My marathons

Hastings Half Marathon

Hastings
Hastings Pier
Hastings Pier. Photograph by Phil Sellens from East Sussex, CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons

The course

The race director's message in the 2026 programme names the Queensway hill and the head wind along the seafront promenade as the hard parts, with the finish on a straight beside the sea.

The course in short 3 lines
  • The Queensway hill and the seafront headwindQueensway hill, then a head wind on the seafront promenade to the finish.
  • Sea Road start and the morning's road closures2026: start 10:30 on Sea Road; closures 10:00 to 13:00 along the A259 and Queensway.
  • Course records to beat: 1:01:37 and 1:11:132026: course records of 1:01:37 for men and 1:11:13 for women.
Course notes 3 short reads on the course
Whole courseGradientThe Queensway hill and the seafront headwindQueensway hill, then a head wind on the seafront promenade to the finish.

A guest message in the same programme remembers the seemingly never-ending hills and the crowd on the seafront home straight. The race started in 1985 and is run by the Hastings Lions Club.

Sourced

Whole courseConditionsSea Road start and the morning's road closures2026: start 10:30 on Sea Road; closures 10:00 to 13:00 along the A259 and Queensway.

The organiser listed Sea Road, West Hill Road, Harley Shute, Queensway, The Ridge, Rye Road, Fairlight Road and All Saints Street among the affected roads, with access to Hastings and the Conquest Hospital by the A21.

Sourced

Whole courseFinishCourse records to beat: 1:01:37 and 1:11:132026: course records of 1:01:37 for men and 1:11:13 for women.

A large map of the course stood in the race village in 2026, and every finisher received a banana at the line.

Sourced

Race fuel

Energy gel
An energy gel sachet
Illustration · drag to turn

2 gels for Hastings, plus 1 spare

Finish

One every 40 minutes, by the clock:

  1. km 7.3mile 4.6
  2. km 14.7mile 9.1

Our pick: SiS BETA Fuel gel, box of 6, strawberry and lime. 40 g of carbohydrate a gel, about twice a usual gel, from two kinds of sugar your body takes up side by side.

Easy to forget on race morning: pack them with your bib the night before.

Get it on Amazon

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In Canada the button opens GU Energy Gel, Salted Caramel, 24-pack, the best seller there.

Outside the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Austria and Switzerland, the UK and Ireland, Spain and Portugal, Italy, the rest of the EU and Canada the button opens GU Energy Gel, Chocolate Outrage, 24-pack on Amazon.com, the best seller there.

Anti-chafe
Compeed Anti-blister stick
Photo: Compeed

Compeed

Compeed anti-blister stick, 8 ml

Best selling on Amazon amazon.nl, read 2 Nov

An invisible layer before the start keeps seams, straps and shoes from rubbing skin raw.

Put it on before you leave for the start: heels and toes, inner thighs, under a bra or heart-rate strap.

Try it on a long run first, like everything you use on race day.

Get it on Amazon

We earn a small fee if you buy through these links. The price is the same.

Number belt
A race number belt
Illustration · drag to turn

Compressport Race Belt

Holds your bib without safety pins through your top, with loops for up to 8 gels.

Clip the bib on the night before, so it goes on with your shorts in the morning.

Keep the number on the front, where officials and photographers can see it.

Get it on Amazon

We earn a small fee if you buy through these links. The price is the same.

Electrolytes
A tube of electrolyte tablets
Illustration · drag to turn

SiS Hydro electrolyte tablets, tube of 20

One tablet in a bottle puts back some of the salt you sweat out.

One tablet in 500 ml of water in the hour before the start.

Only if you have used them in training: nothing new on race day.

Get it on Amazon

We earn a small fee if you buy through these links. The price is the same.

Blister plasters
Compeed Blister plasters, medium, 6
Photo: Compeed

Compeed

Compeed blister plasters, medium, 6

Best selling on Amazon amazon.nl, read 2 Nov

One in a pocket cushions a blister if one starts.

Put it on clean, dry skin and leave it until it comes off by itself.

Give a couple to whoever comes to cheer, so they are there at the km you need them.

Get it on Amazon

We earn a small fee if you buy through these links. The price is the same.
distance
21.1 km13.1 mi

Trip

Getting a place

Entry through the organiser

Entry details on the organiser’s site →

The organiser, a third party. We take no entries and have no part in the race.

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