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Marathon Details - Charlotte Marathon (formerly Charlotte's Thunder Road Marathon)

North America Marathons > USA > NC > Charlotte > Charlotte Marathon (formerly Charlotte's Thunder Road Marathon)

Charlotte Marathon (formerly Charlotte's Thunder Road Marathon)

Novant Health Charlotte Marathon (formerly Charlotte's Thunder Road Marathon) & Half Marathon, Relays, 5K

Premium Listing

Charlotte, NC USA

November 15, 2025

http://www.runcharlotte.com

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Race Details

A scenic, challenging, fast course through Charlotte's neighborhoods, run entirely on city streets. Rolling hills.

Contact Information

Name:	Tim Rhodes
Address:	Run For Your Life 901 S. Kings Dr., Suite 100 Charlotte, N. C. 28204
Phone Number:	704-335-0209
Email:	Email the organizers

Runner Reviews (181)

Course 4.1

Organization 4.3

Spectators 3.4

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Number of comments: 181 [displaying comments 1 to 11]

More Comments: [ < 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 .. 19 > ]

T. R. from Charlotte, NC (12/6/2019) "Okay For Locals" (about: 2019) 11-50 previous marathons \| 3 Charlotte Marathon (formerly Charlotte's Thunder Road Marathon)s COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 This marathon is okay for locals but you definitely shouldn't consider it for a destination marathon. It's pretty much a low budget gig. The course is okay and there are some spectators along the way but the expo is small, after race food is minimal (bananas), and the age group awards are cheap medals (I threw mine away). Having said all that, as a local I've run this marathon 3 times so it's not horrible by any means - just don't expect much.
S. D. from NC (11/3/2018) "Mean 2nd half of the course, seems all up hill" (about: 2018) 6-10 previous marathons \| 2 Charlotte Marathon (formerly Charlotte's Thunder Road Marathon)s COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 Ran the full marathon today on a lovely day and enjoyed the superb organization and beautiful city. Your best bet for this Marathon is to run the half... The first 13 miles are beautiful and well populated. The next 13 are sparsely attended, seemingly all up hill, and you're stuck running among traffic for a good bit of the time.
T. C. from Massachusetts (11/13/2017) "Nice Race on a Cold Day" (about: 2017) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Charlotte Marathon (formerly Charlotte's Thunder Road Marathon) COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 I was worried on race day because I heard the six hour cutoff was strict and I also heard the course was hilly. Fortunately neither of these issues ruined my day. The course is truly rolling hills. As a New Englander, I never found any of the hills too steep and there were plenty of gentle long downhills to help with the course. The water stops were plenty and we have a few opportunities to grab candy and there were Gu packets at two water stops. This is a big bonus for me! The race starts and ends in the downtown area, near the host hotels and the convention center - very convenient. One thing to note is we were in the shade a lot and with low temperatures it was quite cool. On hot days or for hot runners, not a problem but I had to be creative since I didn't have quite enough clothing at the start. Be sure to plan for layers. The race is strict about the 6 hour cutoff and only allowed about five minutes leeway this year. We did have a six hour pacer who probably saved my day with her encouragement and supplies of alternative fueling options like apple sauce. There were several live bands on the route and the neighborhoods and parks we ran through were beautiful. Charlotte, thanks for a great time!
S. D. from NC (11/12/2017) "Beautiful but hilly" (about: 2017) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Charlotte Marathon (formerly Charlotte's Thunder Road Marathon) COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 This is a small bit very very well organized marathon. I was very impressed how most of it operated. The expo is really small and annoying that you have to go to it in order to participate but otherwise extremely well organized. There do seem to be alot of hills but it's a beautiful course. My only complaint... The bicyclers... Even though it's a running marathon, there were several road bikes on the course that didn't belong there :(
N. P. from Charlotte, NC (3/23/2017) "Newly named Charlotte Marathon showcases city." (about: 2016) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Charlotte Marathon (formerly Charlotte's Thunder Road Marathon) COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 This year was my first year running the Novant Health Charlotte Marathon. Director Tim Rhodes did an excellent job organizing the race festivities, including the pre-race advertising and marketing, expo, race day festivities, and post-run party. I am a huge fan of the marathon route. The route showcases the city's beautiful uptown scene, including some of the parks, stadiums, and corporate offices. The route then proceeds to some beautiful neighborhoods off Providence, Sharon, and Queens Road. The route progresses through Dilworth and Historic SouthEnd. The race winds back through Uptown where the half-marathoners split to finish the race, but the full-marathoners move out towards the North Davidson (NODA) area. The marathon course winds back through Midwood and through other Charlotte parks including: Independence, Elizabeth, Thompson, and Marshall. The final mile or so of the race is an uphill run past the Nascar Hall of Fame, Charlotte's Convention Center, Bank of America Stadium and Romare Bearden Park. The course is full of rolling hills so please ensure you train properly by including hill repeats. It makes the course challenging, but scenery more than makes up for it. The crowd support was fantastic through uptown and throughout the neighborhoods along the course. My only complaint about the race was the swag. Personally, I would have preferred a technical style t-shirt over the race shirt provided. I ended up purchasing two New Balance Charlotte Marathon technical shirts at the expo (expensive) and I wear those often compared to the actual race t-shirt provided. I loved the marathon medal. Overall, I would recommend this race to all runners and I plan to run the race again in the future.
