My marathons

Yuengling Shamrock Marathon Weekend

March, day not yet published Virginia Beach
Virginia Beach
Virginia Beach. Photograph by SchuminWeb, CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons

The course

The organiser describes the marathon as a run north from the resort area along Shore Drive past First Landing State Park, south across Rudee Inlet to a turnaround, and back north to a finish on the Virginia Beach Boardwalk.

The course in short 3 lines
  • North on Shore Drive, south over Rudee Inlet, finish on the BoardwalkNorth on Shore Drive, south over Rudee Inlet, finish on the Boardwalk.
  • A 7:30 start, a 7.5-hour limit and a Boston qualifier7:30 AM start, 7.5-hour limit, a 2028 Boston qualifier.
  • Water about every 1.5 miles, gels at miles 5.5 and 19Water about every 1.5 miles; GU gel at mile 5.5 and 19.
Course notes 3 short reads on the course
Whole courseGeometryNorth on Shore Drive, south over Rudee Inlet, finish on the BoardwalkNorth on Shore Drive, south over Rudee Inlet, finish on the Boardwalk.

The marathon starts at 42nd Street and Atlantic Avenue and heads north from the resort area through neighbourhoods, then along tree-lined Shore Drive beside First Landing State Park before turning south into the resort area. It crosses Rudee Inlet and runs on through residential streets to the southern turnaround, where the organiser promises surprise entertainment, then returns north.

The finish is on the Virginia Beach Boardwalk, just past the King Neptune statue, with the Atlantic behind it. The organiser calls the course flat and fast.

Sourced

Whole courseConditionsA 7:30 start, a 7.5-hour limit and a Boston qualifier7:30 AM start, 7.5-hour limit, a 2028 Boston qualifier.

The 2027 marathon is on Sunday 21 March at 7:30 AM, together with the half marathon, at 42nd Street and Atlantic Avenue. The organiser’s course time limit is 7 hours 30 minutes, a 17:09 mile pace, and the minimum age is 16. Corrals 1 and 2 need time verification.

The course is certified (VA22041RT), the event is USATF sanctioned, and the 2027 race counts as a qualifier for the 2028 Boston Marathon.

Sourced

Whole courseConditionsWater about every 1.5 miles, gels at miles 5.5 and 19Water about every 1.5 miles; GU gel at mile 5.5 and 19.

The organiser lists water stops roughly every 1.5 miles, each with Gatorade Endurance Formula in Lemon-Lime. GU Energy Gel is handed out at mile 5.5 and again at mile 19. Portable toilets stand at the start and finish and beside every water stop, and pace groups run on race day.

Sourced

Race fuel

Energy gel
An energy gel sachet
Illustration · drag to turn

5 gels for Virginia Beach, plus 1 spare

Finish

One every 40 minutes, by the clock:

  1. km 7mile 4.4
  2. km 14.1mile 8.7
  3. km 21.1mile 13.1
  4. km 28.1mile 17.5
  5. km 35.2mile 21.8

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

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

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
42.2 km26.2 mi
cut-off
7:30 h

Race week

Timetable

Friday 19 March Expo

  1. 11:0011:00 AM–19:007:00 PM

    Shamrock Sports & Fitness Expo Virginia Beach Convention Center

Saturday 20 March Expo

  1. 12:0012:00 PM–17:005:00 PM

    Shamrock Sports & Fitness Expo Virginia Beach Convention Center
Other races and side events (3)

  1. 07:307:30 AM

    8K start 30th Street and Pacific Avenue

  2. 10:3010:30 AM

    Leprechaun Dash start 31st Street on the Boardwalk

  3. 11:0011:00 AM

    Final Mile start 31st Street and Atlantic Avenue

Sunday 21 March Race day

  1. 07:307:30 AM

    Marathon and half marathon start 42nd Street and Atlantic Avenue. The marathon page gives the same 7:30 AM start at 42nd Street and Atlantic Avenue.

  2. 08:308:30 AM–16:004:00 PM

    Post race celebration On the beach at 28th Street

  3. Time not published

    Marathon time limit The organiser's marathon page gives a course time limit of 7 hours 30 minutes, a 17:09 mile pace. 7:30 limit: 10:39/km for 42.195 km7:30 limit: 17:09/mi for 26.2 mi

Times as published by the organiser, in Virginia Beach time, checked .

Add to calendar .ics file, times in Virginia Beach time

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.

Keep exploring

More races to look at after the Yuengling Shamrock Marathon Weekend.

Marathons people fly to

Races in North America
  • Hollywood Sign, Los Angeles

    Los Angeles Marathon

    Los Angeles, United States

    Sun 7 Mar 202742.2 km160 m

    Climb summed after smoothing the heights over 1 km. The edge is this course's height profile on one scale for every race: 250 m above its lowest point fills it. Photo: Hollywood Sign, by The Fun Chronicles, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.
  • A frame from our Boston Marathon filmImagery: Google Earth3:12

    Boston Marathon

    Boston, United States

    Mon 19 Apr 202742.2 km105 m

    Climb summed after smoothing the heights over 1 km. The edge is this course's height profile on one scale for every race: 250 m above its lowest point fills it.
  • Bixby Creek Bridge, Big Sur

    Big Sur International Marathon

    Big Sur, United States

    Sun 25 Apr 202742.2 km288 m

    Climb summed after smoothing the heights over 1 km. The edge is this course's height profile on one scale for every race: 250 m above its lowest point fills it. Photo: Bixby Creek Bridge, by Tuxyso, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

Courses on film

All races on film
  • A frame from our Athens Marathon filmImagery: Google Earth3:56Race week

    Athens Marathon

    Athens, Greece

    Sun 8 Nov42.2 km281 m

    Climb summed after smoothing the heights over 1 km. The edge is this course's height profile on one scale for every race: 250 m above its lowest point fills it.
  • A frame from our Malaga Marathon filmImagery: Google Earth3:50Race week

    Malaga Marathon

    Malaga, Spain

    Sun 8 Nov42.2 km63 m

    Climb summed after smoothing the heights over 1 km. The edge is this course's height profile on one scale for every race: 250 m above its lowest point fills it.
  • A frame from our Porto Marathon filmImagery: Google Earth3:53Race week

    Porto Marathon

    Porto, Portugal

    Sun 8 Nov42.2 km133 m

    Climb summed after smoothing the heights over 1 km. The edge is this course's height profile on one scale for every race: 250 m above its lowest point fills it.
  • A frame from our Curitiba Marathon filmImagery: Google Earth3:51Entry open

    Curitiba Marathon

    Curitiba, Brazil

    Sun 15 Nov42.2 km128 m

    Climb summed after smoothing the heights over 1 km. The edge is this course's height profile on one scale for every race: 250 m above its lowest point fills it.
More races in the United States and in March