Predict your Dublin Half Marathon finish time from a recent race, with the course climb and typical race-day weather already built in. Then use the course notes below to plan your pacing and fuelling.
Use a recent all-out race on a fairly flat course in mild weather.
Filled in with the typical weather for the race month. Change it to the forecast closer to race day.
Before we send your report: your gels
Check the label on the gel you train with. We use this to build your gel-by-gel race timeline. Already training your gut to take more carbs? Set your own hourly target.
Get your full race report by email: your pacing plan split by split, carbohydrate, fluid and sodium per hour for this finish time, a gel-by-gel race timeline, and course notes.
Course figures are approximate, from published course data. Routes can change from year to year, so check the official race website before race day.
21.1 km, run in and around the Phoenix Park.
About 85 m of climbing and 85 m of descent, so you finish at roughly the height you started.
Rolling rather than flat. Expect several short rises across the race.
Around 15°C and 75% humidity on race day in September.
We don’t have a reliable kilometre-by-kilometre profile for the current route yet, so the predictor uses the course totals: about 85 m up and 85 m down.
Pacing. On a rolling half, run by effort rather than chasing an exact split each kilometre. Start a little conservatively, settle by km 3–4 and aim to run the second half as fast as the first. The predictor adds time for the climbs, gives some back on the descents and adjusts for temperature and humidity.
Fuelling. For a half marathon, many runners do well on one or two gels, or around 30–60 g of carbohydrate per hour for longer finish times. The predictor’s emailed report and the fuelling calculator give you a gel timeline by kilometre.
In person at the Endurance Lab studio in Dún Laoghaire.
A 60-minute sports massage a few days before the race to loosen tight legs without leaving them heavy. €60. Book a sports massage →
Book it now for the week after the race, once the worst of the soreness has eased. €60. Book a sports massage →
Turn the prediction into a race. Pick the support that fits your build-up.
A plan built around you and your race, adjusted week by week by your coach. See running coaching →
A VO2max or lactate test in the lab gives you heart-rate and pace zones based on your own physiology. VO2max test → Lactate test →
Half marathon plans on the Endurance Lab 7-zone method. One plan, one purchase. See the plans →
The half comes about five weeks before the marathon, so it makes a good tune-up race. Dublin Marathon guide → Coaching →
More race guides. Ireland: Dublin Marathon · Cork City Marathon · Belfast City Marathon. Portugal: Lisbon Marathon · Funchal Marathon.
More free tools: Race time predictor · Zone calculator · All free tools
