Tobacco Road Marathon

Course highlights

Both the half and the full marathons in the event start and finish at the baseball field in Cary that serves as the USA Baseball National Training Complex, which has hosted a range of collegiate baseball events and as the home of the University of North Carolina’s Tar Heels baseball team.

Full marathon has 21 miles on the ATT(American Tobaco Trail)

The race follows an out-and-back loop course along both roads and highways as well as portions of the American Tobacco Trail, a rails-to-trails project that follows the former Norfolk Southern Railroad, which was built in the early 1900s to transport tobacco from Duncan to Durham from the farming communities in North Carolina’s Durham, Chatham and Wake counties.

The half and full marathon races begin together on Brooks Park Lane and head towards the entrance of Thomas Brooks Park. At Green Level Church Road turn right and proceed past Green Hope School Road to Morrisville Parkway. At Morrisville Parkway, runners make a left and proceed for a little over 1 mile to the American Tobacco Trail (ATT).

Marathon runners will go right on the ATT heading north to a u-turn at Scott King Road. Runners will then head south on the ATT, cross Morrisville parkway and proceed to the same half-marathon u-turn point at Olive Chapel, just past the Highway 64 underpass . To return to the park runners will exit the ATT at Morrisville Parkway, turn right and retrace their steps to the Thomas Brooks Park. 

The first and last 2.5 miles of both races are on paved roadways and the ATT surface is compacted screenings with some sections a combination of asphalt and compacted screenings.