Monumental Marathon 2026 fueling guide: aid stations, Neversecond gels, Gatorade, and a plan for your pace

The Monumental Marathon starts at 8:00 a.m. on Saturday, November 7, 2026, and gives you water at every aid station, Gatorade Thirst Quencher at every other one, and Neversecond energy gels near miles 10.5, 15.5, and 22. That is more fuel than many big marathons offer. But three gels add up to about 90 g of carbohydrate over the whole race, so most of your carbohydrate still has to come with you from Maryland Street. This guide shows what the organizer has published, when you will reach each station at your pace, and three plans to choose from.

The organizer calls Monumental a fast and flat course. It runs from downtown Indianapolis north along Fall Creek and up Washington Boulevard to Broad Ripple at halfway, then back south past Butler University, along the White River, and down Meridian Street to the finish. Early November mornings in Indianapolis are cold, so the start is usually cool and fueling is about carbohydrate more than heat. A 2:55 racer and a 6:30 run-walker pass the same stations but reach them at very different times. Aid station details can change, so check the official FAQ and course map again in race week.

Monumental Marathon 2026: the confirmed race facts

The 10:25 a.m. split cut-off gives you a bit more than two hours from the 8:00 gun to cover about 7.5 miles, so it is not tight for anyone who can hold the 16:00 per mile minimum. The pressure comes later. Runners who keep going after the course closes may lose full course support and may be asked to leave the street. If you expect to finish near seven hours, the fuel you carry matters more than for anyone else in the field.

What is on the Monumental Marathon course

The table lists every marathon aid station on the official course map, with the letter the map uses. The organizer gives exact miles only for the gel stops. The other positions are read from the map and rounded, so treat them as close, not exact. Gatorade means Gatorade Thirst Quencher, which the map marks as electrolytes.

Gatorade Thirst Quencher has 36 g of carbohydrate and 270 mg of sodium per 20 oz (591 ml) bottle, about 6 g of carbohydrate per 100 ml. If you get about 150 ml from a cup and it is mixed to bottle strength, that is roughly 9 g of carbohydrate and 70 mg of sodium. Ten Gatorade stations on the course could add up to 50 to 90 g over the race, but at race pace you will spill some. Count it as a useful top-up, not as your main fuel.

Neversecond is the official energy gel. The race does not say which gel or flavors will be on course. Neversecond’s C30 gel has 30 g of carbohydrate in a 2:1 maltodextrin to fructose mix, 200 mg of sodium, and no caffeine. The C30+ has the same carbohydrate plus 75 mg of caffeine, and the brand says not to take more than one caffeinated gel per hour. If you have trained with Neversecond, the three course gels save you three packets. If you have not, buy a few now and try them on a long run, or ignore them and carry your own.

When you will reach each station at your pace

The table shows elapsed time from your start mat at key stations for an even pace. A 3:00 runner reaches the first course gel at 1:12, when three or four carried gels should already be gone. A 5:00 runner reaches it at 2:00. A 6:00 runner reaches the mile 22 station at about 5:02, when the sun is up and the day is near its warmest.

Pick your plan: three runner profiles

World Athletics’ consensus statement gives 30 to 60 g of carbohydrate per hour as the common marathon range and suggests trained runners try up to 90 g per hour for events over two and a half hours. Research on multiple transportable carbohydrates shows that intakes above 60 g per hour are only absorbed well when the product mixes glucose and fructose and the gut has been trained for it. So instead of one number for everyone, here are three honest profiles. With 25 g gels, one every 30 minutes gives 50 g per hour, every 25 minutes gives 60 g, and every 20 minutes gives 75 g.

Racing it: your problem is volume and timing. At 75 g per hour, a 3:00 race needs about 225 g. Six carried 25 g gels give 150 g, and the three course gels add 90 g, for 240 g, or 80 g per hour. Gatorade can lift you toward 90. The first course gel is not until mile 10.5, so carry enough to fuel the first 70 minutes on your own. Build your number over long runs, starting at 60 g and adding 10 to 15 g every second week while your stomach stays quiet. Take the first gel about 20 minutes in and the last one around mile 23.

Steady marathon: think in grams. A 4:00 race at 60 g per hour is 240 g. The three course gels give 90 g. Gatorade at six of the ten Gatorade stations gives maybe 40 to 55 g. That leaves about 100 g, or four carried 25 g gels. Use them where the course gels are far apart: one around mile 4.5, one around mile 8.5, one near halfway, and one around mile 19. Write the grams next to each item and total each hour.

