ohio River flowing by, as runners make their way along the Columbia Parkway, coincidentally overlooking the border between Ohio and Kentucky to the south.
Once runners follow the curve all the way to the turnaround point for the 15K just before reaching the intersection with Delta Avenue, they then turn around and head back along the route they’ve just run, all the way back into downtown.
When they reach the intersection between Columbia Parkway and the ramp to 6th Street, those running the half marathon split off for the final four and a half miles of the 13.1-mile route.
The last four and a half miles actually take runners through two states, as runners head down toward Pete Rose Way and then across the Purple People Bridge into Kentucky.
The route makes a few turns on the streets near the river in Covington, Ky., taking runners along Riverboat Row as they pass the Newport Aquarium and head back across the Taylor-Southgate Bridge back into Ohio and into Cincinnati.
Runners then make their way back into town for the finish back at 5th and Main Streets, where the finish line lies for the other races as well. Following the half marathon, there is a special 1K event called the “Steps for Stroke,” for heart attack and stroke survivors to walk a race at their own pace.
