ELY- The Ely Marathon weekend gets underway on Friday, with hundreds of racers on tap for the both the full and half marathons as well as the canoe portaging event. The race brings plenty of people to town, as well as detours and road closures to create a safe experience for everyone involved. Those detours were among the subjects of Police Chief Chad Houde’s report to the city council here on Tuesday.
“Sheridan will close for the Glow Run (on Friday) at 6:45 p.m.,” Houde reported. “On Saturday, Sheridan will be closed until 2 p.m. The complete list of road closures will be published in the local papers.”
Race route maps and a complete list of road closures are on page 9 of this week’s edition.
Friday
The 5K Glow Race will affect Sheridan St., Camp St., Washington St. between 1st and 7th Aves., Miners Drive between 7th and 17th Aves, 17th from Miner’s Drive to Camp, and 7th Ave. between Whiteside Park and Camp St. Traffic will be closed off for these streets until 8 p.m.
Saturday
Due to the lack of parking at the starting lines for both the marathon and half marathon, spectators are encouraged to observe the race from elsewhere.
Three east-west streets in Ely will be closed during the races, including Camp, Sheridan, and Chapman. The detour around these closures will be down Harvey St., with connections between Harvey and Sheridan at Central Ave. and 17th Ave.
Where to watch
Designated observation areas for the races will be:
• The intersection of Grant McMahon Blvd. and Echo Trail—To reach the observation area from Ely, take Hwy. 169 west out of Ely, and turn right onto County Road 88. The much shorter route to this intersection from Ely is closed as a race route.
• Main St. in Winton— Hwy. 169 east of 17th Ave. will be open between Ely and Winton.
• Miners Drive— Park at the Vermilion Campus of Minnesota College North.
• The finish line in Whiteside Park— Park at Ely High School or side streets.
The first half marathon runners are expected to arrive at the finish line around 9:20 a.m. The first full marathon runners and portage half marathon runners are expected to arrive around 10:15 a.m. The first portage full marathon runners are expected to arrive around 12:45 p.m.