Half Marathon
Register for the Half Marathon - Start: 7:30 a.m.
- Starts on Menzies Street at Kingston Street beside the BC Legislative Buildings (the same place as the Marathon).
ELITE ATHLETES
Athletes who have run under certain time standards may be eligible for complimentary entry to the Royal Victoria Marathon. Contact us at elite@royalvictoriamarathon.com with any questions.
Complimentary entry qualifying standards are as follows:
| Men | Women | |||
| Open | Masters (40+) | Open | Masters (40+) | |
| Half Marathon | 1:10 | 1:15 | 1:20 | 1:25 |
Download an Elite Athlete Application Form (PDF)
BABY JOGGERS
Baby joggers are not permitted in the Half Marathon for insurance and safety reasons. If an accident were to occur between a runner and a baby jogger, neither party would be covered by our event liability insurance. The Royal Victoria Marathon is a foot race. For safety and liability reasons all events are limited to registered runners only. Bicycles, hand cycles, skateboards, rollerblades, scooters, skates, pacing and running with dogs are strictly prohibited on the course. Non-compliance with these safety rules will result in disqualification.
Register for the Half Marathon - Wheelchair Start - 7:25 a.m.
- Starts on Menzies Street at Kingston Street beside the BC Legislative Buildings (the same place as the Marathon).
WHEELCHAIRS
Athletes with racing wheelchairs are permitted in the Half Marathon. The wheelchair start is at 7:25 a.m. Hand-cycles are absolutely prohibited.
WHEELCHAIR COMPETITORS
Please provide organizers with a copy of your own liability insurance or proof of membership with BC Wheelchair Sports with your registration. If an accident were to occur between a runner and a wheelchair, neither party would be covered by our event liability insurance.
SHIRTS
Participants will receive a long-sleeved New Balance technical garment if registered prior to October 9. Men’s and women’s sizing is available. *Shirt not guaranteed to those registering on race weekend.
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| Men's | Women's |
Course Info
Course Maps
- Half Marathon (PDF)
- Half Marathon (JPG)
- Elevation (PDF) - Metres - Feet
- Elevation (JPG) - Metres - Feet
HALF MARATHON
Accreditation
The Royal Victoria Marathon is an AIMS and Run Canada-certified 21.0975 km course. The course certification number is BC-2004-087-BDC. Sanctioned by BC Athletics.
Course Features
The Royal Victoria Half Marathon is a beautiful, seaside course with lots of mild undulations, but with a maximum elevation change of only 74 feet. There is NO COURSE CHANGE IN 2008. Walkers are welcome as long as completion time is less than 6 hours. Baby joggers are not permitted in the Half Marathon for insurance and safety reasons.
The course includes:
- All kilometres marked along the route, markers every 5 miles, one-mile marker and one-mile-to-go marker.
- Bands and cheering stations at various locations along the route.
- Porta-potties at every aid station.
- Medical services on the route and at the finish line.
- Scenic features along the route: BC Legislative Buildings, Royal London Wax Museum, Ogden Point, Olympic Mountain Range, statue of Terry Fox at Mile ‘O’, Beacon Hill Park.
Course Description
- The start for the Half Marathon is on Menzies at Kingston. Run south, away from the Inner Harbour, turn left on Michigan and left again on Government Street. Take care to not get tangled up with other runners in the pack in these first two corners. Run down a slight decline on Government Street, past The Empress Hotel, and onto Wharf Street. Turn right on Johnson Street, then right on Cook Street. The first aid station is just past Fairfield Avenue on Cook Street.
