Asheville Oktoberfest Half Marathon & 5K
Asheville, NC
- Half Marathon, 5K
- Road (Paved)
- Official race website
Celebrate autumn, craft beer & running with a half marathon in the mountains of North Carolina. Start and finish at Hi-Wire Brewing’s River Arts District Beer Garden, 284 Lyman St. Asheville. Experience the true essence of autumn in Asheville, North Carolina, as you indulge in a delightful celebration of craft … MORE
Local Historical Weather (Oct 03):
| 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | |
| H (°F) | 71 | 78 | 78 | 62 | 73 |
| L (°F) | 43 | 57 | 52 | 50 | 58 |
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Beautiful course but killer with the hil
Beautiful run through Asheville, but the hills plus the altitude nearly killed me. This was the comeback year after Hurricane Helene canceled it the year before. Nice tech shirt and … MORE
Beautiful run through Asheville, but the hills plus the altitude nearly killed me. This was the comeback year after Hurricane Helene canceled it the year before. Nice tech shirt and a standard finisher medal. Well organized, especially considering the comeback from the hurricane.
Great race, packet pick up is a hassle
Asheville is my hometown so any time I get a chance to go back to my hometown, visit with family there, and run a race, I will do it. Lots … MORE
Asheville is my hometown so any time I get a chance to go back to my hometown, visit with family there, and run a race, I will do it. Lots of things to like about this race, not least of which is the location – Asheville. The course is nice but not awesome. That’s not a complaint, it just tempers expectations for those who might be looking for a course with spectacular views. This ain’t it, but you will get some river views and run through some nice old neighborhoods. Not “nice old” as in super ritzy places, but nice and historic, but smaller homes. It’s a very pleasant course.
There are heated bathrooms in the park along the run. One, or two, I think.
Parking requires a shuttle. I used the shuttle and it wasn’t a hard thing, and it’s not far from the start line, but the start line is at a brewery with a gravel parking lot that probably holds only 30 cars. Packet pickup the day before was a real hassle for those who cannot get into the brewery to park. In fact, although getting into the gravel lot to park makes pick up easy, it also makes getting out back to the road difficult because the spaces in and out of the parking lot is tight and it was jammed. My advice would be to park on the road and walk the .1 or .2 miles into the brewery from the road.
The finish festival is great. There was pizza, beer, seating, and it was just a nice area to finish. I will do this race again. It’s a great time of year for a race in Asheville and the weather was great.
Insider tip: The Hole Donut is just a mile or two from the start / finish line. These are THE best donuts you will ever put into your mouth. There are other good donut shops in AVL but this one is, hands down, the best donut in AVL, and in my SO VERY extensive donut research experience, the best anywhere. 🙂 It’s a nice post-race treat.