Set for its 9th annual running this year along the shoreline of the Gulf of Mexico between Pass Christian and Biloxi, the Mississippi Gulf Coast Marathon and Half Marathon feature a fast and flat course for nearly the entire race and plentiful views of the ocean throughout, as well as gorgeous historic homes.
More than 2,500 runners crossed the finish line in all three races combined last year, including more than 1,400 finishers in the half marathon alone, for a course that begins in Pass Christian (for the full marathon) and reaches its mid-way point in Gulfport (where the half marathon begins) and runs all the way to the finish line in Biloxi at MGM Park, the home of the AA-level minor league baseball team the Biloxi Shuckers.
In between the starting line and the finish line, the half marathon traverses the same route as the full marathon — a Boston qualifier and USATF-certified course, by the way — as it runs for 10 miles all along the Gulf Coast shoreline, whose white sand beaches are some of the most popular anywhere in the country.
You’ll get to take in the salt air and the sun rising over the water (the race starts just after sunrise this time of year) as well as plentiful trees and gardens just off the beach along the route, as well as the city streets of Biloxi by the time you reach the final few miles of the race.
