Powerade Panama City Beach Marathon

The Powerade Panama City Beach Marathon starts and finishes at Pier Park, with runners completing a 26.2-mile race along Panama City Beach’s Gulf Coast. The event takes place in December and features a full marathon, half marathon, 5K, wheelchair races for the marathon and half marathon, and a Kids Fun Run. The participants range from competitive marathoners to families and novice runners. The certified marathon course is a Boston Marathon qualifier, and the race utilizes professional timing with RaceJoy tracking for spectators. The course is looped, centered around Pier Park and Jimmy Buffett’s Margaritaville, rather than a remote start or point-to-point finish. Thousands of local residents and visitors attend the race, which organizers call a Panhandle staple. Finishers in the full marathon, half marathon, and 5K receive medals, runners get a race shirt, and most aid stations provide GU Energy Gel while supplies last. After the races, Margaritaville hosts a post-race party with beer and gumbo. A portion of race proceeds benefits a local nonprofit organization.