Mississippi River Marathon

I participated in the 2026 Mississippi River Marathon. Race conditions were between 40F (start) and 50F (finish), full sun and incredibly windy with winds out of the ENE - basically full on headwind for about 17 miles. The course is basically flat except for the bridge and a newly added highway ramp soon after the bridge. The first part of the course was my favorite - a beautiful 10k stretch along Lake Chicot. This stretch is wind protected (which I think skews the "starting winds" posted on FindMyMarathon). The next 17 or so miles are non-scenic (minus the stretch over the bridge) and along active highways. The final closing miles are through residential neighborhoods. I was a 3:30-ish runner and while I could see a few people up ahead of me, I basically ran the back 20 miles of this race alone, so be mentally prepared for that.

The ENE winds were absolutely brutal during the long highway stretch - potentially accounting for the slightly lower BQ percentage in 2026. My Garmin captured 26.41 miles, which I thought was a bit long when considering this was a point-to-point race with very little 'people weaving.'

On a day with great weather (40s, partly cloudy, low wind), this course would be lightning fast! Don't count on a lot of spectators, but do know that the volunteers and police presence for this race are both fantastic. Aid stations are plentiful and rival those at major marathons in terms of quantity. If you like bling, you will love this race. The medal is a generous size and this race dishes out the overall and age-group awards. Since only about 100 people run the marathon, your chances of taking home an additional award are very high! Honestly, everyone involved with the race was incredibly friendly and helpful and I would definitely recommend the Mississippi Marathon to anyone looking to BQ, grab another state or just experience a small-town friendly race.

This is a point-to-point race and you will be bussed to Lake Village, Arkansas at precisely 6:30am. The bus ride seems to take forever and you will question the actual return distance of the race - LOL! The race begins alongside a field on a rural stretch of road. There are plenty of port-a-johns at the start and you will not find yourself fighting for a bathroom. Port-a-johns are located at various aid stations along the course and again, aid stations are more than plentiful. There is a nice post-race spread inside the cultural center!

We stayed at Hotel 27 in Greenville. It was a bit pricey, but was also about the best that Greenville has to offer in terms of lodging. It was a quick mile+ drive to the race start in the morning and we arrived early enough to park in the main lot. There is additional parking at the hospital.

This race was perfect in 2023. Temps were chilly standing around at the start line, but were basically perfect for racing. Aid stations were plentiful and well stocked with gatorade and water. Basically all of the crowd support was from aid station volunteers and law enforcement/EMTs directing traffic and they were great, but the route can feel pretty lonely if you're used to big city races or running with a crowd.

This course is flat flat flat except for the bridge, which has an almost imperceptible incline and decline. There are 22 aid stations over 26.2 miles and because it's so flat and rural, you can almost see from one aid station to the next. Show up for the bus ride before 6:30! Several runners missed the bus, which would be a terrible way to start the day. The course was re-certified in 2016, so ignore older comments about it running long. I had 26.3 miles exactly on my watch at the finish line.

We stayed at the Tru by Hilton on the outskirts of Greenville and it was great. I heard some horror stories from other runners about the Rodeway Inn near downtown. There aren't many dining options, but the Ichiban Japanese Steakhouse in Greenville was decent and a good way to load up on rice for carbs.

Thought it was great, and well run, and enjoyed the beer and food and the massages were an extra-special touch! The only thing I would change is to add more fruit at the water stations and add more port-a-potties at the starting lines. Other than those two things, you guys have done an outstanding job on this marathon! You could definitely teach other races a thing or twelve! Volunteers did an amazing job!

Be on the buses at 6:30, don't wait until the last minute to sign up for the race, and be sure to show appreciation for the folks who give up vast amounts of their time to organize, put on and see this race through!

Arrive as soon as you can, the hotels are ok in the area.

For a small race, this was an amazingly organized and well run event!! Everyone was friendly and helpful and things ran very smoothly. It seems wind is at times an issue and it was hot this year but that is no reflection on the race organizers themselves. Traffic control was spot on. This event does not have pacers. If you feel that a pace group is important to you, this may not be the right event for you. Otherwise, it was very well done.

This event does not have pace groups and can be windy. That is something to be prepared for.

I ran this in 2015 . . . it was cold with virtually no wind . . . the course was pancake flat except for the bridge over the Mississippi River. My watch did record the distance as 26.5 miles and I was running tangents, so I will plan for that distance when I run this race again in 2016. After party was great, and being able to pick up awards as you win them rather than having to wait around for the awards ceremony was nice. All race pix were free - a nice perk.

Plan your paces for 26.5 miles

Ample parking near finish line/bus to start. We stayed at local motel 6 and drove in.

I ran the inaugural MS River Marathon. My watch recorded 26.59 miles. That's the longest my watch has ever recorded for a marathon course, and it had too few turns for me to blame it on how I ran my tangents. The wind was brutal along the flat highway stretches, which was a large portion of the course. The course was nice at the beginning around the lake and at the bridge, but the rest was boring. The town of Greenville doesn't have much to offer as far as restaurants/amenities. The after-party at the finish line was really fun. They had a fabulous blues band and lots of food for the runners. The course was very flat, so if you luck out with no wind, it could be good for a PR. Just add in some extra time for your goal for that extra .39 miles.