The Marathon on the Foreshore: 4 Flat Laps, Huge Crowds, a Wall at 30 km

Four laps on the Foreshore

The marathon runs over four flat laps, 0 m of official climbing, first heading east then west along the Busselton Jetty and the redeveloped Foreshore, with views over Geographe Bay. The Jetty is the heart of the lap: you pass through the crowds twice per lap, eight times in total, and race reports describe cheering almost everywhere and a finisher chute packed with people until late. It's one of the most supporter-heavy marathons on the circuit.

Flat doesn't mean easy

Zero elevation also means zero variation: you use the same muscles, with the same movement, for 42 km. No change in gradient to break up the rhythm or give you a breather. Then there's the wind: in 2024 reports flagged strong headwinds on exposed sections of the run. On a foreshore there's no shelter. The rule is to manage effort, not pace: in the headwind sections, accept losing 10-15 seconds per kilometre instead of defending your pace at all costs, then claw them back in the sheltered sections.

The critical point: kilometre 30

Several race reports mention cramps around the 30 km mark and stomach issues linked to over-concentrated mixes taken on the bike. It's no coincidence: on a course where everyone comes into the marathon off a fast bike split, the bike bill comes due right there. Two concrete defences: honest bike pacing and nutrition tested in training at real race concentrations. One report describes switching from an over-dense personal mix to on-course electrolytes mid-race: better to discover the problem beforehand, on a long run, than at kilometre 25 of the marathon.

Heat and aid stations

Official data puts the average high at 23 °C and the low at 16 °C, but there has been at least one very hot edition (2022). With a morning start, the middle laps of the marathon fall in the hottest hours of the day. Details of the aid stations (location, products available) aren't in the data collected: check the official athlete guide before the race. When in doubt, run carrying what you need to cover a full lap.

How to use the four laps

Four laps are a mental advantage, if you use them. Break the marathon into eight segments (out and back on each lap) and give each one a job. Lap 1: rein in the excitement, find your rhythm. Lap 2: target pace, check your nutrition. Lap 3: the hardest one, this is where your headwind plan matters. Lap 4: spend whatever's left. The Jetty passes are your emotional checkpoints: you know that at regular intervals you'll be back in the roar of the crowd.

What to do now

• On your long runs, test your exact race-day nutrition, at race pace, ideally after a bike session: it's the only test that counts.
• Train the negative split: controlled first third, build through the finish. On a flat course, pacing is everything.
• Write a headwind plan: steady effort, flexible pace, no panic if the GPS slows down.
• Decide your mental segments in advance and what you'll tell yourself at every Jetty pass: at kilometre 30, your head needs to be as prepared as your legs.