Long Beach Half Marathon: A Flat, Fast Course Where 12,000 Runners Find Their Limits in the Back Miles

Cool October mornings, a genuinely flat road course, and a field of more than 12,000 finishers made the 2025 Long Beach Half Marathon one of Southern California's largest half-marathon events of the year. With a 2:29:48 median finish and conditions that kept runners comfortable through the first half, the race offers a reliable benchmark — and a back-half that separates those who went out right from those who went out too fast.

By the numbers

The 2025 field logged 12,122 finishers, with women making up 6,190 of them — just over half the field. The median split between genders was meaningful: men finished at a median of 2:18:16, women at 2:38:46, a gap of roughly 20 minutes. The top 10% of finishers crossed in 1:51:04 or better, and the top quarter came in under 2:07:06. The 75th percentile sat at 2:55:11, giving a wide spread that reflects a genuinely inclusive field.

How the course runs

The course is flat — net elevation change of just +18 feet over 13.1 miles. There is one brief notable feature: a 55-foot climb between miles 3.2 and 3.9 (averaging 1.5% grade), sandwiched between two descents — a 60-foot drop from miles 2.1 to 3.2 and a 58-foot descent from miles 3.9 to 5.7. None of these are severe, but the early climb is worth knowing before race day.

The pace data tells the real story of how the course plays out:

The field runs the first 5.5 miles at 9:48/mi — comfortable, controlled, benefiting from the early descents. The middle segment, miles 5.5 through 10.8, slows sharply to 12:36/mi, a 2:48/mi fade from the opening pace. The final 2.3 miles recover modestly to 11:58/mi, suggesting some runners find a late gear, but the damage of the middle miles is already done for most.

Pacing patterns

A slowdown in the back half is the norm at virtually every mass-participation half marathon, and Long Beach is no exception. The jump from a 9:48 opening segment to a 12:36 middle segment — nearly three minutes per mile slower — is the defining pacing story of the 2025 race. The modest recovery to 11:58 in the closing miles indicates that the course itself isn't punishing at the end; the fade is a product of early effort rather than late terrain. Runners who bank the early descents too aggressively tend to pay through miles 6 through 11.

The weather question

Race day 2025 brought 49–59°F temperatures, clear skies, and almost no wind — near-ideal conditions for distance running, though 84% humidity at the start was notable. For 2026, the forecast projects 60–70°F, clear skies, a 65°F start, and 80% humidity with a light 3 mph breeze. It will be a few degrees warmer at the gun than last year, which may nudge paces slightly in the middle miles where the field already tends to slow. The humidity profile is similar, so the conditions remain broadly favorable — just marginally less cool than the 2025 edition.

What it takes

The 2025 winning times were 1:03:53 (men) and 1:16:36 (women). Breaking into the top 10% requires finishing in 1:51:04 or faster; the top quarter of the field comes in under 2:07:06. The median finisher crosses in 2:29:48 — a useful anchor for anyone calibrating a goal time.

What to watch

With a field already above 12,000, it will be worth tracking whether Long Beach continues to grow as a destination half marathon in the Southern California calendar. The middle-miles slowdown — from 9:48 to 12:36 — is the clearest pacing story in the data, and whether a slightly warmer 2026 start amplifies that fade will be a genuine point of comparison come October. The women's field, already the majority at 51%, is another trend line worth watching as the race matures.