NEENAH (NBC 26) — This weekend kicks off the 30th annual Community First Fox Cities Marathon.
Watch for a snippet of what the event looked like:
The event that began on Friday and goes until Sunday brings together thousands of participants from around Wisconsin, all giving back to area non-profits.
The race returns after two years of cancellations.
In 2019 the full marathon was canceled due to a storm that came through the area shortly before the start of events and last year the entire event was canceled due to the global pandemic.
This year due to warmer weather event organizers are preparing for the heat and asking neighbors along the course to turn on their sprinklers to help cool off participants.
A few runners described what it was like to be running with a blast of summer.
"Excellent the first like two thirds of the race, the last bit you were in the sun a little bit. We had a nice breeze in our face to cool you off, it was great," said Matt Kasten, Men's First Place.
"Pretty cool at the start and there's a decent amount of shade. There were some sun spots towards the end. Whenever there was sprinklers I'd try to run through those to be able to cool off," said Michael Friedman, Men's Second Place.
Event organizers also doing their part providing even more areas for runners to cool down and hydrate.
"We added a couple of misters to help out, we have extra water and ice. So, I think people are listening to their bodies, they're taking help from the medical aid station when they need it. I couldn't ask for more, our community is amazing when they stop by and help," said Tara Perre, Race Director.
But despite the warmer weather runners maintained their positive attitudes and kept moving making it for another great race in the books.
"It feels great, I'm a local so it feels really great to win the hometown race. I've been trying to run this one for two years and have been set back. But really happy to have a great day today," Kasten said.
Here is a look at the start of the race line on Sunday morning:
To learn more about the race, click here.
