Moonlight Beach Half Marathon
Encinitas, CA
- Half Marathon, 10K, 5K
- Road (Paved)
- Official race website
Get ready for a Half Marathon, and 10K Shamrock Run to remember! Celebrate St. Patrick’s at the annual Moonlight Beach Half Marathon! The Pacific Ocean out and back course is as beautiful as ever! Watch the early spring sunrise change colors along the Pacific Ocean. Running alongside Pacific Ocean and … MORE
Local Historical Weather (Mar 15):
| 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | |
| H (°F) | 69 | 59 | 62 | 59 | 66 |
| L (°F) | 55 | 48 | 50 | 53 | 47 |
Find Nearby Lodging (hotel, rental, etc.):
Cheap medal, run out of water at finish
The course is great and the team are friendly. When we finished the race, we received a very cheap plastic medal on the cheapest ribbon you can buy. At the … MORE
The course is great and the team are friendly. When we finished the race, we received a very cheap plastic medal on the cheapest ribbon you can buy. At the finish line the water tables had run out of water (that’s unforgivable), there was no food, and there was nothing to do at the event. I paid $120 for this event and it absolutely was not worth it. They really need to step up the quality for the price they charge.
A race worth improving
You can tell this race is still in it’s beginning years with a few things to get worked out. Pros: beautiful location with ample parking. Cons: cheap medals… think middle … MORE
You can tell this race is still in it’s beginning years with a few things to get worked out.
Pros: beautiful location with ample parking.
Cons: cheap medals… think middle school participation medals. Shirts & medals all said half marathon only- makes you feel like an imposter if you did a shorter distance. Zero food post race, which at a 10k distance not bad but again there was a half marathon occurring and not even a banana at the end for those racers.
*found out through social media they not only ran out of medals but also water.
I’d maybe try again in a few years if I hear about improvement but for the price I’m skipping this race until then. I hope they can make the changes as they’ve got a great spot.
Great potential... squandered
I really wanted to like this race, and granted, maybe things have changed since I did it in their inaugural year. There wasn't a good way to self-seed based on … MORE
I really wanted to like this race, and granted, maybe things have changed since I did it in their inaugural year. There wasn’t a good way to self-seed based on pace at the start line. There weren’t any mile markers. Barely any swag. It was essentially an out and back twice. What was advertised as 8+ miles of coastal scenerey ended up being the same 2 miles that you passed once out, then back, and then doubled back on. This could have been gorgeous. It certainly wasn’t physically challenging. But mentally, I was over it given the circumstances. Would not do it again
This race deserves a ZERO!
If I could give this event a ZERO I would! 3 porto potties at the START/FINISH line, zero porto potties on the course. People were peeing behind buildings. No food … MORE
If I could give this event a ZERO I would! 3 porto potties at the START/FINISH line, zero porto potties on the course. People were peeing behind buildings. No food or drink at the finish line. The medal and shirt were cheap, bare minimum. Never again will I do this race. I should have signed up for another.
Don't waste your time or money
PROS: pretty course and no long porto lines. CONS: It was empty. The course is loops. Very odd. I should have checked the course more before signing up. We drove … MORE
PROS: pretty course and no long porto lines. CONS: It was empty. The course is loops. Very odd. I should have checked the course more before signing up. We drove a long way thinking it was going to be full of people, spectators and fun. The race medal is really cheap for what we paid. The finish line was a ghost town. My friends are bummed we chose this race over the San Diego one. I hate to be so negative, but we were truly expecting an entirely different race atmosphere and I guess we didn’t realize this half would be so tiny. At least I finished tho.