- Turn right onto Park, right onto Heywood, left on Southgate, and left onto Arbutus, entering Beacon Hill Park. Arbutus blends left into Bridge Way. Turn right onto Heywood and right onto Circle Drive. Run a complete counter clockwise loop of Circle Drive and Dallas Road (1-mile), staying to the left, and turn right on Heywood, and right on Park; completing an early race loop. Turn right on Cook Street. Turn left on Dallas Road (the second aid station is on Dallas Road near Cambridge) and run to Hollywood Crescent, keeping to the left. The third aid station is at Dallas Road and St. Charles Street. Stay on Hollywood Crescent, past its southern intersection with Robertson, until Hollywood blends into Robertson just before the intersection with Ross and Crescent. Turn right onto Crescent and left on Irving to Fairfield.
- Turn left on Fairfield, right onto Richmond, and right again onto Richardson. You're now approaching the point where the Marathon route splits from the Half Marathon. The next aid station is beside the park on Richardson, just before turning left onto Lawndale. Turn right on Quamichan (careful of the speed bump!) and right again on Cowichan. When Cowichan reaches Richardson, you're at the 13 km mark of the race. It's here that the Marathon goes left and the Half Marathon goes right.
- Return along Richardson, left on Richmond, left on Fairfield, right on Irving, right on Crescent, left on Robertson and left on Hollywood Crescent to Dallas Road.
- Continue on Dallas Road westbound, all the way past Beacon Hill Park and the breakwater, right on Erie, left on St. Lawrence, right on Kingston, left on Montreal, right on Quebec, left on Pendray and right onto Belleville to the finish in front of the Legislature. There are water stops every 2 km in the last stages of the race: at Dallas and St. Charles, Dallas and Cambridge, and at Dallas and Oswego.
Aid Stations
- Old Victoria Water, Gatorade stations, and porta-potties will be located along the course approximately every 3km. Gatorade flavours will be orange and lemon lime. Fruit and Power Gels will be available at approximately the 13km mark. You may carry your own fluids and gels to supplement what is already provided at the aid stations. If you require your own additional fluid out on the course, please deliver it to the official van on Superior at Menzies by 8:00 am for delivery to the 13km aid station at Lawndale and Richardson.
- An athlete who collects refreshment from a place other than the aid stations (i.e. from spectators) renders himself liable to disqualification.
MEDALS & AWARDS
All finishers in the Half Marathon will receive a finisher's medal in the finishing chute, after removing their timing chips.
CERTIFICATES
Half Marathon finisher certificates will be able available in PDF format from the race results page on the website.
AWARDS PRESENTATIONS / Info
The top 5 male and female places in each 5-year age category in Half Marathon receive awards. In addition, awards are given to the overall male and female, top male and female masters (40+) and top wheelchair winners. Awards will be presented at the Victoria Conference Centre, the site of the RVM Race Expo, on Race Day at 12:00 noon.
HALF MARATHON TEAMS / AWARDS
- Half Marathon - Open, Masters (40+), and Husband & Wife.
- All runners on Masters teams must be at least 40 years of age. Master runners may join an Open team, but cannot be a part of both an Open team and a Masters team. Runners can be part of a Husband & Wife team and a Master or an Open team.
- The finish times of the top four finishers (two for Husband & Wife) on each team count towards a cumulative score. The top 3 teams in each category receive an award.
AGE CATEGORIES
19 & Under, 20-24, 25-29, 30-34, 35-39, 40-44, 45-49, 50-54, 55-59, 60-64, 65-69, 70-74, 75-79, 80+
HALF-MARATHON COURSE RECORDS
| Men | Women |
|---|---|
| Jon Brown, Victoria, BC | Lucy Smith, Victoria, BC |
| 1:02:32 (2002) | 1:16:11 (2007) |
PRIZE MONEY
The following prize money is available in the Half Marathon, with identical awards for men and women:
| Men & Women | Half Marathon |
|---|---|
| 1st Place | $500 |
| 2nd Place | $300 |
| 3rd Place | $100 |
| Top Master (40+) | $250 |
| Course Record | $1000 |
Open and master prize money for men and women is available to all runners of any nationality. Course record bonus money is only available to Canadian citizens. The men’s course record is 1:02:32 and the women’s course record is 1:16:11.
