Our new event format has been approved by Public Health England the Safety Advisory Group for Events. We have very detailed plans to ensure social distancing measures are in place through out your race day, along with additional hygiene measures in place through out the venue.
It is very important you familiarise yourself with our updated event plan, check out our safety plan and measures, so you can not what we will be asking of you on race day, and what you can expect from us. You can see all this info on our Safe Race page.
The 2 lap looped Two Tunnels Half Marathon course takes in the the best of the countryside views along the Limpley Stoke Valley as well as beautiful city centre running through the heart of Bath along the footpaths and riverside trails.
There is a cut off of 3hrs to complete the first lap which is roughly 13.2 miles long.
The Bath Marathon is a beautiful marathon making the very most of gorgeous Bath city centre and surrounding historic countryside by following off road trails in and around the city.
The Marathon is also the final race in the Two Tunnels Challenge series; build up to your first marathon by taking part in a Two Tunnels 10km + Two Tunnels Half Marathon + Two Tunnels Marathon. Scroll to the bottom for more details.
Marathon Course Description - (2 Laps, Half Marathon is 1 Lap)
There is a cut off time of 3hrs to complete 1 lap of the marathon, approximately 13.3 miles.Please see the Event Info page for Provisional Schedules.
The first mile of the course is on the Two Tunnels Greenway shared path along Linear Park. It is on a slight incline up to Devonshire Tunnel which is the first of the Two Tunnels. Devonshire tunnel is 408m long and is well lit. The course gently curves round to the left through the tunnel. Next runners emerge in Lyncombe Vale and run along the elevated embankment through a very pretty wooded area.
After
1km of running along the top of the embankment it is time to enter
Combe Down Tunnel which is 1672m long making this the foot race with the
longest underground section in Britain! The Northern side of Combe Down
tunnel is 50ft higher than the Southern portal which ensures a cool
breeze circulates through the tunnels. The tunnels themselves are lined
with a combination of bricks and the exposed limestone rock through
which the tunnels were originally bored.
Upon exiting Combe Down
Tunnel runners head over Tucking Mill viaduct. Runners turn left after
crossing the viaduct and towards the steps to Tucking Mill reservoir.
Following the public footpath leads runners onto Tucking Mill Lane past
the house of the world renowned Geologist William Smith who produced the
first Geological Map of the country. Tucking Mill Lane is not being
closed by the race so there may well be traffic along this section.
Please be careful, stick to the left hand side of the road, and follow
the direction of the marshals.
Challenge Races
The Marathon race forms part of the Two Tunnels Challenge. All runners who complete the Two Tunnels Challenge will be awarded with a special laser engraved glass trophy to mark their achievement (shown below). Plus, the three medals from the three individual events.
Two Tunnels Challenge = 10km + Half Marathon + Marathon
You decide the dates; Two Tunnels 10km (28th Feb OR 2nd May OR 4th July) + Two Tunnels Half Marathon (28th Feb or 2nd May OR 4th July) + Two Tunnels Marathon (15th August)
The trophy design remains the same for 2021. We will be adding a line to the top engraving so it will read Two Tunnels Challenge 2020-21.