Herron Half, 10K And 5k Races

Schedule & Start Times

There will be a pre-race meeting starting 10 minutes before each race.

Friday: June 19

Bib Pickup at Flathead Running Co. – Downtown Kalispell.

Saturday: June 20

6:00 am

Check-in & Bib Pickup

7:00 am Start

For 1/2 Marathon Racers

7:15 am Start

For 10k Racers

7:30 am Start

For 5k Racers

9:30 am Start

For Kid’s Race

Starts after kids’ race – around 10:30-11 am. S&M Tacos will provide all-you-can-eat taco bar starting at 11 am for $20 per person

We will randomly give away over a $1000 worth of cool stuff (i.e. running shoes, nice gear from local stores) donated by our sponsors only to those racers present for the ceremony! This will be held after the kids’ race.

Food: all-you-can-eat taco/burrito bar prepared by the House of S&M, will be available for $20 at the Foys Community Center by the main Herron Park parking lot.

Massages: Our friends at Flourish Massage and Yoga will be providing free massages after the races on a first come-first serve, sign up process. Tips/donations to the massage therapists are welcome.

Don’t forget to support the sponsors who helped the race with monetary support and/or in-kind donations:

Bears, mountain lions, and other wildlife are found along the trail corridor.

You will be required to carry bear spray and to know how to use it. Running with headphones is also heavily discouraged because of the increased risk of not hearing a wild animal ahead or behind you.

Race bibs can be picked up at Flathead Running Company, 132 S. Main Street, Kalispell on Friday, June 19 between 10 am and 6 pm AND on race day at the pavilion in Herron Park starting at 6:00 a.m.  Swag bags, including give away stuff from sponsors will be handed out to racers at the end as racers complete the race.

Wildfires and smoke conditions vary over the course of the summer in Montana. Often, even when the Flathead area does not have active fires, smoke is blown in from the west causing poor air quality.  Wildfire conditions are variable, unpredictable, and can change daily in northwest Montana.  As we experienced in prior years, smoky conditions were persistent until race weekend where we experienced rain and clear skies.  In the event of an active wildfire posing a safety threat to the Foy’s to Blacktail Trail Marathon (FTBTM) participants or volunteers, the race organizers reserve the right to cancel the event at any time.  Please keep in mind that we work with multiple different land owners that will also be looking out for the health and safety of everyone in our event. 

If the FTBT races are canceled due to a wildfire or other natural disaster, participants will have the options to (i) defer their registration at 50% value to the next year; or (ii) donate their registration to help cover operation costs.

As noted below, we will wait until race morning to determine cancellation, which means we incur the costs of operating the event (insurance, permits, etc) and compensating all of our local vendors, regardless of whether the race takes place or not.  As organizers, we invest our lives into this event and want nothing more than a flawless weekend, so we thank you in advance for understanding and respecting this policy.

​In the event of smoky conditions causing variable air-quality, FTBTM organizers reserve the right to make a final race cancellation decision by 6:00am on the race morning based on AirNow.gov for Kalispell, MT.  The Specific Air Quality Index chart we will refer to can be viewed here.

1. The event will not be canceled for AQI 0 (green) to 100 (yellow).

2. AQI reaching between 101-150 (orange), runners will have the choice to (i) complete the event, (ii) defer their registration at 50% value to the next year, or (iii) donate their registration.

3. AQI reaching > 151 (Red, Purple, or Maroon), the event will be canceled and runners will have the choice to (i) defer their registration at 50% value to the next year, or (ii) donate their registration.

Cell phone coverage is mostly present along the course but it is not guaranteed. Aid volunteers will carry cell phones and radios.

Herron Park is part of the Flathead County Parks & Recreation system, and please follow county rules regarding dogs: spectator dogs must be leashed and cleaned up after.

Sorry, no dogs allowed in the races.

In the past, we have joined with the Whitefish Trail Blazer and Le Grizz races to form the Flathead Race Series! Those that participated in at least one of the FTBT races, one of the Whitefish Trail Blazer races, and one of the Le Grizz races were part of this series in 2025. In the coming year we hope to add other races. Series participants will receive a buff, discounts on next year’s races, and will be ranked by Competitive Timing at the end of the series. Those completing the FTBT Marathon, the WTB 50k, the Le Grizz 50 mile race, and possibly other races (to be announced) will be part of the Crown of the Continent Champion’s League. Each CCCL member will receive cool swag (to be announced) and a free entry into one of the series’ races in 2027! The awards ceremony for the race series will be held during the Le Grizz award ceremony.

At 9:30 am, we will provide an informal kids’ race for those under the age of 13.  There is no charge for this race.  Bibs will be provided but there will be no official timing.  We will recognize the top 3 racers of each gender.  Kids will get stickers with the FTBT Races logo when completing the race.

The County Parks Department will let us allow up to 20 camping units in the field by the stables.

If you are interested, contact Brian Miller, race director, at brian@runflathead.com and we can make arrangements. Cost will be $25 per unit. A unit is defined as one camper or one tent. If we fill up, we may have options with a local land owner near the race staging area.

Parking is available in the main Herron parking lot, with many helpers guiding you to your spot in order to optimize the space we have.  Additional parking is available in the stable parking lot, past the main Herron lot on the right side. Please look for the bright color vests of volunteers assisting with parking.

We are expecting the same large number of participants this year, which will fill all parking areas, so PLEASE CARPOOL!

Past Herron Half Marathon,10k and 5k races can be found at Competitive Timing.

FTBT Races Course Records – Google Sheets

Crown of the Continent Champion’s League 2025 results. Congratulations to Kayte Mutrie, Ryley Nahrgang, and Steven Phillips for completing the three top races to qualify for the League in 2025!

Paige Bluhm, professional running coach, has generously offered a free training plan if you would like guidance on your running program leading up to the race.

Go to: E2 Foys to Blacktail Marathon – Google Sheets to find the comprehensive plan. You can get customized plans and more thorough guidance by contacting her directly through her website, Epic Endurance Coaching.

We can’t do it without all of the great volunteers!  Please contact the Race Director (brian@runflathead.com) if you would be willing to help with any of the many tasks, such as staffing an aid station, directing cars toward parking options, helping with registration, giving out awards, marking the course ahead of time, directing racers at tricky intersections, or taking down the course afterwards. Go to Run Sign Up page under the drop down menu, “More” then “Volunteer” to see what areas still need helpers.

There has been a growing interest in walking/fast hiking these courses. The 5k is the best fit for walkers as it takes about 60-90 minutes to walk. However, for the 10k and Half Marathon courses, walkers’ and fast hikers’ finish time will likely extend beyond the noon clean up time for this event. If you are interested in walking/fast hiking the longer courses, please let the Race Director (brian@runflathead.com) know and we will make arrangements for an early start on the day of the event.