Major Unexpected Last-Minute Change For Participants Of Minnesota’s Grandma’s Marathon

The organizers of Grandma's Marathon are alerting participants of this year's event to a significant change in modes of transportation to the starting line for this year's race.

Over the years, participants have had a few different options to get to the starting line of the race. One of them is riding the train of the North Shore Scenic Railroad from Duluth up the North Shore to the starting point of the race.

This year, a late change of plans is being forced due to some technical issues.

In a social media post on Wednesday afternoon, Grandma's Marathon shared that the combination of some mechanical issues and the unavailability of replacement cars is making the option of riding the train to the starting line unavailable.

The long-running tradition of having the train available is one of the special elements of Grandma's Marathon that gives it a unique Northland touch.

READ MORE: The latest information to know about this year's Grandma's Marathon

While the train will not be an option for 2025, Grandma's Marathon says they look forward to the return of this option in the future.

What do you do if you planned on riding the train for Grandma's Marathon?

Organizers say that any participant who planned on riding the train should now make plans to use one of the provided buses to the start line instead.

There are a few different bus loading sites. One of them is at the DECC, which is also where the train would normally board. There are also several others.

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Here are all of the available bus loading locations to get to the start line for either Grandma's Marathon or the Garry Bjorklund Half Marathon:

• DECC: 350 Harbor Drive, Duluth, MN 55802
• UMD Kirby Student Center: 1120 Kirby Drive, Duluth, MN 55812
• Miller Hill Mall: 1600 Miller Trunk Highway, Duluth, MN 55811
• Duluth East High School: 301 N. 40th Avenue East, Duluth, MN 55804
• Proctor Sports & Event Center: 704 Kirkus Street, Proctor, MN 55810
• UWS Wessman Arena: 2701 Catlin Avenue, Superior, WI 54880
• Two Harbors High School: 1640 County Highway 2, Two Harbors, MN 55616

You can get more information about all of these bus options, including pick-up times and other details, on the Grandma's Marathon transportation page.