Wilmington Historic Half Marathon & 5K

Check out our Frequently Asked Questions listed below! If you have a question, don’t hesitate to Contact Us.

Race Day is December 7, 2024

10 Cowan Street | Wilmington, NC | 28401

AGE RESTRICTIONS:

We currently have no age restrictions! However, anyone under 18 must have their parent or guardian sign the waiver when registering on RunSignup.

AWARDS:

Every participant will earn a finishers medal! We will also celebrate our top runners! Come to the Awards Tent to claim your Midtown Pop award! (We will not have a ceremony due to all the different start times.) The awards will be as follows:

Half Marathon Awards:
Top 3 Overall Male/Female
Top 3 Masters Male/Female
Top 3 in Age Groups Male/Female: 18 & Under, 19-24, 25-29, 30-34, 35-39, 40-44, 45-49, 50-54, 55-59, 60-64, 65-69, 70+

10K Awards
Top 3 Overall Male/Female
Top 3 Masters Male/Female
Top 3 in Age Groups Male/Female: 18 & Under, 19-24, 25-29, 30-34, 35-39, 40-44, 45-49, 50-54, 55-59, 60-64, 65-69, 70+

5K Awards
Top 3 Overall Male/Female
Top 3 Masters Male/Female
Top 3 in Age Groups Male/Female: 13 & Under, 14-18, 19-24, 25-29, 30-34, 35-39, 40-44, 45-49, 50-54, 55-59, 60-64, 65-69, 70+

If you have placed overall or in your age division you must be present to receive your award. Unfortunately, we are unable to ship out these awards at this time.

BIBS:

Race bibs must be worn on the front and be visible at all times for EVERYONE on the course. If anyone is on the course without a bib you will be asked to leave. If you are running with a companion that does not have a bib you will both be asked to leave the course. No companion bicycles, scooters, golf carts, or unregistered runners/walkers are allowed.

Why? This is strictly prohibited by USATF sanctions and our insurance.

Spectators are welcome at any point on the course and welcome to try and move from one point to another to see participants in many places.

BIB EXCHANGE/TRANSFER:

You can transfer your bib to another runner prior to a race. You must log in to your RunSignUp account and initiate this bib exchange by placing their name and email in. The recipient will receive an email to accept the bib, pay a $15 processing fee and sign our online waiver. Need Help? Click Here and look for “Transfer to Another Runner” for a tutorial on how to edit this.

COURSE CERTIFICATION:

Our event is certified with USATF and measured for accuracy. If you are hopeful for a state or national record please give us a heads up so that we’re expecting it and can take proper actions to fill out the paperwork needed for your submission.

Race courses certified by USATF are measured by a proven method that incorporates the calibration of measuring devices against a steel tape and is verified by multiple measurements. Our courses are not “close” – they are exact measurements. If your GPS watch or phone shows that you ran a little short/long, just keep in mind that GPS devices are not always exact! You can see USATF’s statement on the use of GPS devices by clicking here.

DEFER TO NEXT YEAR’S RACE:

You can defer your registration to next year’s race (the same distance at the same race/event). The cutoff is 60 days prior to the event when we purchase all of the swag (medals, shirts, giveaways, etc). You will pay a $15 re-activation fee and deferrals are only good for one year. Need Help? Click Here for a tutorial on how to edit this. Virtual registrations are not eligible for deferrals.

DISCOUNTS:

We offer a 10% discount to heroes: Military, Teachers, Firefighters, Police, and EMTs. We also offer a discount to students. Please email us to receive your discount code.

DOGS:

All of our courses are USATF certified and sanctioned and dogs are not allowed for safety reasons. If you have a 4-legged running companion for medical reasons, you can file a request through the USATF ADA Committee (which takes 4-6 weeks) by clicking here and if they approve, they will provide you documentation that you will then need to provide to us.

EVENT TRANSFER:

If you want to change from one distance to another, we allow you to do this yourself prior to the event. This cutoff to switch is typically the final week leading up to a race and is based upon availability in that event. You will manage this through your RunSignUp account and there is a $5 RunSignUp processing fee plus the difference in events or shipping. Need Help? Click Here for a tutorial on how to edit this.

FINISH LINE AFTER PARTY:

You can count on a good time at our finish line after party! Race Bash is bringing all the fun and even some surprises…you won’t want to miss it! Hosted at Riverfront Park, the after-party includes beer from Wrightsville Beach Brewery and Poor Piggy’s BBQ (you will have voucher tabs on your bib for these). Additonal beer will be available for purchase. Beverage sales and the after-party will be over at 11:30 AM. See you there!

