GrindFest Progression Run
About this race
Since 2013, runners from across the Midwest have gathered to celebrate the end of the year with a one-of-a-kind event: an indoor, last-person-standing progression run!
Hosted on the Pettit National Ice Center's 443m track, runners speed up every 3 laps (0.84 miles), until they can't go any faster. With two options for when to start progressing (~6:30 or ~6:10), runners keep running as long as they can hang with the ever increasing pace. When it's down to the final pack, The Bell will be rung and a 3 lap first-to-the-finish race to determine the top places is on.
GrindFest promises to be a blast for all, from runners to spectators, with prizes for the most creative and fastest teams, the athletes who run furthest in an ugly sweater, a prediction contest, and of course, the coveted Mom of the Year award.
Check out our website for more information.
Pick your distance
Running
Wave 1: Open/Community Wave (~6:55 starting pace)
Runners in Wave 1 will run 9 laps (starting at 6:54-58 pace) before being joined by Wave 2 runners (~6:35 pace). From there, all athletes will run together until they fall off the pace or opt to end their race. Wave 3 will join 9 laps later (~6:05 pace)
Wave 2: Women's Championship Wave (~6:35 starting pace)
Runners in Wave 2 will join Wave 1 after they have run 9 laps (approximately 15 minutes); both waves will then run together for the next 9 laps (starting at 6:30-6:34 pace) before being joined by Wave 3 runners. From there, all athletes will run together until they fall off the pace or opt to end their race.
Wave 3: Men's Championship Wave (~6:05 starting pace)
Wave 3 runners will join the Wave 2 pack at the conclusion of Wave 2's 9th lap (approximately 15 minutes after Wave 2 starts, ~30 minutes after Wave 1 begins). From there, all athletes will run together until they fall off the pace or opt to end their race.
Typical race-day weather
Based on 4 years of Open-Meteo archive data for this event's race dates in Milwaukee, plus the 3 days either side.
The sun rises at 7:21 AM and sets at 4:22 PM local time (CST) in Milwaukee on December 26, 2026 — 9h 00m of daylight.
Course
No course map published yet.
The organizer hasn't released a route for this event, and we don't publish guesses. If you're the organizer, send us a GPX file and we'll draw the profile.
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🏃 Plan Your Next Race in Milwaukee
Find upcoming events by distance:
- Milwaukee 5K Races 54 races
- 10K Run Events in Milwaukee 18 races
- Milwaukee Half Marathons 13 races
- Marathons in Milwaukee 2 races
- Milwaukee Running Calendar 2026 64 races
Where this page comes from. Race details were last updated on . We re-check listings regularly and again in the week before race day.
- Entries, prices, waves and inclusions — the event's official registration page
- Temperature and humidity — Copernicus ERA5 reanalysis via Open-Meteo (CC BY 4.0)
- Elevation and terrain relief — Copernicus DEM GLO-90, ESA (CC BY 4.0)
- Comparisons and counts — Race Discovery calendar, 68 Milwaukee events
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