The inaugural Great Bangor Marathon & Half Marathon will take place Sunday morning, introducing the city to what its organizers believe will be an annual tradition of sport, spectacle and hospitality.
Organized by lifelong central Mainers Laura and David McIntyre, the races are both certified by USA Track & Field, meaning runners who perform well can qualify for top marathons in cities like Boston, New York and Chicago.
“We’re dug in for the long haul,” Laura McIntyre said. “We wanted to give people an opportunity to qualify for Boston, and to showcase Bangor. Central Maine needs something like this.”
Both the half and full marathons will start at 7 a.m. at the corner of Main and Dutton Streets — right next to the Paul Bunyan statue.
Participants will race through downtown Bangor to outer Broadway, turn around at designated locations and eventually make their way back to the finish line at Bangor Waterfront Park, just south of Geaghan’s restaurant.
As of Monday, there were 337 total participants signed up, from 33 states and four countries.
“The experience these 337 runners have this year will predict the future for this race. The more Bangor Hospitality we show the runners this year, the better,” Laura McIntyre said. “In 2-3 years we could have 2,000 to 4,000 runners coming to Bangor — a long-term economic impact on our hotels, restaurants, coffee shops, and tourism.”
Laura McIntyre is a career sporting event operator born and raised in Bangor. She previously helped manage the 1996 Olympics and 2003 Super Bowl. David is a passionate triathlete born and raised in Waterville, and used to own a taxi company.
Together, they founded the Great Lincoln Marathon three years ago, and now want to use distance running as a vehicle to enrich the Queen City. They came up with the idea for the Great Bangor Marathon less than 10 months ago, putting up $3,000 for certification and $5,000 for signage.
“Everyone goes to MDI or the coast, but Lincoln’s gorgeous and Bangor has some great history,” Laura McIntyre said. “We want to revive road racing up here, and give Bangor an opportunity to shine.”
As part of the certification process, the race will be timed using a transponder system and the course will remain the same for the next 10 years, assuming the event catches on.
Of the 337 runners, 101 will take on the full 26.2-mile course for a shot at winning prize money or qualifying for Boston.
The course turns around in the town of Kenduskeag and features 170 feet of maximum elevation change (one-third that of Boston) to attract runners interested in setting personal records.
The winners of the men’s and women’s divisions in the full marathon will take home $1,000 each. Second place will win $500, and third place will win $250.
McIntyre expects “quite a few” participants to finish between two hours, 30 minutes and two hours, 45 minutes — the minimum qualifying standard for Boston this year was three hours flat — but maintains race day will be an inclusive, family-friendly event.
“There’s no time limit,” McIntyre said. “We have a family from Massachusetts running together, a family from Kenduskeag running together, and an 83-year-old man running [the half]. It’s great to see that bond between parents and their kids.”
Prospective runners can register online until 5 p.m. on Saturday, June 22. The registration fee for the full marathon is $125, and $95 for the half.
Prospective volunteers (to set up the event, run water stations, perform traffic control, and clean up) can sign up online or report to Dutton Street Park the morning of race day. Fans are encouraged to attend.
