The Twin Cities Marathon is set to take place the first weekend of October, but before the runners even take their mark, they are already working hard.
It's more than a marathon - and more than just running - it's also about charity.
"It is a program where the runners choose to pace with a purpose and they raise money for charity," says Dean Orton, the President of Twin Cities in Motion who put on the marathon.
Orton says the runners involved pace with purpose and this year they are hoping to increase the amount raised.
"We set a goal by 2028 to more than double our annual charity fundraising impact, from $1 million, to raise that to over $2.62 million by 2028," Orton explains.
If that happens?
"That means we'd help roughly 100 local charities, have the financial benefit of nearly $3 million of support as another outcome for the weekend," he adds.
The Twin Cities Marathon weekend takes place October 3 through the 5 with the big race happening Sunday morning.
"Charities are facing kind of a huge increased challenge in securing funding and engaging new donors, especially in Minnesota," says Orton. "When we looked at the data and the research, our charities are looking for more ways to have strong proven fundraisers."
He says runners have been very generous in raising money over the years.