INSURANCE:

During registration, there is an option for you to purchase insurance on your registration fee. This includes several items such as injuries, airline issues, car trouble, jury duty, military duty, pregnancy, hurricanes/weather and so much more. Click Here to see the plan and details – It’s a very affordable option! This is a 3rd party insurance company and we do not control coverage. If you have any questions at all concerning this insurance, please contact them direct via the link above. You may also wish to explore your own 3rd party insurance covering registration fees.

LODGING:

Lumina on Wrightsville Beach
1706 N. Lumina Ave.
Wrightsville Beach, NC 28480

Lumina on Wrightsville Beach, our Expo Sponsor, is offering a block of rooms for our runners at an incredible rate. The link to book can be found HERE.

PACERS:

We will have Pacers for the Historic Half. The pacing times are 1:30, 1:45, 2:00, 2:15 and 2:30.

EXPO/PACKET PICKUP:

We are happy to announce Lumina on Wrightsville Beach as our Expo Sponsor! Stop by on Friday, December 6 from 12-6 PM at Lumina on Wrightsville Beach to grab your race packet and meet our awesome local vendors! Be sure to join us as the excitement builds for an incredible race day experience!

1706 N. Lumina Ave. | Wrightsville Beach, NC | 28480

*If you can’t make it to Packet Pickup, someone else may pick up your packet for you. We will also have Packet Pickup available on race morning.

PARKING:

There are over 10,000 public parking spots in Downtown Wilmington. Click Here for a complete list of available parking. (Don’t park along the race route or if there is a covered meter or sign.)

REFUND POLICY:

We currently do not offer a refund on any of our events. If an event is canceled, we will transfer all participants to a “Virtual Race” where we will ship all swag items to your door.

REWARDS:

REFER OTHER RUNNERS! Share your unique link in your confirmation email and every time someone registers using that link you will earn $5 back. There is NO limit!

SHIRT SIZE SWAP:

You may adjust your shirt size by logging into your RunSignUp account more than 30 days prior to the race. If you miss the cutoff for this, you will receive the shirt size selected at packet pickup. Need Help? Click Here for a tutorial on how to edit this!

STROLLERS:

Strollers are allowed on all 3 courses. We ask that you start near the back of the corral to avoid tripping or congestion with all the runners. You will still be eligible for age group awards with your chip time that is tracked from the time you cross the start line to the time you finish.

TIME LIMITS:

Half Marathon and 10K: 3.5 hours
5K: 90 minutes

TIMING:

We provide an official chip and gun time. Overall awards use gun time (as most major races do) while age group awards use your chip time. This means if you are going for an overall M/F win in your respective race, be sure to start up at the front.

TRANSGENDER POLICY:

All of our events are certified distances and most are sanctioned by USATF therefore we follow their guidelines. Click Here to see their policy.

“This policy requires that certain medical benchmarks be achieved before an athlete may compete as the opposite gender for medals, prize money, and other benefits. The intent of this policy is to establish competitive eligibility and to help ensure fair competition. The policy also contains safeguards to protect the privacy of any athlete(s) making the request for eligibility.”

VIRTUAL OPTIONS:

All of our races include a virtual option. This is something that you must register for separately and the following registration policies apply.

Must be registered for the virtual option in order to receive the race packet by mail.
If you are registered to run in a race and cannot attend, all of the above registration policies still apply to you. The only way to run a race virtually and receive your packet in the mail is if you are registered under the virtual option. This is due to the costs of shipping!
You may transfer to the virtual option prior to an event. You will manage this through your personal RunSignUp account and there is a $15.00 processing fee.
Packets will not be available for pick-up race weekend.
ALL virtual packets will be mailed within 2 weeks of the race.
The cutoff to switch to a virtual is typically the final week leading up to a race.
We will only ship packets to those who are actually registered for the virtual option.

*If you decide to come to the race instead of running it virtually, you must manage this through your RunSignUp account 7 days prior to the event. You will have to pay the difference in price as well as a $15.00 processing fee, but we would love to have you join us!

It’s so much more fun to run with friends!

WEATHER:

Events are rain or shine. If there is lightning, we will postpone until the weather is cleared. If there is rain, we will do our best to continue the event without delay. In the case of a hurricane, we will do our best to accommodate an alternate date for the event as well as offer a virtual run. No weather-related refunds.