M. L. from Orange Park, FL (11/14/2016) "Good Overall" (about: 2016) 11-50 previous marathons \| 3 Charlotte Marathon (formerly Charlotte's Thunder Road Marathon)s COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 I had not run this Marathon in several years, and found the new course to be a pleasant surprise. Just rolling hills throughout, not too many turns, except for the zig-zag at mile 24. Packet pickup was quick and easy while the Expo had enough vendors to make it interesting. The Start went very smooth, plenty of bathroom facilities for all. The aid stations were well stocked and had plenty of smiling volunteers. I personally prefer GU or Blocks to the gels they were handing out at miles 16/20. The post race had sufficient food and beverage, even a small Publix bag was provided which was very convenient. The post race Band was awesome. The only other negative comment was the award themselves, the age group winners just received a generic medallion. A plate or plaque would have been better. All in all a very well organized marathon from start to finish. A big thanks to the all the volunteers and the local police for making this Charlotte Marathon enjoyable.
M. A. from San Mateo, California (12/7/2015) "> 5 stars for Charlotte" (about: 2015) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Charlotte Marathon (formerly Charlotte's Thunder Road Marathon) COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 I can't recommend this race highly enough. Super responsive race staff, enthusiastic volunteers, a beautiful city, great spectators, ample on-course entertainment, and a fun (yes, I said FUN) course. Yep, no doubt it's hilly, but train for it and you'll be fine. Do yourself a favor and stay at one of the downtown host hotels so that you can walk to the start/finish area and take advantage of Charlotte's great eateries and drinkeries (if there is such a word). If I didn't live on the other side of the country, I'd do this one again for sure.
N. S. from Huntersville, NC (11/18/2015) "A Novice View" (about: 2015) 1 previous marathon \| 1 Charlotte Marathon (formerly Charlotte's Thunder Road Marathon) COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 The bad, the good and the great... I've run for years, but this was my first marathon. I heard the rumors about the hills, and how tough the course was. It didn't disappoint! Yes, there are rolling hills, but there are also some fairly steep ones (mile 20!). No announcement was made to have everyone corral up, and runners entered from the front which made it difficult to get to your pace marker. Runners were packed in. No actual address was given for the start line, so runners weren't exactly sure where to be dropped off. Charlotte's downtown is truly scenic and we lucked out with a great day. There were bands or DJs every couple miles, so music meant another mile down. It helped make the race fun. Gatorade and water were readily available. Lots of vendors and a party atmosphere. The shirts were NB sports shirts, very nice and the medal was huge! Now for the great part, the spectators! The local residents were fantastic! Between funny signs, i.e. 'If marathons were easy, they'd be called your mother!' to a guy in an Elvis costume yelling encouragement over a PA system. Instead of being perturbed that they were land locked for 6 hours, these Charlotte spectators turned every mile into a party! On mile 25, I was running out of steam and started walking. A local woman came up to me, and started to run WITH me! The amount of support blew me away! Seeing that finish sign in the distance was one of the best sights in my life. Thunder Road is as tough as they say, but worth every step. You'll be glad you ran it.
K. H. from South Carolina (11/16/2015) "Great mid-sized marathon" (about: 2015) 11-50 previous marathons \| 2 Charlotte Marathon (formerly Charlotte's Thunder Road Marathon)s COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 This was my 15th marathon and 2nd Thunder Road. They made a lot of great changes since I last ran it in 2006. Organization was top notch. Literally nothing I can think of to make it better. The course is challenging, but very fair. The only daunting hill was a long one in the 26th mile. You get to see most of the downtown area and several neighborhoods. A large portion of this course is on shaded roads, which is helpful. With the start and finish downtown, there are multiple hotels close enough to enable just walking over. No need to worry yourself over parking and traffic. I highly recommend the race.
P. S. from Chapel Hill, NC (11/16/2015) "Charlotte on display, but much hillier 2nd half" (about: 2015) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Charlotte Marathon (formerly Charlotte's Thunder Road Marathon) COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 The was a very well organized marathon. Water/electrolyte/nutrition stops were positioned well and volunteers did a great job. The first half was great with some hills. I felt like the 2nd half of the course was dramatically hillier than the first half and I feel like the elevation chart was misleading (did not indicate that there was a dramatic difference from what I recall). The spectators were very good for the first half. However, when the course split for the half marathon finish and beyond, most of the 2nd half had minimal spectators (there were pockets of large spectators that were great in certain neighborhoods, but each pocket would last less than half a block and then spectators were sparse again). Charlotte is a great city to visit and it would be worthwhile for out of staters to take this one on. Just make sure that you #1 train for hills (which I did) and #2 don't be lulled into a false sense of security in the first half (most of the last 3 miles is up hill).

