Events
2026 Muddy River Half Marathon Cancelled
Dear Muddy River Participants,
We’re saddened to share some difficult news. The City of Cape Girardeau has just informed us that a significant section of our race course will undergo major construction starting the week of March 20th and continuing through early fall 2026. This isn’t a short-term disruption—it's substantial work that will directly impact the course.
As a dedicated board, along with us as co-directors, we explored rerouting. However, it became clear that any alternative would not meet the high quality you expect. Thus, we must cancel this year’s race.
This has been an incredibly difficult decision for us to make. We understand this comes as unexpected news. We know you've trained, and we know you've prepared. With that in mind, our commitment is to deliver a race day experience that reflects the standard of excellence you’ve come to expect over the past five years. We would never want to offer you less than that.
While we will be unable to hold the race this year, we will provide options for all registered participants.
Option 1: Defer your registration to 2027.
Option 2: Virtual Run. Run a 1/2 Marathon during the month of May, record, and submit your effort to us. We are working on how to submit and will email that info out soon.
Option 3: Donate your registration. We are a non-profit organization and plan to still give at least a small donation to 4 local charities this year.
Option 4: Refund
Additionally we have reached out to the race directors of the Iron Mom Half Marathon, to be held May 9th in Paducah, KY. They have provided a discount code for the participants of the Muddy River Marathon to receive Early Bird pricing for their event.
Runners can register for the Iron Mom at PaducahIronMom.com.
Half Marathon Only: SAVE20 – $20 off registration (honoring our early bird rate)
2 or 4 Person Relay Only: SAVE15 – $15 off registration (honoring our early bird rate)
We truly appreciate your understanding and continued support.
Warmly, Brandon Hahs, Bryan Kelpe & the Muddy River Marathon Board.
Here Are Your Options:
Race Website
Additional race information can be found at http://www.muddyrivermarathon.com.
Place
Cape Girardeau, MO US 63701
Description
Join us for the 6th Annual Muddy River Half Marathon, May 2, 2026. The course highlights many landmarks in Cape Girardeau including the Bill Emerson Bridge, Common Pleas Courthouse, Old St. Vincent's Church and more, as well as finishing at the riverfront, conveniently at Century Casino. The course is relatively flat utilizing roadways and paved trails. We hope you will spend the evening in Cape and celebrate your accomplishment. Proceeds benefit local non-profits who work to improve the health and well-being of those living in the region. Thanks to our sponsors and participants, we have been able to give over $100,000 to local non-profits since the Muddy River Marathon's inception. In our sixth year we plan to continue expanding the beneficiaries around Southeast Missouri.
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