Final Event Instructions

Expo/Packet Pickup
Friday, August 15: noon to 4 PM
Saturday, August 16: 10 AM – 4 PM

Sheraton San Diego Hotel & Marina – Eventide 
1380 Harbor Island Drive 
San Diego, CA 92101

Event Day
Sunday, August 17, 2025
5K Start – 6:10 AM
Half Marathon Start – 6:15 AM

All on-course cups, for both water and Gatorade, are compostable. Please help us keep the course clean by disposing of your cups in the designated organic compost bins provided on the course.

AT THE EXPO/ PACKET PICKUP EVENT

You must attend the Expo/Packet Pickup to pick up your bib number, shirt, and reusable grocery bag. Be prepared to show a photo ID to claim your bib number. Look up your bib number here.

If you cannot pick up your bib number, and someone is picking it up for you, they must present a photocopy or electronic copy of your photo ID.

Free parking will be available in the dirt lot just before the hotel entrance on the west side of Harbor Island Drive. Please factor in a 5 to 10-minute walk from the parking lot to Eventide. Paid parking will be available in the hotel’s main parking lot.

Once at the Expo/Packet Pickup, first pick up your bib number, then present it to claim your shirt and grocery bag. Please note that while we will do all we can to ensure you receive the shirt size you requested, we cannot make any guarantees.

At the Expo/Packet Pickup, be sure to shop our stylish and affordable souvenirs. There will be other vendors offering great deals on products and services you’ll appreciate.

ON RACE DAY

You can pick up your bib, shirt, souvenir grocery bag, and medal at our Expo/Packet Pickup.

Virtual packets not picked up at the Expo/Packet Pickup will be mailed to the address used during registration within a few weeks following the event. 

All virtual runners are invited to submit their time online, but those completing the San Diego Foundation SoCal Triple Crown MUST submit their results online by November 1, 2025. To submit virtual results, follow the instructions emailed to you directly from Race Roster.

FROM BALBOA PARK

You must take a race-provided bus to the race start line at the Cabrillo National Monument. To board a bus you must display your America’s Finest City Half Marathon bib number. Plan accordingly and allow at least 30 minutes for parking and bus boarding. Buses will run from 4 to 5:15 AM SHARP from two locations in Balboa Park: Park Boulevard at Presidents Way OR Park Boulevard at Zoo Place. See the Finish Line Map here.

The buses are the only way to get to the start line. There is no participant drop-off near the start line nor are vehicles, pedestrians, or bicycles allowed past the military security gate at the entrance to Fort Rosecrans/Cabrillo National Park. The restrooms will not be available for use on the buses.

FROM THE SHERATON SAN DIEGO HOTEL & MARINA GUESTS

Registered guests staying at the Sheraton San Diego Hotel & Marina are provided bus transportation directly from the hotel to the start line at the Cabrillo National Monument and return transportation from the finish line in Balboa Park to the hotel after the race until 10:45 AM. Hotel buses pick up near the hotel entrance on Harbor Island Drive from 4:30 to 5:30 AM for the Half Marathon and at 5:10 for 5K participants and spectators. You must show your room key to board the shuttle. Additional information about the Sheraton buses can be found here.

5K
The race is a an out and back looped course that starts and finishes in front of the Comic-Con Museum at Pan American Plaza and Presidents Way. The course winds through beautiful Balboa Park, passing by the Museum of US, and crossing over the Cabrillo Bridge. There will be one water station on the route and accessible from approximately 3/4 and 2.5-miles. Slower runners, jogging strollers, and all walkers must line up at the rear of the start line staging area. 

Half Marathon
The start line staging area is in the parking lot of the Cabrillo National Monument. As the race start approaches, look for your appropriate pace sign and line up accordingly in the northeast bay of the parking lot. Restrooms and paid gear check through Mobile Locker are available in the middle bay.

As guests of the National Park Service, please:
– Only use sidewalks and please stay off all planted areas.
– Only use the race-provided portable restrooms – not the bushes!

Park Rangers may issue citations to anyone found not in compliance with these requests. We appreciate your assistance as we’re guests of the National Park Service and continued use of the area for the race is dependent upon your cooperation.

The back of your bib number will have a plastic strip, which is your timing device and should not be removed. We offer live tracking, allowing friends and family to follow your race. On race day, look for the live tracking link here.

Pace groups will be offered compliments of On Pace for the following target finish times: 1:30, 1:35, 1:40, 1:45, 1:50, 1:55, 2:00, 2:05, 2:10, 2:15, 2:20, 2:30, 2:40, 2:50, 3:00 and 3:15. Look for your pace group leader holding up a sign with your target pace sign in the staging area.

To switch between race distances or the virtual and in-person events*, please follow these instructions. Switches can be done online through Wednesday, August 13. An upgrade fee will be assessed when switching from a shorter distance to a longer distance. The upgrade fee will be the price difference between event distances at the time of original registration. Refunds are not offered for downgrades. After Wednesday, August 13, you must visit the Solutions table at the Expo/Packet Pickup or on race day to make an event switch. You may not participate in a race that does not match your bib assignment

Participants are only able to perform one transfer/switch on their own. If you need help with an additional transfer/switch, email [email protected].

