Surf City Marathon pushed back to September due to COVID-19

The Surf City Marathon, run in Huntington Beach every year on Super Bowl Sunday, has been pushed back to Sept. 11, 2021, due to the ongoing novel coronavirus pandemic.

The marathon weekend, which also includes a half marathon, 10K, 5K and beach mile runs, was set to take place Feb. 6 and 7 next year.

Event organizer Motiv Sports announced on the marathon website that it is committed to a live event but that it would be too difficult to pull off in February due to soaring COVID-19 numbers.

Motiv Sports plans to combine the Surf City Marathon and Surf City 10 into one event in September 2021. The Surf City 10 was scheduled for Sept. 12 this year but canceled due to COVID-19.

“In case you are wondering why we are combining the events instead of keeping them separate, both of our Surf City events require the complete closure of the Pacific Coast Highway (PCH) in Huntington Beach,” event organizers wrote on the Surf City Marathon website.

“Completely closing PCH requires a lot of coordination and cooperation with the California Department of Transportation, the city of Huntington Beach, local businesses and the local residents. Closing it multiple times in the fall would place too heavy of a burden on those stakeholders. Attempting to host the Surf City Marathon in the spring or summer, before vaccines are widely available, was deemed too risky. Combining the events in September is our best option to ensure a live event takes place.”

The Surf City Marathon typically draws 2,500 runners to its 26.2-mile course. It would be celebrating its 25th year in 2021.

Organizers said those who have already registered would be automatically transferred to the Sept. 11 date. They also have the option of deferring to the 2022 race, scheduled for Feb. 6, 2022.

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