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Participant Limits | Race Day Schedule | Course Info & Maps | Event Location, Parking, & Directions | Hotel & Travel
Last year’s event was a huge success and sold out more than 3 weeks before race day with 1,000 entrants in each day’s race.
For this year, we have maintained the limit of 1,000 each day. However, we have lowered the amount of 5K entrants and increased the amount of half and full marathon spots within this overall limit.
| 5K |
200 each day |
| Half Marathon |
600 each day |
| Full Marathon |
200 each day |
8:15 am – Marathon start
8:15 am – Half Marathon start
8:40 am – 5K start
9:40 am (approximately) – 5K awards
11:00 am (approximately) – Half Marathon awards
11:40 am – Those completing their second loop of the marathon (at 13.1 miles) at this time or later will be stopped and given a half marathon finisher medal. We recognize that, at that point, the participant would not be able to finish within the 6 hour time limit.
12:30 pm (approximately) – Marathon awards
12:45 pm – Those completing their third loop of the marathon (at 19.65 miles) at this time or later will be stopped and given a half marathon finisher medal. We recognize that, at that point, the participant would not be able to finish within the 6 hour time limit.
2:15 pm – Course closes
Quick Overview | Course Description | Course Map | Elevation Profile | Course Time Limit
Quick Overview
Participants will be on paved-concrete city trail 8 to 10 feet wide at all times during this race.
For the half marathon, relay, and marathon: The course is 6.55 miles out-and-back which is then run 2 times for the half marathon and half marathon relay, and 4 times for the marathon.
The 5K loops through Celebration Park in an out-and-back course.
The courses are USATF-certified (TX11165ETM for the full marathon, TX11164ETM for the half marathon, and the 5K course certification is pending), and the full marathon is a Boston Qualifier.
Course Description
The course starts and finishes in one of the City of Allen Parks Department’s crown jewels, Celebration Park. Celebration Park is 99 acres and Allen’s newest Community Park. Phase I was completed in 2003 in time for the 50th Anniversary of Allen’s charter. Phase II was completed in 2010. The park’s amenities  include lighted baseball and soccer fields, the enormous Kid Mania community-built playground and adjoining sprayground, lighted tennis courts, and a large sport court. This is the park where Allen hosts anywhere from 50,000 to 85,000 area residents each year for its AllenUSA celebration around the July 4th holiday.
The Kid Mania playground looks like about 5 or 6 large playgrounds all connected together. This is extremely close to the start/finish and a great place for the kids to play (supervised) while a parent is running the race.
 Interestingly, the sprayground right next to the Kid Mania playground is one of the first projects the beneficiary of this race, the Allen Parks Foundation, tackled after it was formed. Proceeds from the New Year’s Double will allow the Allen Parks Foundation to explore and implement more major community projects in future years! Of course, for the time of year of this race, the sprayground is closed for the winter.
Half Marathon and Full Marathon:
Runners will circle through Celebration Park for the first 2 miles before taking a short ramp into a tunnel running under Angel Parkway. Another short ramp on the other side of the lighted tunnel and you are on Celebration Pass Trail which opened in June 2011. This trail is straight as an arrow for over a mile.
 Cross a bridge, with a pond and a fountain as part of your scenery, take a right where the trail forks, and you’ll find yourself at Stacy Ridge Park, a cute neighborhood park for residents of northeast Allen. At 14.7 acres in size, Stacy Ridge Park has a covered pavilion, picnic tables, playground, and basketball courts. The trail naturally loops around here for a gentle race turnaround!
Runners will then travel back the way they came. Upon re-entering Celebration Park, it’s another mile back to the start/finish area. Half Marathon participants head out for one more loop, and Marathon participants will do this loop 4 times total.
5K:
5K participants will enjoy a shortened out-and-back course through Celebration Park.
Course Map:
Marathon Map
Half Marathon Map
5K Map
Here is a another mapping of the route, with elevation profile. Click the 3D button on the right side of the map to see an aerial flyover of the course!
Elevation Profile:
The course is flat, with a small ramp into and out of a tunnel that runs beneath Angel Parkway.
Minimum elevation of 640 feet, maximum elevation of 690 feet.
Course Time Limit:
There is a 6 hour time limit for all events. This time limit should only affect those in the marathon distance event.
Anyone completing 2 course loops (13.1 miles) after 3 hours, 25 minutes (11:40 am) will be stopped and given a half marathon finisher medal. We recognize that, at that point, the participant would not be able to finish within the 6 hour time limit.
Anyone completing 3 course loops (19.65 miles) after 4 hours, 30 minutes (12:45 pm) will be stopped and given a half marathon finisher medal. We recognize that, at that point, the participant would not be able to finish within the 6 hour time limit.
All parking is at the race site. There are enough spots for all the runners in the 3 parking lots of Celebration Park. Click here to see a handy-dandy Parking PDF that we highly recommend you print and bring race day morning so you will find the parking locations quickly and easily. Get there early to allow enough time for parking, potty lines, and especially extra time if you still need to pick up your packet since packet pickup closes 15 minutes before the first race starts.
The address for the race site is:
Celebration Park
701 Angel Parkway
Allen, Texas
Here's a map!
Get familiar before race day with the layout of the race site. Click here and see the major components of the race site!
Details are forthcoming!
A car will be needed to get from the hotel to the race site (all hotel options are 2+ miles away). There will be no shuttle service arranged, as we expect the vast majority of attendees to be locals or have rented a car for the trip from the airport.
Allen, Texas is served by two area airports: Dallas-Love Field (DAL) is the smaller one where Southwest Airlines flies out of, and then all other airlines fly through Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport (DFW).
Directions from DAL Airport to the race site - 30 miles, approx. 45 minutes
Directions from DFW Intl Airport to the race site - 36 miles, approx. 48 minutes
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