Garry Bjorklund Half Marathon

Since 1991, the Garry Bjorklund Half Marathon has run alongside Grandma's Marathon on the same June weekend in Duluth, Minnesota, covering the back half of the marathon's point-to-point route along Lake Superior. Named for Garry Bjorklund, the Duluth-born distance runner who set the American record in the 10,000 meters in the 1970s, the race has grown into one of the largest half marathons in the United States and was voted Minnesota's best 13.1-mile race in 2019. The Half draws a large field of recreational and competitive runners who finish through the same downtown festival atmosphere as the marathon. The point-to-point course starts north of Duluth on Scenic Highway 61, tracing the rocky shoreline of Lake Superior before turning inland through Duluth neighborhoods and finishing downtown in historic Canal Park beneath the Aerial Lift Bridge. Elevation runs from about 615 feet at the start to a high point near 672 feet around mile 8, dropping to roughly 610 feet at the finish, giving the course a net downhill profile with rolling terrain and an occasional tailwind off the lake. Field size is capped at 7,000 runners, and recent editions have sold out within a few hours of registration opening each October 1, so early sign-up is essential.