Build your Great Ocean Road Marathon plan
The instant browser builder stops at the marathon, so this one comes from the coach itself. Tell it your race date, your weekly mileage, and the terrain you can get to, and it writes the whole build and keeps adapting it as you log the training. Free account, no card. You are about 29 weeks out.
- Distances
- 44K
- Terrain
- Hilly
- Taper starts
- April 28, 2027
Course
The Great Ocean Road Marathon course
The festival's headline race is a 44 km point-to-point on the fully closed Great Ocean Road, starting at the Lorne Surf Life Saving Club at 8:00 am and finishing outside the Apollo Bay Hotel. The road hugs the Southern Ocean through Wye River, Kennett River and Skenes Creek, with koalas often spotted in the trees along the way.
Read the full course notes
It is a coastal road of constant rises, descents and sweeping bends rather than one big climb, with headlands such as Cape Patton among the high points; the organisers publish an interactive elevation map but no total figure. The 60 km ultra on the same morning adds an inland section through the forest, and the 23 km half marathon starts at Kennett River. The cut-off is 6 hours 30 minutes because the road must reopen by 2:30 pm.
- Terrain
- Hilly
- Distances
- 44K
- Weather on race day
- Mid-May on this coast is usually cool, around 10–15 °C during the race, and showers are common at this time of year. Wind off the Southern Ocean is the main variable: some years are calm, others bring a stiff breeze that you will feel on the exposed headlands. Dress in layers you can manage on the run and carry a light jacket if rain is forecast.
What to train for
Train for 44 km of constant undulation: do your long runs on rolling roads and build to 32–36 km, running the second half at goal effort rather than goal pace.
Add weekly hill work (8–10 x 2 minutes uphill) and practise downhill running, because the descents into Wye River, Kennett River and Apollo Bay reward relaxed, quick feet.
Pace by heart rate or effort, since the bends and grades make even splits unrealistic. If you are stepping up to the 60 km ultra, add back-to-back long runs at weekends and practise eating real food at easy pace.
Sample week
A sample Great Ocean Road Marathon training week
A week from the middle of the build, about six weeks out. Your plan sets the real distances and paces from your own fitness and adjusts them every week as you train.
- Monday
- Rest, or 20 minutes of mobility
- Tuesday Key session
- Hill repeats: 10 × 2 min up a steady grade, jog back down
- Wednesday
- Easy run, 10 km
- Thursday Key session
- Goal-pace run, 13 km with 6 km at race pace
- Friday
- Recovery run, 6 km, or cross-train
- Saturday Key session
- Long run, 29–32 km on trail, with as much climbing as you can find
- Sunday Key session
- Second long day, 16–19 km easy on tired legs
Your build to race day
Taper
Tapering for the Great Ocean Road Marathon
Start the taper two to three weeks before race day. Cut your weekly volume by about a third, then by half in race week, and keep a few short efforts at race pace so your legs stay sharp. The course is hilly, so keep one short hill session in the first taper week to keep the climbs familiar. With the race on May 16, 2027, your taper starts around April 28, 2027.
Great Ocean Road Marathon training questions
How long should I train for the Great Ocean Road Marathon?
Most runners give a 44k race twenty to twenty-four weeks of focused training on top of a season of consistent aerobic mileage. The coach counts back from your actual race date, so if you have less time than that it builds the best plan the remaining weeks allow rather than pretending you have longer.
Is the Great Ocean Road Marathon course hilly?
Hilly. The festival's headline race is a 44 km point-to-point on the fully closed Great Ocean Road, starting at the Lorne Surf Life Saving Club at 8:00 am and finishing outside the Apollo Bay Hotel.
What is the weather usually like at the Great Ocean Road Marathon?
Mid-May on this coast is usually cool, around 10–15 °C during the race, and showers are common at this time of year. Wind off the Southern Ocean is the main variable: some years are calm, others bring a stiff breeze that you will feel on the exposed headlands. Dress in layers you can manage on the run and carry a light jacket if rain is forecast.
When should I start tapering for the Great Ocean Road Marathon?
Start the taper two to three weeks before race day. Cut your weekly volume by about a third, then by half in race week, and keep a few short efforts at race pace so your legs stay sharp. The course is hilly, so keep one short hill session in the first taper week to keep the climbs familiar. With the race on May 16, 2027, your taper starts around April 28, 2027.
Do I need an account to get a Great Ocean Road Marathon training plan?
For this one, yes. The instant browser builder stops at the marathon, so an ultra plan comes from the coach itself, which needs a free account. Still no card, and the plan adapts as you log the training.