Play
Prospect Meadows on the far side of Marion is a new complex that accommodates baseball games and tournaments. On the southwest side of Cedar Rapids is the Tait Cummins Sports Complex as well. At either location, you are likely to see local teams and those who have traveled from out of town battling for bragging rights.
Soccer is big in the Cedar Rapids area, and you’ll usually find a game, or a dozen, at the TUMA Soccer Complex on the north side of Marion. Always a buzz with activity, people joke it’s also always ten to 20 degrees cooler than anywhere else in town so come prepared.
If you’re a runner, then you’ll be happy to hear that Cedar Rapids and the surrounding area are home to a variety of road races throughout the year, including the NewBo half marathon, the hugely popular Especially For You Race Against Breast Cancer, and a race that ends with a bowl of Captain Crunch cereal.
If you’d rather take a hike, check out the Cedar Valley Nature Trail or the Sac and Fox Trail that meanders along Indian Creek or for a steeper incline find your way to the top of Mount Trashmore. If you love to skateboard, or find it fascinating to watch others flip their tricks, stop by Riverside Skate Park just on the west side of the Cedar River. Speaking of, there are several great spots to fish along the Cedar River—check out Ellis Park and Mohawk Park—as well as at the Prairie Park Fishery where you might just reel in a whopper.
Cedar Rapids and Marion are also home to several golf courses, including Twin Pines Golf Course, Hunters Ridge Golf Course, and Airport National Golf Course, where you can hit the links and get in a few holes during warmer weather months. If you are looking for an indoor activity, check out one of several bowling alleys in Cedar Rapids, including May City Bowling, Cedar Rapids Bowling Center, SpareTime Entertainment and Cedar Creek Lanes.
Practice
When the temperatures drop and you don’t want to spend all your time snowshoeing or cross-country skiing in one of the city of county parks, head to one of several indoor spots that will help you get some practice and have some fun while you are doing it.
Then, when the weather warms up, grab your bike, and check out the many miles of trails crisscrossing around town and connecting Cedar Rapids to several surrounding small towns.
If you are a baseball or softball enthusiast, check out D-Bat in Marion. A relatively new indoor batting facility that is open to the public, this state-of-the-art facility can keep your swing in tip top shape when it’s too chilly to be out on the field. Gameon Sports CR also has options for practicing and playing baseball and volleyball.
If you are looking for other indoor entertainment options with a sporty twist, both AirFX and Skyzone offer indoor trampolines parks and obstacle courses when you and the kids need to burn off energy. The Fun Station is another indoor playground and arcade that is also a big hit with the kids.
Watch
One of the most popular sporting events in the Cedar Rapids area is taking in a game at Veterans Memorial Stadium to watch the Cedar Rapids Kernels, a High-A affiliate of the Minnesota Twins.
Just across the parking lot, and another season away, you can pop into ImOn Ice Area, aka The Stable, to watch the RoughRiders hockey team. Within the building, there’s also a public rink where you can do some ice skating of your own (year-round) or watch the Cedar Rapids Curling Club.
At Hawkeye Downs Speedway you can watch high speed races—including stock car and street drag—on Friday nights throughout the summer for some fast family fun.
If you’re into a different kind of lap around the track, stop by the Iowa Equestrian Center at Kirkwood Community College where you can check out some fifty different shows—on both the indoor and outdoor arenas—throughout the year.
With Cedar Rapids being home to several colleges and universities—including Coe College, Kirkwood Community College, and Mount Mercy University—you can also find a variety of sporting events, from NJCAA volleyball games to NAIA cross country meets in Seminole Valley Park, to NCAA Division III baseball games, for each of those schools and spectators are always welcome.
Written by Katie Giorgio
