Sunday, February 24, 2019 • Santa Rosa Beach, FL • Course Map
(Note: This race has been cancelled for 2019.)
There really aren’t any mountains here along Florida’s Gulf coast in Blue Mountain Beach, but legend has it that the sailors who once made their way past this area gave it the name thanks to the high sand dunes here.
That’s because even today are often covered in wild blue lupine, a flower that’s endangered in other parts of the country, but grows naturally in the sandy soil along the beach
Runners will start the race right around the dunes that gave the area its name at the annual Blue Mountain Beach Half Marathon, which features a 5K race and 10-miler on Saturday the 23rd, followed by the half marathon and 10K race on Sunday the 24th.
All four races will take runners among the neighborhoods and beaches of this resort town that’s retained the quiet, laid-back style it has become known for over the years, with many of the beach houses here dating back to the 1960s and much of the area protected in nearby Grayton Beach State Park.
The half marathon and 10K races start on Blue Mountain Road, just off Highway 30A. From there, the course winds its way eastward along Blue Mountain Road in the direction of Big Redfish Lake, taking runners along fast, flat streets lined with beach homes before turning left onto Blue Lake Road, which they’ll follow to the next turn, a right onto Highway 30A.
The next stretch takes runners past a series of coastal lakes — Big Redfish, Little Redfish and Alligator Lakes — along Highway 30A, with the natural landscape of Grayton Beach State Park over their left shoulders and modern resorts, beach hotels and homes on the right.
There’s a roughly mile-and-a-half-long out-and-back stretch out to Grayton Beach on Defuniak Street, and then runners head back to 30A to continue the eastward trek to Seaside, where some scenes from the Jim Carrey movie The Truman Show were filmed.
Once they make it into Seaside, runners head around the square in the middle of town for a brief loop before heading back onto Highway 30A and heading west this time, retracing their steps all the way back along the route they’ve just run back to the finish line in Blue Mountain Beach.
Along the way, runners will get to take in the white sand beaches of the Florida panhandle — be sure to wear plenty of sunscreen as well as a hat or visor and sunglasses, as the race will take runners out into the open sun for virtually the entire race.
Race Weather & Climate
Nestled along the Gulf coast shoreline of the western Florida panhandle, roughly 70 miles east of Pensacola and about 120 miles west of Tallahassee, Blue Mountain Beach shares weather much like nearby Grayton Beach State Park, which typically cool to mild weather in late February.
On race day (Feb. 24), the average low is 41ºF and the average high is 67ºF.
Past Results
- 2014 Blue Mountain Beach Half Marathon Results
- 2013 Blue Mountain Beach Half Marathon Results
- 2012 Blue Mountain Beach Half Marathon Results
- 2011 Blue Mountain Beach Half Marathon Results
Course Map
See the race route map for the Blue Mountain Beach Half Marathon here.
Starting Time
- 7:00 AM
Fees
- $60 and up for the half marathon
Registration
Signup for the 2019 running of the Blue Mountain Beach Half Marathon has been discontinued.
Official Race Website
Facebook Conversations
Ever run in the Blue Mountain Beach Half Marathon? Share your impressions here, or post your review in the Comments below.
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