The Asheville Marathon is a point-to-point course that takes participants on a running adventure through the best parts of this iconic community.
The course begins in the heart of Downtown Asheville at Pack Square Park. Runners will traverse city streets and then head north through the historic Montford neighborhood. After a generous descent into the River Arts District, the remainder of the course follows the banks of the French Broad River through parks and greenways and concludes at Karen Cragnolin Greenway Park.
The Asheville Marathon was the 108th largest marathon in the U.S. last year and was the 159th largest in 2022.
This year 9.8% of finishers qualified for the Boston Marathon and 9% of runners qualified for Boston in 2023.
This gives the Asheville Marathon the 213th highest percentage of Boston Marathon qualifiers in the U.S. last year and the 51st highest percentage so far in 2024.
Its Course Score of 98.86 ranks it as the 226th fastest marathon course in the U.S. and the 6th fastest course in North Carolina.
The typical race time temperature and humidity levels are within the ideal range for optimal marathon performance. This, coupled with the Course Score, gives the Asheville Marathon a PR Score of 98.86. This PR Score ranks it as the 169th fastest marathon in the U.S. and the 6th fastest in North Carolina.
Learn more about PR Scores and Course Scores on the FAQ page.
Asheville Marathon Elevation Chart
Max Elevation: 2230 feet (679m) Min Elevation: 1962 feet (598m)
This race was billed as flat and fast. It was literally plastered on their banners at the start. It was anything but.
Let's start with the bad. For 2024 the course was updated to include a 5 mile loop through some neighborhoods near the start, I assume to give it more esthetic appeal. This meant fewer miles looping through industrial sections of town. However, those neighborhoods are VERY hilly. By mile 5 you've already gained and lost several hundred feet of elevation. Several miles in the middle of the race are not closed to traffic and runners are left to hope drivers are paying attention and don't clip them while running on the shoulder. In the last 6 miles there are several sections of muddy single track with roots and rocks. The port-a-potty situation at the start was comical. I had read about complaints in years past about not enough toilets being available at the start. But I can confirm the situation has not improved. The full and half marathon have a simultaneous mass start and run together for the first 9 miles. At that point the runners doing the full break off and run two out and back sections before merging back with the half runners around mile 16. This resulted in hundreds of slower half runners catching up and passing the faster full runners who now had to pick through the field all over again.
The good - Asheville is a beautiful town for a marathon. There are tons of good options for food and lodging. The area is scenic. We did a walking tour of the Biltmore Estate on Sunday which doubled as a nice recovery.
The view was pretty along the river but the website is deceptive. I ran this to PR and this is not a PR course. There were literally single track trails with mud and flooded areas. The marathoners merge with the half runners around mile 17/18 and have to dodge between all the runners, on tired legs and even on the single track trail. At two points, runners had to stop and step over a knee-high fence - once at about mile 23 and again around mile 25.5 or so. Had to come to a complete stop. I also had to come to a stop because at one point, I was running directly into a sea of oncoming runners at a water stop on a narrow bike path. I felt like this was not explained on the website and course description and if it had been, I would not have chosen this marathon to try my PR. The volunteers were nice and there were good things at the aid stations I think. I carry my own nutrition but the stuff seemed good. Maybe if you're wanting a marathon for fun, do it. But not for a PR.
Race Tips
Water every 2-3 miles as stated in website. I carried extra water and I recommend the same. Lots of rolling hills the first half of the race so be prepared for that - the course description should state this more clearly. Don’t recommend carbon shoes for the rooted single track trails. Lots of dodging when you’re tired, so start slow to save energy for this.
Water Stops were fantastic - well organized and entertaining.
Race Tips
Even without the cold and wind on 3/3/2013, this is NOT a good course - 2/3 trails with huge uneven gravel. Very difficult to run on. Also the looping back and forth and last long out and back were a major drag. Finish was just terrible - a final loop on a dirt road with an almost washed out turn at the end.
