The Keesler Federal Mississippi Gulf Coast Marathon weekend is a multi-race event, offering four different distances plus a Beer Mile event Saturday afternoon. Saturday gets started at 8:00 am with our 5K, followed by our Chevron Kids Marathon 1-Mile race at 9:30 am. Head over to Keesler Federal Park for the Fly Llama Beer Mile at 3:00 pm on Saturday afternoon. Sunday is our Marathon and Half Marathon, both of which start at 7:00 am. We offer a Double Down award, presented by Mississippi Power, for runners who want to run the 5K on Saturday and either the Full or Half on Sunday.
5K - 3.1 Miles
DATE: Saturday, December 12, 2026
START TIME: 8:00am
LOCATION: TBD
A 5K that everyone from the most experienced runner to the first-timer can appreciate. Toe the line with Mississippi locals and travelers striving to secure a Double Down award for running both days. This race is for everyone, from sprinters, to joggers, to walkers.
*All courses are very well marked. There are mile markers for each distance event, directional signs for course splits and TURNAROUND signs for course turnarounds. Course splits and course turnarounds will be manned with an operations staff member who will typically be making announcements on a megaphone. Course turns are indicated with traffic cones and usually (not always) have police units, volunteers and/or staff members. Traffic on courses is managed by our law enforcement partners, but no roads are promised to be closed to all traffic. Runners should be aware of their surroundings: the course, applicable signage, vehicles, staff, volunteers, and police officers.
*All runners are required to complete the 5K at an average 29:00 minute per mile pace.
