How the Myrtle Beach Marathon is bucking a national trend in road race participation
While a lot of road races are struggling to maintain their numbers across the country, the Myrtle Beach Marathon is enjoying a resurgence.
For the second straight year, the marathon and affiliated races are expected to see a cumulative increase in participation.
The marathon, half marathon and 5-kilometer races are all expected to increase in numbers and – combined with a one-mile family fun run – approach a total of 5,000 participants. Participants are coming from every state but Hawaii, as well as Canada and the Dominican Republic.
As of Tuesday, the marathon was within 27 runners of reaching last year’s total of 1,305, according to Harrison Schenck, a Myrtle Beach Marathon race director and director of operations for Capstone Event Group of Raleigh, N.C, which is in its fourth year as the owner and operator of the event.
The half marathon is up 1.7 percent over 2019’s final number to 2,433 runners, the 5K is up 1.8 percent to 807 registrants, and the family fun run has 73 registrants compared to 113 last year. Runners can register for any race until the close of the Health & Wellness Expo at 8 p.m. Friday, and the family run will likely see a significant increase.
“We are so excited about this event and what it can do in the future,” Schenck said. “Our industry really four or five years ago expanded too fast so we saw industry-wide, nationwide a little bit of a retraction. To see the Myrtle Beach Marathon in its 23rd year growing year over year it’s incredible.”
Schenck said race officials have been speaking to city and tourism leaders about ways to continue to grow the event in the future.
“The secret to Myrtle Beach is the city,” Schenck said. “The city of Myrtle Beach supports this event more than any other city we work in. It means we’re able to invest more into the event because we have a partner that has the same vision as we do.”
Organizers are trying to add a little fun to the event by moving the free Health & Wellness Expo from 10 a.m.-8 p.m. Friday to Dave & Busters in Broadway at the Beach.
The sports bar that features arcade and video games is offering free unlimited games and 20 percent off food and non-alcoholic drinks to runners.
“We’re trying something new and hoping the runners will get a chance to hang out at Dave & Busters for a while, enjoy the food and drinks, and play some games while visiting some of our vendors,” Schenck said. “It’s something we haven’t seen any other races try. It’s new, it’s different, but we think it will be an added benefit for the runners.”
Fleet Feet Sports will be the primary vendor at the expo, and will have an extensive selection of items including running shoes, apparel, energy gels and protein bars, as well as running experts for training tips and running analysis.
“Pretty much anything a runner might want or use to train they’ll be able to find there,” Schenck said.
The running courses are unchanged from 2019, meaning the marathon begins near Pelicans Ballpark, goes through Market Common, continues up Ocean Boulevard, turns just past 82nd Parkway and ends at Pelicans Ballpark. The half marathon is run largely within the confines of the south end of the marathon course.
The 5K will begin on the Myrtle Beach boardwalk for the second straight year and finish at Pelicans Ballpark. Schenck believes last year’s change in the course is likely responsible for the increase in 5K registration this year. “We think that’s because people really enjoyed starting at the boardwalk and finishing at Pelicans Ballpark,” he said.
All races are Saturday. The marathon and half-marathon begin at 7 a.m., the 5K starts at 8 a.m. and the family run at Pelicans Ballpark starts at 1 p.m., so parents running the longer distances will be able to attend or participate with their children. The marathon relay is not being held for the second consecutive year.
The band Liquid Pleasure will perform at the Finish Line Festival, several bands and DJs will be performing along the race route, and the post-race party is at Oz and Malibu’s Surf Bar at Broadway at the Beach for the second straight year beginning at 5:30 p.m.
“[Capstone senior operations manager] Cory Michel . . . is really into improving the runner experience from the time they arrive in Myrtle Beach to the time they cross the finish line,” Schenck said.
Events Schedule
Runner’s Expo: Dave & Busters, Broadway at the Beach, 10 a.m.-8 p.m. Friday
Marathon/Half Marathon: 7 a.m. Saturday
5K: 8 a.m. Saturday
Family Fun Run: 1 p.m. Saturday
Post-Race Party: Oz and Malibu’s Surf Bar, Broadway at the Beach, 5:30 p.m. Saturday
Race Tracking: Sporthive live app and at https://live.sporthive.com/event/8173
This story was originally published March 5, 2020 at 10:29 AM.