More Comments: [ < 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 .. 19 > ]



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T. R. from Charlotte, NC (12/6/2019) "Okay For Locals" (about: 2019) 11-50 previous marathons \| 3 Charlotte Marathon (formerly Charlotte's Thunder Road Marathon)s COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 This marathon is okay for locals but you definitely shouldn't consider it for a destination marathon. It's pretty much a low budget gig. The course is okay and there are some spectators along the way but the expo is small, after race food is minimal (bananas), and the age group awards are cheap medals (I threw mine away). Having said all that, as a local I've run this marathon 3 times so it's not horrible by any means - just don't expect much.
S. D. from NC (11/3/2018) "Mean 2nd half of the course, seems all up hill" (about: 2018) 6-10 previous marathons \| 2 Charlotte Marathon (formerly Charlotte's Thunder Road Marathon)s COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 Ran the full marathon today on a lovely day and enjoyed the superb organization and beautiful city. Your best bet for this Marathon is to run the half... The first 13 miles are beautiful and well populated. The next 13 are sparsely attended, seemingly all up hill, and you're stuck running among traffic for a good bit of the time.
T. C. from Massachusetts (11/13/2017) "Nice Race on a Cold Day" (about: 2017) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Charlotte Marathon (formerly Charlotte's Thunder Road Marathon) COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 I was worried on race day because I heard the six hour cutoff was strict and I also heard the course was hilly. Fortunately neither of these issues ruined my day. The course is truly rolling hills. As a New Englander, I never found any of the hills too steep and there were plenty of gentle long downhills to help with the course. The water stops were plenty and we have a few opportunities to grab candy and there were Gu packets at two water stops. This is a big bonus for me! The race starts and ends in the downtown area, near the host hotels and the convention center - very convenient. One thing to note is we were in the shade a lot and with low temperatures it was quite cool. On hot days or for hot runners, not a problem but I had to be creative since I didn't have quite enough clothing at the start. Be sure to plan for layers. The race is strict about the 6 hour cutoff and only allowed about five minutes leeway this year. We did have a six hour pacer who probably saved my day with her encouragement and supplies of alternative fueling options like apple sauce. There were several live bands on the route and the neighborhoods and parks we ran through were beautiful. Charlotte, thanks for a great time!
S. D. from NC (11/12/2017) "Beautiful but hilly" (about: 2017) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Charlotte Marathon (formerly Charlotte's Thunder Road Marathon) COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 This is a small bit very very well organized marathon. I was very impressed how most of it operated. The expo is really small and annoying that you have to go to it in order to participate but otherwise extremely well organized. There do seem to be alot of hills but it's a beautiful course. My only complaint... The bicyclers... Even though it's a running marathon, there were several road bikes on the course that didn't belong there :(
N. P. from Charlotte, NC (3/23/2017) "Newly named Charlotte Marathon showcases city." (about: 2016) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Charlotte Marathon (formerly Charlotte's Thunder Road Marathon) COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 This year was my first year running the Novant Health Charlotte Marathon. Director Tim Rhodes did an excellent job organizing the race festivities, including the pre-race advertising and marketing, expo, race day festivities, and post-run party. I am a huge fan of the marathon route. The route showcases the city's beautiful uptown scene, including some of the parks, stadiums, and corporate offices. The route then proceeds to some beautiful neighborhoods off Providence, Sharon, and Queens Road. The route progresses through Dilworth and Historic SouthEnd. The race winds back through Uptown where the half-marathoners split to finish the race, but the full-marathoners move out towards the North Davidson (NODA) area. The marathon course winds back through Midwood and through other Charlotte parks including: Independence, Elizabeth, Thompson, and Marshall. The final mile or so of the race is an uphill run past the Nascar Hall of Fame, Charlotte's Convention Center, Bank of America Stadium and Romare Bearden Park. The course is full of rolling hills so please ensure you train properly by including hill repeats. It makes the course challenging, but scenery more than makes up for it. The crowd support was fantastic through uptown and throughout the neighborhoods along the course. My only complaint about the race was the swag. Personally, I would have preferred a technical style t-shirt over the race shirt provided. I ended up purchasing two New Balance Charlotte Marathon technical shirts at the expo (expensive) and I wear those often compared to the actual race t-shirt provided. I loved the marathon medal. Overall, I would recommend this race to all runners and I plan to run the race again in the future.
