Organizers, city replace Naperville marathon with 5K

Declining interest and increasing concerns about road closures has led organizers of the Naperville Marathon to scale the event back next year to a half marathon and 5K. Mark Black/Daily Herald, October 2016

When racers toe the line for the fifth running of a Naperville distance race, there will be no marathon, no 26.2-mile endurance challenge touted as a highlight for the toughest West suburban runners.

Organizers with Naper Events LLC have scrapped the full marathon for next year in favor of a half marathon and a 5K on advice from the city that suggested clogging an extra 13 miles of roads was too much of an inconvenience.

Everyone involved is touting the switch to shorter distances as a diversifying move that will make the event more attractive to participants of all fitness levels. Instead of roughly 4,000 finishers in this year's race, organizers expect closer to 6,000 next year with the shorter 3.1-mile option.

"We think it actually gives us an opportunity to open up the race weekend to more runners and walkers with the 5K," race director Dave Sheble said. "It will give more people a chance to participate in what's become the premier running weekend for Naperville."

Brian Davis, chief marketing officer for the race's title sponsor, Edward-Elmhurst Health, says offering a 5K will allow families to participate together and tie the race into other 5Ks the health system sponsors in Elmhurst, Plainfield and Oswego. But he admits removing the marathon ends some of the race's status and cache as a qualifier for the prestigious Boston marathon.

The 2017 Naperville race is scheduled for Sunday, Oct. 22, with the half marathon stepping off about 15 minutes before the 5K in downtown Naperville. A 1.2-mile race for little ones is scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 21, allowing them to complete a "Kids Marathon" after running one mile 25 other times throughout the summer and fall.

When the Edward Hospital Marathon and Half Marathon launched in 2013, hospital officials and organizers said there was pent-up demand in Naperville for a 26.2-mile race.

Kris Hartner, owner of Naperville Running Company, said there was high interest in the race its first year, as runners and people in general enjoy being part of something new.

But the half marathon always made up a large percentage of participants. And by this year's Healthy Driven Naperville Marathon and Half Marathon on Oct. 23, full marathoners made up only 800 of the 4,000 combined finishers, Sheble said. The rest completed the half marathon -- many of them as charity runners for the Indian Prairie Educational Foundation, Naperville Education Foundation or other nonprofits.

Roughly 1,000 people signed up for the marathon, but Sheble said it's common at distance races nationwide for 20 percent of registrants not to attend because of injuries, lack of training or life getting in the way of running.

"I think the marathon is more difficult for runners to commit to short term," Sheble said.

While organizers would have continued to offer the full marathon with the number of registrants it was drawing, Sheble said city officials encouraged them to call it quits to ease traffic constraints on residents.

"When you look at how much disruption there is with the overall city for only a few people, it didn't make a ton of sense," Mayor Steve Chirico said.

Considering the scale of the event, Chirico said the city received very few complaints. Still, closing 13 miles of roads will be less of an inconvenience than crippling double that amount -- even for only a few hours on a Sunday.

With a half marathon and a 5K, the Indian Prairie Educational Foundation expects the race will continue to be a major fundraiser for District 204 schools, Executive Director Susan Rasmus said.

Of 255 adult participants raising money for the charity in this year's race, only about 25 ran the full marathon, she said. Ninety-three who chose the half marathon never had completed a distance event before, opting for the more manageable distance as their first endurance challenge.

The relatively low interest in the marathon in Naperville doesn't mean runners in the Western suburbs are slacking or abandoning their sport. Rasmus said some who like to go long will run their main race at the Chicago Marathon earlier in October, then sign up for the Naperville event to give back to the schools in their community.

"I don't think it says anything about the running community in Naperville," Hartner said. "I think our community is as strong as it's ever been."