Long day: six or seven hours on the course changes the math. Fifty grams per hour over six hours is 300 g. The three course gels and a cup of Gatorade at every Gatorade station could cover about 180 g, so you still need at least five carried gels, plus one spare. Small, frequent doses work best: a gel every 30 minutes, or half a gel every 15, with banana pieces when a gel feels like too much. Eating on schedule in the first two hours is what keeps you moving on the White River stretch after mile 19.

Caffeine, sodium, and the banana stops

• Caffeine: the ISSN position stand supports 3 to 6 mg per kg taken about 60 minutes before exercise. A 70 kg runner is at 210 mg with 3 mg per kg. A Neversecond C30+ has 75 mg, but the race has not said whether the course gels contain caffeine, so bring any caffeinated gel you plan to use.
• Sodium: each Neversecond C30 gel has 200 mg, and a cup of Gatorade roughly 70 mg. In cool weather that is often enough. Salty sweaters on a warm day may still need a tested salt product, roughly 300 to 600 mg per hour in total.
• Bananas at about mile 17.8 and mile 22: easy carbohydrate if you have eaten fruit on the run before. A few pieces are enough; a whole banana is a lot to chew at pace.
• Gatorade is a real carbohydrate drink. If you take it at every Gatorade station and also take a gel at each of those stations, you may get more sugar at once than your gut is used to.
• Tear the top of your gel before the station, so you can drink with the same hand.

Hydration for a cool November morning in Indianapolis

In early November, Indianapolis averages a daily high in the mid to upper 50s °F (about 13 to 15 °C) and a low near 40 °F (4 °C). The chance of a wet day is about 26 percent, there are almost no muggy days, and the average wind is near 10 mph. Daylight saving time ends on November 1, so sunrise on race day is a little after 7:15 a.m. and the 8:00 gun goes off in cold early light. A 3:00 runner finishes before 11:15 in cool air; a 6:30 runner finishes after 2:30 p.m., often in mild sun. World Athletics warns against drinking more than you sweat; finishing heavier than you started is a sign of overdrinking.

• Test your sweat rate on one cool long run before race week.
• Pick your priority stations now. There is a station roughly every 1 to 1.5 miles, so you can skip some.
• If you want Gatorade on race day, drink it on your last long runs too.
• Throwaway layers help at the start; the organizer collects clothes left at the start line and on the course and donates them to charity.
• Seek help at a medical tent for confusion, severe headache, repeated vomiting, or collapse, whatever the clock says. Every aid station has medical support.

Breakfast for an 8:00 start

A familiar carbohydrate-rich meal one to four hours before racing is the standard framework in the World Athletics consensus. Gear check opens at 6:30 a.m. at Washington Street and West Street, and the corrals line up on Maryland Street and the streets north of it by wave. Many downtown hotels are a short walk from the start. So most runners can eat at about 5:00 to 5:30, walk to gear check around 6:45, and still be in their wave well before 8:00.

• Two and a half to three hours before the start: a practised meal such as a bagel or oatmeal with honey, a banana, and a familiar drink, about 1 to 2 g of carbohydrate per kg.
• Sixty to ninety minutes before: a small low-fibre top-up, eaten before you drop your clear bag at gear check.
• Ten to fifteen minutes before your wave: an optional gel, only if used in training.
• Keep caffeine at the dose and timing you know; race morning is not the day to double it.
• Later waves cross the start after 8:00. Time your last gel before the start from your own wave, not from the gun.

Course tactics: where Monumental tempts you

• Miles 0 to 3: a downtown loop south past Lucas Oil Stadium on Missouri Street, east on McCarty Street, then north to Monument Circle. Flat streets and big crowds pull you fast. Take your first carried gel about 20 to 30 minutes in, around Station E at mile 4.5 for most runners.
• Miles 3 to 7.5: up Massachusetts Avenue, along 10th Street, then north on Pennsylvania Street to Fall Creek. The half marathon splits off between miles 7 and 8, just after Station G. The field thins out here, so settle into your own rhythm.
• Miles 7.5 to 13.1: northeast along Fall Creek Parkway past the State Fairgrounds, west on 38th Street, and north on Washington Boulevard to Broad Ripple. The first course gel is at mile 10.5. Steady runners should have three or four gels in by halfway.
• Miles 13.1 to 19: through Broad Ripple, past Holliday Park, and south on Meridian Street past the Governor’s Residence and Butler University to Newfields. The second course gel is at mile 15.5 and bananas at about 17.8. This is where an even pace pays off.
• Miles 19 to 22: south along White River Parkway past the Heslar Naval Armory just after mile 20, then east on Burdsal Parkway to the big station at mile 22 with gels, Gatorade, and bananas. Plan exactly what you take there before race day.
• Miles 22 to 26.2: Fall Creek Boulevard, then south on Meridian Street back downtown to the finish. Your last carbohydrate should be in by about mile 23.5. After that, Gatorade at about mile 24.9 is enough.

