New York, Boston, and Chicago are all synonymous with cities that host marathon races each year.
While large cities attract the most participants, the BMW Dallas Marathon is a highly sanctioned race that many look forward to.
Each year, several runners from around the world run the USA Track and Field accredited course around White Rock Lake to qualify for the Olympic Trials. Other runners, like Diana Moore, also make it a tradition to compete in an ultramarathon (50K) each year.
“I've run the Dallas Ultramarathon every year since it started,” Moore said. “I feel like I have a winning streak now because I qualified the first year, but I don’t think I’ll be able to break it until I force a break because it’s not going to happen in time.”
On Sunday, More will take part in the “roller coaster” of the 50K (31M) race.
“During the race, you have good times and bad times, and you go through them over and over again,” Moore said. “When you hit a wall, you get really depressed, and eventually you dig yourself up, go back to the highs, and then go back to the lows.”
Texas' longest running marathon, the Dallas White Rock Marathon (now the BMW Dallas Marathon), began in 1971. Since its inception, several events have been added, including an ultra-marathon and a half-marathon celebrating its 20th anniversary.
As interest in running and its events has grown over the years, events have been added to the BMW Dallas Marathon.
“Many events are starting to add ultramarathons to their weekend lineups,” said Jason Schuchard, Landaras' senior director of marketing and partnerships. “We added it a few years ago, but it sells out almost every year.”
This year's BMW Dallas Marathon has sold out all races: half marathon (13.1 meters), marathon (26.2 meters), and ultramarathon (50 kilometers). There are still spaces available for the short distance event on Saturday night.
There are 10,000 spots available for the half marathon, but only 300 spots for the ultramarathon. With the growing popularity of running, ultramarathons have become more common.
In 2023, Ultrarunning.com reported 2,663 ultrarunning races and 82,459 unique runners. Of the total number of runners, 33,024 were participating in an ultra-distance run for the first time. Ultra running events include trail runs and road races. Distances vary from 31 miles up to 3100 miles.
The course for the Dallas Ultramarathon is a road course, and Landalus has updated this year's course to include more views of downtown and fewer turns, which he hopes will shorten the overall completion time.
To see what events are happening and to register, visit rundallas.com.
