Next Sunday, Dec. 8, is the Dallas Marathon, and the DMN had great coverage of the new course in yesterday’s Sports section. One story details why and how the course was redesigned this year, and then a full page was devoted to a map of the course and a breakdown of highlights on the route.

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The race heads into our neighborhood on McCommas between miles 9 and 10, and the story highlights the “neighborhood charm” of the M Streets and then Ellsworth Avenue, as well as the Highland Park streets immediately prior on the course. Hillside Village and Lakewood Village are mentioned as the course heads northeast on Mockingbird (a big change; this leg of the race used to go through Lakewood toward White Rock Lake), and Fuzzy’s receives a special shout out for being a runner hangout.

Of course White Rock Lake is a highlight — roughly five of the course’s 26.2 miles wrap around the east side of the lake — and the subsequent “Dolly Parton hills” in Lakewood. Except that Lakewood itself is not mentioned. Instead the guide moves straight from Parton impersonators to Swiss Avenue, noting that the historic avenue “showcases one of Dallas’ best preserved early 20th century neighborhoods” and that “roof damage is still rampant from last June’s hail storm.”

Hmm. That’s odd. Maybe Lakewood was cut from the story? Or maybe it’s just not important enough to include? This is my first year to live close to the route, and though we have done our share of grousing about street closures and such, my impression from neighbors is that the marathon is a big deal for Lakewood in a good way — front porch cheering parties, bands playing in yards, kids passing out Gatorade, the whole shabang. From a runner’s perspective, though, perhaps that’s not as much of a highlight as the Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge or Klyde Warren Park, which are both along this year’s marathon course. I’m sure the Perot Museum of Nature and Science will be on next year’s route. (Did you hear that it opened last weekend?)

One of the significant changes that may mean less grousing this year is the Mockingbird addition, which, as a commenter noted when we wrote about the course change, “by routing it along Mockingbird, people can get in and out of the ‘loop’ via Santa Barbara/Fisher.”