The long-run rehearsal that makes the plan real

With three weeks to go, you have room for one full rehearsal before the taper. Start at 8:00, eat the same breakfast at the same time, wear the same layers, carry the same products, and fuel at the same clock times. If you plan to use Neversecond gels or Gatorade from the course, test them here. Racers can run part of it at goal pace; the long-day group should practise eating on a run-walk rhythm for the full planned time on feet.

The rehearsal is also where you simplify. If carrying seven gels is awkward, lean on the three course gels and take Gatorade more often. If a gel every 20 minutes feels stressful, link your gels to the stations instead: a station every 1 to 1.5 miles means one every 10 to 20 minutes for most runners, so a gel at every second or third station works. The best plan is the one you can still follow at mile 22.

Race-week Monumental checklist

• Recheck the official FAQ and course map for gel miles, Gatorade stations, and any changes.
• Pick up your packet and clear gear bag at the Monumental Health and Fitness Expo at the Indiana Convention Center, Halls A and B, on Thursday, November 5 (4 to 7 p.m.) or Friday, November 6 (11 a.m. to 8 p.m.).
• Check your wave on your bib. You can move to a slower wave, not a faster one, at the Wave Change Station at the expo.
• Lay out every carried item, add one backup, and write grams and timing on one card.
• Note the 10:25 a.m. split cut-off and the 3:30 p.m. finish closing if you expect to be out for six hours or more.
• Check the forecast 48 hours out and adjust layers, fluid, and sodium, not the whole plan.
• Do not buy an unfamiliar gel at the expo because the flavor sounds good.

Frequently asked questions

Sources and update notes

1. 1Frequently Asked Questions 2026CNO Financial Indianapolis Monumental Marathon (Beyond Monumental)Accessed October 17, 2026; wave starts, 7-hour limit, 16:00 per mile, 10:25 a.m. split cut-off, 3:30 p.m. finish closing, water, Gatorade, Neversecond gel miles, hydration packs, expo, start and finish on Maryland Street
2. 2Official Course Map (PDF)CNO Financial Indianapolis Monumental Marathon (Beyond Monumental)Accessed October 17, 2026; route, mile markers, lettered aid stations with water, electrolytes, Neversecond gels, bananas; station miles read from the map and rounded
3. 3Race Weekend ScheduleCNO Financial Indianapolis Monumental Marathon (Beyond Monumental)November 7, 2026, 8:00 a.m. start, 5K at 8:40, gear check from 6:30 a.m., expo hours
4. 4Rules and PoliciesCNO Financial Indianapolis Monumental Marathon (Beyond Monumental)21 aid stations including start and finish, medical support, course closure rules
5. 5CNO Financial Indianapolis Monumental MarathonCNO Financial Indianapolis Monumental Marathon (Beyond Monumental)Date, 8:00 a.m. start, course description, Heslar Naval Armory after mile 20
6. 6C30 Energy GelNeversecond30 g carbohydrate, 2:1 maltodextrin to fructose, 200 mg sodium, no caffeine
7. 7C30+ Caffeine GelNeversecond30 g carbohydrate, 75 mg caffeine, no more than one caffeinated gel per hour
8. 8Gatorade Thirst Quencher Lemon-Lime, 20 oz (label)Hannaford (retailer listing of the manufacturer label)36 g carbohydrate and 270 mg sodium per 20 oz bottle
9. 9International Association of Athletics Federations Consensus Statement 2019: Nutrition for AthleticsInternational Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism (Burke et al., 2019)Carbohydrate ranges, pre-race meal, and hydration guidance
10. 10Contemporary Nutrition Strategies to Optimize Performance in Distance Runners and Race WalkersInternational Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism (Burke et al., 2019)Marathon carbohydrate intake during racing, including up to 90 g per hour for trained runners
11. 11A Step Towards Personalized Sports Nutrition: Carbohydrate Intake During ExerciseSports Medicine (Jeukendrup, 2014)Multiple transportable carbohydrates and intakes above 60 g per hour
12. 12International Society of Sports Nutrition Position Stand: Caffeine and Exercise PerformanceJISSN (Guest et al., 2021)3 to 6 mg per kg dosing guidance
13. 13November Weather in IndianapolisWeather SparkEarly November temperature, wet-day, humidity, wind, and sunrise averages