Run through the night. Fund a future.
Timed 6, 12 and 24 hour races and the Midnight Marathon on a paved loop around Normandale Lake. Fast or slow, everyone starts and finishes together, and every mile supports FANS scholars.
Registration for 2027 is openFirst start Saturday, June 5 at 8:00 AM
Your race, your pace.
FANS races are timed, not measured: choose how long you'll be on the course and see how far you go. Run divisions can run, walk or mix the two; walk divisions walk the whole way. Every full lap counts.
24 Hour
The classic FANS challenge. Sunrise to sunrise, through the summer night.
12 Hour
A full day on the course, finishing as the sun goes down.
6 Hour
A great first ultra, or a fast morning for seasoned runners.
Midnight Marathon
26.2 miles under the stars: the coolest June marathon in Minnesota.
One lake. One loop. As many laps as you've got.
A friendly first ultra and a serious test for veterans, with help a few minutes away all day and night.
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Choose your time
Pick 6, 12 or 24 hours, or the Midnight Marathon. Fundraisers can enter for $0.
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Loop the lake
The almost 2-mile paved loop around Normandale Lake passes the aid stations, chip timing and our lap counters every time around. In the last hour you can switch to a short loop to squeeze in every bit of distance.
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Go at your pace
Runners can mix running and walking; walkers walk the whole way. Take a break when you need one, and let your lap counter know if it will be a long one. When time runs out, everyone in your race finishes together.
Every lap is a scholarship.
Furthering Achievement through a Network of Support
FANS is a college and career mentorship program at Pillsbury United Communities. For more than 30 years it has paired tutoring with personal mentoring for Minneapolis high school students, many of them students of color, recent immigrants and the first in their families to go to college. Graduates earn scholarships for their continuing education, funded entirely by gifts to the FANS program.
“When I first started, I wasn't really sure about college or what college was, but this program has helped me figure out why I need to go.”
There's a place for you at the lake.
You don't have to run a step to make FANS happen.
Fundraise
Register for $0, get your own fundraising page and race for a goal of $500 or more. Top fundraisers earn awards.
Volunteer
Count laps, staff an aid station, patrol the course or play music. No experience needed, and you'll get a t-shirt and food.
Donate
Back a racer's fundraising page or give directly to the FANS Scholarship Fund. You'll get a receipt for tax purposes.
Sponsor
Put your brand in front of a dedicated running community and help first-generation students reach college.
A 100-mile idea that became a tradition.
Bob Frawley was an ultrarunner who worked with Minneapolis students. He saw two needs: a well-supported ultra close to home, and scholarships for the kids he mentored. So he ran 100 miles and turned it into a fundraiser.
- 1988
Bob starts the FANS program at Pillsbury United Communities.
- 1989
He runs 100 miles around Lake Harriet to raise scholarship money.
- 1990
The first FANS 24 hour race, on the last Saturday in June.
- Today
Racers, volunteers and donors keep it going, with lifetime mileage clubs from 500 to 3,000+ miles.
Scenes from the lake
See you at the lake.
June 5–6, 2027 at Normandale Lake Park, Bloomington, MN.