Gear Check will be available through Mobile Locker ONLY. Locker rentals give you a secure, convenient storage option for your gear. Mobile Locker will be stationed at the start line at Cabrillo National Monument and will move to the Finish Line Festival in Balboa Park for pickup. If you would like to pre-purchase a locker before event day, you can do so online here through Friday, August 15, or in person on event day. There is no gear check for the 5K.

Half Marathon
There’s a strict 3.25-hour time limit (based on chip time) to complete the race (14:53-minute-per-mile pace). Participants who do not reach North Harbor Drive and Harbor Island Drive (6.3 miles) within 90 minutes after the race starts will not be permitted to do the Harbor Island section of the course (approximately 2 miles) and will instead be directed to continue on the route to the finish line. The time limit is for the safety of participants, as public roadways must open to normal traffic at specified times. Participants who exceed the time limit may be asked by race staff or SDPD personnel to take a shuttle to the finish. 

5K
There is a 1-hour time limit for finishing the 5K. Participants must be able to maintain a pace of 19:21 minutes per mile or faster.

Sidewalk on Harbor Island
At approximately mile 8.5, the half marathon course will merge from the roadway onto the Bayshore Bikeway (a sidewalk that runs parallel to Harbor Drive). This merge will happen on Harbor Island Drive between Liberator Way and Harbor Drive. Please be cautious when transitioning from the roadway to the sidewalk, as you’ll be stepping over a curb. The Bayshore Bikeway is narrower than other sections of the course, so please be mindful of other runners and make room for those who may need to pass.

Most of the course shares the road with vehicular traffic. Be aware of your surroundings and always remain inside the designated runner lanes.  Additionally, some sections are narrow or on sidewalks. Please be mindful of other runners and make room for those who may need to pass.

Trolley Crossings
The course crosses the trolley tracks at Broadway and Kettner (11 miles) and India and ‘C’ Streets. Later runners may have to wait for 20 to 30 seconds to allow the trolley to pass. DO NOT CROSS THE TROLLEY TRACKS IF THE GATES ARE DOWN – you’ll be disqualified. Times are not adjusted for trolley stops. 

There will be a medical tent located just after the finish line and another medical tent with self-serve ice in the Finish Line Festival. If you experience a medical issue on the course, go to the nearest support station for assistance, or for emergencies, call 911. Race Guards will be throughout the course, flag them down if you need help. If you cannot finish the race, transportation to the finish line can be called for you from all support stations.

We will have organics, recycling, and trash bins throughout the event site. Please familiarize yourself with which items go in which bin:

Organics – Food waste, food-soiled parchment paper, paper towels, and napkins. New this year – on-course cups!

Recyclables – Aluminum and steel bottles and cans, aluminum foil and trays, glass bottles and jars, boxes and cardboard, paper, food, and beverage cartons

Trash – Everything else

The Rush Coffee will be onsite offering coffee and pastries for sale before and after the race in the Finish Line Festival starting at 4:00 AM. 

Once you cross the finish line, you’ll receive a can of water, your finisher’s medal, your finisher food bag, and a carton of Hollandia Dairy chocolate milk in this order. Continue moving until you have completely exited the fenced-in area. You may not wait in the finish line chute for other participants to finish. Once you’ve exited, walk the short distance to the Finish Line Festival and celebrate!

Registered participants aged 21 and older, displaying their bib number and proper ID, receive a complimentary beer* in the beer garden between 6:45 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. Beer options include Kona Big Wave, Michelob Ultra, and Michelob Ultra Zero. 

*Limited to one per person while supplies last.

Our 2025 San Diego Foundation SoCal Triple Crown champions will receive their series medal from the Triple Crown area located in the Finish Line Festival area. While there, enjoy a massage and pick up some extra treats just for you, including a Dunkin’ donut, Monster energy drink, and more!

Streakers will pick up their commemorative 2025 STREAKER slider, to be added to their San Diego Foundation SoCal Triple Crown medal, in this same location.

Results will be available at the Results Tent in the Finish Line Festival and also online after the race here. 

FinisherPix photographers will be stationed on the course to take your picture. You will be able to view your pictures here after the race. The race does not guarantee that each and every participant will be photographed.

If you pre-ordered a photo and/or video package during registration, FinisherPix will email you a download link within 24-48 hours of the event. If you do not receive the link, please contact FinisherPix at [email protected]. Make sure to check your spam or junk folders as well. 

There will not be an award ceremony. Award medals will be available for pickup from the Information Tent in the Finish Line Festival, at the following times:

5K – 8:00 AM to 10:30 AM
Half Marathon – 9:00 AM to 10:30 AM
Half Marathon Team of 10 – 9:00 AM to 10:30 AM

Winners who do not pick up their award on race day will be emailed instructions to pick up at our office in San Marcos or have it mailed for a fee. Awards not claimed within two weeks of the event will no longer be available.

For more information about the age group award categories, click here. 

Check out your 2025 America’s Finest City Half Marathon & 5K Virtual Goody Bag here!

Your exclusive, one-day pass to the Columbia Employee Store will be provided to you when you pick up your bib number. The pass is good through October 1, 2025 and gives you and up to 4 guests one-day access to the store, where you can enjoy up to 40% off the entire store, featuring brands like Columbia, SOREL, Mountain Hardwear, and prAna. Shop the latest outerwear, sportswear, footwear, sleeping bags, and tents for the whole family. See pass for additional  details. 

Call (760) 692-2900, email [email protected], or visit the Information Booth at the Expo/Packet Pickup or Finish Line Festival.