M. L. from Orange Park, FL (11/14/2016) "Good Overall" (about: 2016) 11-50 previous marathons \| 3 Charlotte Marathon (formerly Charlotte's Thunder Road Marathon)s COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 I had not run this Marathon in several years, and found the new course to be a pleasant surprise. Just rolling hills throughout, not too many turns, except for the zig-zag at mile 24. Packet pickup was quick and easy while the Expo had enough vendors to make it interesting. The Start went very smooth, plenty of bathroom facilities for all. The aid stations were well stocked and had plenty of smiling volunteers. I personally prefer GU or Blocks to the gels they were handing out at miles 16/20. The post race had sufficient food and beverage, even a small Publix bag was provided which was very convenient. The post race Band was awesome. The only other negative comment was the award themselves, the age group winners just received a generic medallion. A plate or plaque would have been better. All in all a very well organized marathon from start to finish. A big thanks to the all the volunteers and the local police for making this Charlotte Marathon enjoyable.
M. A. from San Mateo, California (12/7/2015) "> 5 stars for Charlotte" (about: 2015) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Charlotte Marathon (formerly Charlotte's Thunder Road Marathon) COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 I can't recommend this race highly enough. Super responsive race staff, enthusiastic volunteers, a beautiful city, great spectators, ample on-course entertainment, and a fun (yes, I said FUN) course. Yep, no doubt it's hilly, but train for it and you'll be fine. Do yourself a favor and stay at one of the downtown host hotels so that you can walk to the start/finish area and take advantage of Charlotte's great eateries and drinkeries (if there is such a word). If I didn't live on the other side of the country, I'd do this one again for sure.
N. S. from Huntersville, NC (11/18/2015) "A Novice View" (about: 2015) 1 previous marathon \| 1 Charlotte Marathon (formerly Charlotte's Thunder Road Marathon) COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 The bad, the good and the great... I've run for years, but this was my first marathon. I heard the rumors about the hills, and how tough the course was. It didn't disappoint! Yes, there are rolling hills, but there are also some fairly steep ones (mile 20!). No announcement was made to have everyone corral up, and runners entered from the front which made it difficult to get to your pace marker. Runners were packed in. No actual address was given for the start line, so runners weren't exactly sure where to be dropped off. Charlotte's downtown is truly scenic and we lucked out with a great day. There were bands or DJs every couple miles, so music meant another mile down. It helped make the race fun. Gatorade and water were readily available. Lots of vendors and a party atmosphere. The shirts were NB sports shirts, very nice and the medal was huge! Now for the great part, the spectators! The local residents were fantastic! Between funny signs, i.e. 'If marathons were easy, they'd be called your mother!' to a guy in an Elvis costume yelling encouragement over a PA system. Instead of being perturbed that they were land locked for 6 hours, these Charlotte spectators turned every mile into a party! On mile 25, I was running out of steam and started walking. A local woman came up to me, and started to run WITH me! The amount of support blew me away! Seeing that finish sign in the distance was one of the best sights in my life. Thunder Road is as tough as they say, but worth every step. You'll be glad you ran it.
K. H. from South Carolina (11/16/2015) "Great mid-sized marathon" (about: 2015) 11-50 previous marathons \| 2 Charlotte Marathon (formerly Charlotte's Thunder Road Marathon)s COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 This was my 15th marathon and 2nd Thunder Road. They made a lot of great changes since I last ran it in 2006. Organization was top notch. Literally nothing I can think of to make it better. The course is challenging, but very fair. The only daunting hill was a long one in the 26th mile. You get to see most of the downtown area and several neighborhoods. A large portion of this course is on shaded roads, which is helpful. With the start and finish downtown, there are multiple hotels close enough to enable just walking over. No need to worry yourself over parking and traffic. I highly recommend the race.
P. S. from Chapel Hill, NC (11/16/2015) "Charlotte on display, but much hillier 2nd half" (about: 2015) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Charlotte Marathon (formerly Charlotte's Thunder Road Marathon) COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 The was a very well organized marathon. Water/electrolyte/nutrition stops were positioned well and volunteers did a great job. The first half was great with some hills. I felt like the 2nd half of the course was dramatically hillier than the first half and I feel like the elevation chart was misleading (did not indicate that there was a dramatic difference from what I recall). The spectators were very good for the first half. However, when the course split for the half marathon finish and beyond, most of the 2nd half had minimal spectators (there were pockets of large spectators that were great in certain neighborhoods, but each pocket would last less than half a block and then spectators were sparse again). Charlotte is a great city to visit and it would be worthwhile for out of staters to take this one on. Just make sure that you #1 train for hills (which I did) and #2 don't be lulled into a false sense of security in the first half (most of the last 3 miles is up hill).

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Marathon Details - Charlotte Marathon (formerly Charlotte's Thunder Road Marathon)