The Jacksonville Marathon course is flat, fast, and very scenic with lots of shade. There are no hills, bridges, or overpasses. The course starts at Bolles School on San Jose Blvd. and heads south to Mandarin, does a loop and heads back along the St. Johns River back to Bolles.
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Jacksonville Marathon
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How does the Jacksonville Marathon Rank?
The Jacksonville Marathon was the 112th largest marathon in the U.S. last year and was the 124th largest in 2022.
Last year 9.4% of finishers qualified for the Boston Marathon and 17.7% of runners qualified for Boston in 2022.
This gives the Jacksonville Marathon the 202nd highest percentage of Boston Marathon qualifiers in the U.S. last year and the 69th highest percentage in 2022.
Its Course Score of 99.78 ranks it as the 51st fastest marathon course in the U.S. and the 2nd fastest course in Florida.
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 Jacksonville Marathon a PR Score of 99.78. This PR Score ranks it as the 40th fastest marathon in the U.S. and the 1st fastest in Florida.
Learn more about PR Scores and Course Scores on the FAQ page.
Jacksonville Marathon Elevation Chart
Max Elevation: 26 feet (7m) Min Elevation: 6 feet (1m)
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How Fast Can You Go?
If you ran the Jacksonville Marathon in 3:34:00, what would your time in other marathons be?
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I liked it started and finished at same location.It was flat and mostly upper end residential area.Carry your own gu as no gu on course.Medal was good looking as well age group awards.After run food etc was kinda basic.2022 weather was ideal.No hotels and motels in immediate area.Advise having a vehicle.Packet pick up was packet pickup and no expo. I give it 4 stars.
Race Tips
Go your own pace if you don't like the run walk routine.
Lots of parking around the Bolles School but still get there 45-hour ahead of time.Porta potty's lineups are long and slow.No hotels in immediate area.If out of town rent a car as that's essential in Jacksonville
Mahipal Challuri's review of 2020 Jacksonville Marathon.
5 /
5 Stars
Review
Its a medium sized race with no hills, bridges or anything. Its pretty flat (although elevate app shows the grade profile as hilly). I ran it yesterday (1/5/2020), and it was my second marathon. My first was MCM in October (4:44) and I wanted to improve upon that timing. Improve I did and how..my finish time at JAX was 3:54:50.
Most of the race is through shaded neighborhoods and you can expect minimum crowd support here. In fact I liked it coming from too much support at MCM. 7 am start is perfect, although it was a little cold in the morning. No expo, and I picked up my bib in the school gym on the race morning. Medal is large and pretty good, and the long sleeve tech shirt is really nice. Post party is pretty basic with some soup, bananas and bread. This year they didnt give any gels and I was fine with it as I carried my own. After the race I took a couple of pictures and rushed back to the hotel as I had to take a quick shower and head back to the airport. All in all very impressed and happy.
Race Tips
Like many people have said previously, just maintain even splits. For most of the race I was on track for a sub 3:50 finish but the last few miles slowed me down a little bit. After mile 23 you will be running in sun with no shade. I stayed in a hotel 4 miles from the race and went and checked the start location the previous night.
Stayed at a hotel closeby and used my own transportation. Get there before 6 and you will find parking inside the school.
L.B.'s review of 2014 Jacksonville Marathon.
5 /
5 Stars
Review
Was well organized and well staffed with a nice and flat course, but the weather was so bad (very humid with periods of hard rain) that it was hard to focus on exact details.
This is a great mid sized race. About as flat as you can get. The weather can be a bit unpredictable and it can get humid. The 7am start and having most of the course run through shaded neighborhoods helps keep the heat down.
Race Tips
The course is very flat - no hills at all - so it is easy to maintain consistent splits. The course winds through shaded neighborhoods except for the first and last 2-3 miles (San Jose Blvd). Last couple mile stretch on San Jose is hard because back in sun and the long, straight stretch just seems to go on forever. Last half mile is on dirt fields and then finish on a track.
Parking at Bolles or on the street is available until around 6am. Everyone seems to arrive right at 6, so get there at 5:50 and there is plenty of parking. If you plan to arrive at the start after 6am, I would suggest using one of the race shuttles. I've stayed at the Candlewood Suites which is not too far from the race start - maybe 10 minutes. It is pretty cheap.
Jennifer's review of 2010 Jacksonville Marathon.
5 /
5 Stars
Review
This was my first marathon so I only have one other marathon to compare it to. I thought it was well organized. There were not many people cheering for you along the course. It does primarily go through neighborhoods so you would think there would be more people out. I wish they had more bathrooms at the start. I recommend it as a first marathon. I do plan on doing it again this year.
Race Tips
It is completely flat. My friend who has done 20 marathons told me to just do even splits and it worked well for me until about mile 22.
