2025 Garry Bjorklund Half Marathon Smashes Previous Sellout Record

Duluth's Grandma's Marathon and the associated races with marathon weekend continue to grow in popularity as the event continues to be one of the biggest marathon events in the country.

Since the pandemic, the marathon has seen a noticeable uptick in interest, with registration for the full marathon, Garry Bjorklund Half Marathon, and the William A. Irvin 5K reaching sell-out capacity in timeframes shorter than through much of the decades-long history of the event.

The popularity of Grandma's Marathon and the other races of the weekend has consistently propelled the event into top-20 territory in terms of the largest marathons in the country. In 2023, for example, it was actually the 10th largest in the United States.

The beauty of the course and the awesome experience provided by volunteers are just part of that story.

Last year, the Garry Bjorklund Half Marathon set a new record for the fastest sellout, reaching that mark in under 5 days. Registration for the 2024 event opened on October 1, and they announced a record time for sellout early October 5.

This year, that record was blown out of the water!

Registration for the 2025 Grandma's Marathon Weekend events opened once again at 7 pm on October 1. In less than a day, race organizers announced that the event had sold out. Wow!

In a Facebook post, race officials said the Garry Bjorklund Half Marathon had sold out less than 18 hours after registration opened, blowing away the previous record set last year.

The social media post went on to thank everyone for their enthusiasm for the event and for choosing to "spend your time and energy in little ol' Duluth".

In an update from Marketing & PR Director Zach Schneider, all three races got off to a fast start in registrations. Zach said it was one of the strongest opening rushes the events have ever seen, with over 5,700 people registering for at least one of the events within the first two hours of registration on Tuesday night.

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The 2025 Grandma's Marathon and Garry Bjorklund Half Marathon will be on Saturday, June 21, 2025, with the newly-modified William A. Irvin 5K happening on Friday, June 20.

The new 5K course and time were inspired by construction outside the Lake Superior Maritime Visitor Center, but if it goes well, it may become a new tradition. The new course will move the finish line to the same finish line area for Grandma's Marathon, and the race will start earlier in the day, at 1:00 pm, rather than later in the evening.