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Grandma’s Marathon will open its warehouse Wednesday for an apparel sale featuring a $25 deal that allows shoppers to fill an entire gear bag with eligible race merchandise.
The sale will run from noon to 6 p.m. at the Grandma’s Marathon warehouse inside the Wild State Cider building, 2515 W. Superior St., in Duluth’s Lincoln Park neighborhood.
Under the “Fill the Gear Bag” promotion, shoppers will pay $25 for an empty gear bag and can keep whatever eligible Grandma’s Marathon and Young Athletes Foundation apparel and gear they can fit inside.
Merchandise commemorating the 50th annual Grandma’s Marathon also will be sold at 50% off. The 50th anniversary items are not included in the fill-a-bag promotion.
The sale comes a little more than two months after Grandma’s Marathon celebrated its 50th running, another milestone in the growth of an event that began as a relatively small local road race and developed into one of the largest marathons in the United States.
Grandma’s Marathon was created by members of the North Shore Striders running club and held for the first time June 25, 1977. About 150 runners entered the inaugural race and 116 finished. Duluth native and Olympic runner Garry Bjorklund won the first marathon in 2 hours, 21 minutes, 54 seconds. Grandma’s Restaurant was the race’s original sponsor, providing the name that has remained with the event for five decades.
The point-to-point course begins near Two Harbors and follows the North Shore of Lake Superior into Duluth, finishing in Canal Park. What started with 150 participants now attracts runners from across the United States and around the world. Grandma’s Marathon weekend has grown to more than 20,000 participants across its events and generates nearly $40 million in annual economic impact for the region, according to the organization.
The 2026 marathon produced the largest marathon field in the event’s 50-year history, with more than 9,600 finishers. More than 262,000 runners have finished Grandma’s Marathon since the inaugural race in 1977.
The race weekend also expanded well beyond the marathon. The Garry Bjorklund Half Marathon began in 1991 and was named for the inaugural Grandma’s Marathon champion. The William A. Irvin 5K was added in 1994 and now serves as the opening race of Grandma’s Marathon weekend.
Wednesday’s sale also includes merchandise connected to the Young Athletes Foundation, the charitable arm of Grandma’s Marathon.
The foundation was established in 1990 to support youth athletics and encourage active lifestyles in northeastern Minnesota and northwestern Wisconsin. It has contributed more than $1.8 million to youth athletic, recreational and nonprofit organizations through grants, running shoes, scholarships and youth programs.
The warehouse sale is open from noon to 6 p.m. Wednesday.
