Over the last 11 years, the Country Music Marathon & ½ Marathon has established itself as a Nashville institution, now bringing more than 30,000 runners to a city long known for its musical genius.

It has also been 11 years since Nashville legends Montgomery Gentry took to the national stage as one of country music’s biggest acts.
 
The two will collide on Saturday, April 30th as Montgomery Gentry rocks the post-race concert at the 12th annual Country Music Marathon & ½ Marathon presented by Nissan, continuing a strong tradition of great country music and the biggest running event in Tennessee.
 
Based nearby in Franklin, Nissan will debut as the presenting sponsor and official vehicle of the Country Music Marathon & ½ Marathon. The company has previously served as official automotive sponsor. Truly displaying their presence as a local company and their commitment to the race, more than 400 Nissan employees will lace up their running shoes and experience all 26.2 or 13.1 miles of race day for themselves.
 
“It’s been remarkable to see our hundreds of employees here at Nissan train together as one team and truly get involved in this great local event,” said Jon Brancheau, vice president, Marketing, Nissan Division. “We see a great opportunity to encourage our employees to take care of their health, support our local community, while also finding new avenues of direct contact with such a diverse and desirable customer demographic.”

Montgomery Gentry is one of the most celebrated success stories in Nashville, with gold and platinum albums, CMA and ACM awards, a Grammy nomination and highly successful tours. They have hit the top of the singles charts five times, with "If You Ever Stop Loving Me," "Something To Be Proud Of", "Lucky Man", “Back When I Knew It All” and “Roll With Me.” But through it all, the duo has remained closely tied to their roots with an abiding respect for the people and genre of country music.
 
“You can’t have anything but the best when you put on a show in Nashville,” said Adam Zocks, General Manager of the event. “Montgomery Gentry is the gold standard of true country music and we’re certainly proud to give our runners such an amazing concert after all their hard work on race day.”
 
The 12th annual Country Music Marathon & ½ Marathon presented by Nissan takes place Saturday, April 30th, with great local bands on 28 stages and enthusiastic cheerleaders lining nearly every mile of the course, keeping runners motivated to the finish line. Montgomery Gentry will rock the stage at Bridgestone Arena later that evening.  Country rock group, Her and King’s County, will open the show.  For more information about Montgomery Gentry visit www.MontgomeryGentry.com.
 
Race weekend will kick-off with the Health & Fitness Expo on Thursday, April 28th and Friday, April 29th at the Nashville Convention Center, offering the best in nutrition, running gear, interactive expert clinics and more.  More than 4,000 kids will participate in event weekend through ING KiDS ROCK Nashville.
 
For more information or to register for the event, visit Competitor.com.
 
About the Country Music Marathon
A Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon Series event, on Saturday, April 30, 2011, the Country Music Marathon & ½ Marathon will celebrate its 12th annual running in the Music City.

Featuring many of Nashville’s best live bands on 28 stages along the 26.2 and 13.1-mile courses, the musically themed road annually attracts 35,000 runners, walkers and junior racers.  Race weekend kicks off with a two-day Health & Fitness Expo on Thursday, April 28 and includes the ING KiDS ROCK Nashville and a post-race concert Saturday night at the Bridgestone Arena headlined by Montgomery Gentry. 

The Nashville Convention Center is home to the free Health & Fitness Expo which is open to the public as all race participants pick up their race number, browse through fitness related products, enjoy free samples and interactive clinics.

For more information, please visit Competitor.com or follow us on Twitter @runrocknroll.