The Race

Sunday February 21, 2010 at 8:00 am will mark the 42nd running of the scenic and historic Birch Bay International Marathon, managed and directed by Joel Pearson, whose father Jim Pearson created and directed this year for many years. The race will start and finish at the south end of Birch Bay State Park.

The marathon course has been certified (certification code WA 06002 BL) and the race Drayton Harbor from the course serves as a qualifier for the 2010 Boston Marathon. The course is unchanged from 2008/2009. See www.bostonmarathon.org for qualifying times, noting that the small-print permits a 59 second grace period beyond the listed times for each age group.

For 2010 we are again offering a 25K race (5th annual); this follows the same course as the marathon but only does one loop (instead of two) around Birch Point. This race starts at 8:30 AM from a line about 400m north of the marathon start line, but ends at the marathon finish.

Expect very cold, wet, windy weather and dress accordingly; we recommend layering and carrying a windproof jacket. Windy conditions combined with high tide can result in a soaking from sea-spray or even waves lapping over the road - be prepared to get wet.