On Sunday, April 14, 2019, the inaugural Raleigh Half Marathon will be run, filling the void of the departed Rock ‘n’ Roll series. The Raleigh Half Marathon was created for people to run fast. This course was strategically selected to offer the flatest and fastest half marathon course in the Raleigh area.
The start will be on the roads inside Buffaloe Road Athletic Park. Runners will head down towards the Neuse River Greenway Trail, where they will head North for approximately 6 miles before turning around, heading back towards Buffaloe Road Athletic Park, where they will take the path back up the right side, before finishing the final 400 meters on the track, in the style of the Olympic Games.
The race will be the 2019 USATF State Championship, and will feature an Olympic Marathon Trials Standard Chase (Men – 1:04:00 / Women – 1:13:00). All finishers will recieve a unique 2018 Raleigh Half Marathon Finisher’s medal, and the Top 50 Men and Top 50 Women overall will recieve a one of a kind Raleigh Half Marathon Coffee Mug.
The Top 3 Male and Female finishers, as well as the Top Masters Runners will recieve prize money, and any North Carolina resident to qualify for the 2020 Olympic Trials will recieve travel funding to the event on February 29, 2020 in Atlanta, Georgia, courtesy of USATF North Carolina. The Top 10 Male and Female runners that hit the Olympic Trials Standard will also be given a $250 bonus.
The Raleigh Half Marathon directed and promoted by Sir Walter Running, a Raleigh-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization whose mission is to bring the Greater Raleigh running community together through innovation, activation, and inclusivity. Sir Walter Running is a USATF club that also produces the Pop Up Miles series, the Raleigh RunDown Downhill Mile, the Rocket Mile, Pop Up Cross Country at Dix Park, a series of Strava Challenges, and the Summer of Miles podcast.
Official Hashtag: #RaleighHalf
Podcast: Summer of Miles