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Alabama · Mobile · Jan

Mobile Marathon (formerly First Light Marathon)

Jan 10, 2027
Next edition
124
Finishers
in 2026
loop
near-flat · +199 ft / −199 ft

If you want a flat, small winter marathon with a real reason behind it, this is the one. The race that long ran as First Light now goes by Mobile Marathon, but the beneficiary is the same: First Light Community of Mobile, which spent 48 years as L'Arche Mobile building homes where adults with and without intellectual disabilities live together. You start and finish at Mardi Gras Park downtown and run the half-marathon loop twice, so by the second lap you know every turn and exactly where the water stops sit. The route rolls out Government Street under its canopy of live oaks, the January air cool and damp off Mobile Bay, then back along Dauphin Street. About 124 people finished the marathon in 2026, which means long stretches at your own pace, and the 7-hour limit leaves room to walk the hard miles.

Next edition
2027-01-10
Distances
Marathon · Half Marathon · 5-person marathon relay · 2-person half marathon relay · Fun Run
Field
124 marathon finishers (2026)
Course
loop
Gain / loss
199 ft / 199 ft
Time limit
7 hours (18 min/mile pace required; slower runners moved to the sidewalk)
Lottery
No
The course

A double loop of the flat, USATF-certified half-marathon course (AL23043JE) that starts and finishes at Mardi Gras Park downtown and runs out Government Street and Dauphin Street and back, with 18 water stops. Course map ↗

Getting in

Closes 2027-01-08. Registration was already open on 2026-10-14. Online entry closes January 8, 2027, 11:59 PM CST; walk-in registration at packet pickup Saturday January 9, 2027 (Noon-5 PM, The OutSider, 522 Dauphin St). Marathon fee $95 through Oct 30, 2026, $110 through Nov 29, $135 through Dec 31, $160 through Jan 8 (plus processing fee). Paper and in-person entry also accepted. Opening date not published. Register ↗

Worth knowing
  • The race was known for years as the First Light Marathon and is now the Mobile Marathon; the January 11, 2026 edition was billed as the '23rd Annual Walters Controls Mobile Marathon'. ↗
  • All events benefit First Light Community of Mobile, founded in 1974, which operated as L'Arche Mobile, Inc. for 48 years and creates homes where adults with and without intellectual disabilities share life together. ↗
  • The marathon is a double loop of the half-marathon course; both start and end at Mardi Gras Park, and both are USATF certified (AL23043JE / AL23044JE). ↗
  • Find My Marathon rates the course 'Very Flat' with about 199 ft of gain and loss and reports Boston-qualifying rates of 16.7% (2026), 18.3% (2025) and 18% (2024). ↗
  • Results are chip timed but official placings use gun time; BQ times are taken from chip time and sent to the B.A.A. ↗
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www.mobilemarathon.org/

Checked 2026-10-14. Always confirm on the official site before booking travel.