The fourth annual Market to Market Relay will fill the courthouse square in Jefferson with fun and activity Saturday morning, but residents have learned they need to get up early to see it. By 10 am, there will be nothing left.
More than 2,500 runners from 20 states will compete on 350 teams in the 75-mile-long relay race on the Raccoon River Valley Trail’s original “south loop” and then on other trails to the East Village in downtown Des Moines.
The runners start from the courthouse square in Jefferson and run east on Lincoln Way to the RRVT trailhead at the Milwaukee depot. The first start time is 5:45 am, with waves of runners starting every 30 minutes until 9:15 am.
The race is a true relay. Most runners will be at the start, but as soon as the first runner of the team starts running, the rest of the team gets in vehicles and leaves for the next exchange zone, Bullhead Farm south of 250th St in Grant Township.
The fun for spectators is not only soaking up the high energy of the runners, but in the costumes many of them wear. Super heroes, flappers, prison convicts and ninjas are among the costumes worn by some teams.
For more information about Market to Market Iowa, visit the Raccoon River Valley Trail website or the Market to Market Iowa race guide.
