Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Half Marathon 2027 fueling guide: what to eat all day, aid stations, and a plan for every finish time

Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas is a half marathon unlike most others. It starts at 4:30 in the afternoon, runs the closed Las Vegas Strip as the sun goes down, and finishes in the dark under the lights at the Bellagio. The course is easy to enjoy. The hard part is the day before the start: you have a whole Sunday of eating to get right, in a city full of buffets, late nights, and dry desert air.

This guide is for every runner in the field, from a 1:25 racer to a first half marathon walker near the 4-hour limit. We start with what the organizer has published for 2027, then give a clock-by-clock eating plan for race day, the station list from the 2026 Final Information guide, when you will reach each station at your pace, and three plans to choose from. The 2027 Final Information guide comes out in race week; check it then, because stations can change.

Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas 2027: the confirmed race facts

You do not all start at 4:30. In 2026, runners were placed in color groups by their expected finish time, and the groups loaded into the start area from 3:40 to 4:25 p.m. Each group crossed the line after the one before it, so a runner near the back could start well after 4:30. Write every time in your plan against your own start, not the gun.

Race-day eating: what to eat and when before a 4:30 start

The joint position statement from the American College of Sports Medicine, the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, and Dietitians of Canada suggests a pre-event meal of 1 to 4 g of carbohydrate per kg, 1 to 4 hours before you start. For an evening race that means a normal day of eating with one clear rule: your last big meal comes about 4 hours before the start, and after that you only top up. Here is the day for a 70 kg runner; scale the grams to your weight.

• Pick lunch the day before. In Las Vegas the easy options are buffets and big portions. A plain rice bowl, a pasta dish without a heavy sauce, or sandwiches on white bread are safer than anything fried or very spicy.
• Plan the timing backward from your travel. The Start Village opens at 2:00 p.m. and gear check closes at 4:15 p.m., so you will leave your hotel around 2:30 to 3:00. Eat the snack before you leave or carry it.
• Late caffeine has a cost. A 3:30 dose can keep you awake after the race. If sleep matters to you on race night, use a lower dose or skip it.
• Half marathons of more than about 90 minutes benefit from higher carbohydrate in the day or two before. See our guide to carb loading for a half marathon for the amounts.

What is on the Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas course

The 2026 guide also listed restrooms at every station and three cut-off points: about mile 5.4 by 7:40 p.m., about mile 8 by 8:15 p.m., and about mile 9.7 by 8:55 p.m. Runners who fall behind can ride a sag wagon forward and keep going at the minimum pace. The 2027 cut-offs are not published yet.

Two details matter for fueling. First, the gel stations are run by The Feed, and the 2026 guide did not name the gel brand. If you do not know what will be handed out, carry your own gels and treat the course gels as spares. Second, Mortal Hydration is an electrolyte drink. We could not confirm its carbohydrate per serving on the brand's own site, so count it as fluid and sodium, and count your carbohydrate from what you carry. If you want to count it, read the label on a packet before race day.

When you will reach each station at your pace

Elapsed time from your own start at an even pace. With the 4-hour limit, every column fits. Notice the first gel station: a 1:30 runner reaches it at 31 minutes, a 3:30 runner at 1:12. The same station plays a very different role at different paces.

Add your start time to see the clock. A 2:00 runner who crosses the line at 4:35 reaches the second gel station at about 5:42 p.m., just after sunset, and finishes around 6:35 in the dark. A 3:30 runner finishes after 8:00 p.m., when the air is at its coolest for the race.

Pick your plan: three runner profiles

World Athletics’ consensus statement suggests 30 to 60 g of carbohydrate per hour for events of about one to two and a half hours, and more only for longer events or runners who have trained for it. Research on multiple transportable carbohydrates shows intakes above 60 g per hour only absorb well with glucose plus fructose products and a trained gut. A half marathon is short enough that many runners do well in the middle of that range. These three profiles use rates a 25 g gel can actually hit: 75 g per hour is a gel every 20 minutes, 60 g every 25 minutes, and 50 g every 30 minutes.

Racing it: at 75 g per hour, a 1:35 race needs about 120 g. That is a gel 10 to 15 minutes before your group starts, then gels at about 20, 40, 60, and 80 minutes: five gels, 125 g. Take them with water at the station closest to each time. A gel after 80 minutes at this pace has little time to help. Do not try 75 g per hour for the first time in Las Vegas; build it in long runs and race-pace sessions.

Steady half: at 60 g per hour, a 2:00 race needs about 120 g. A gel before the start, then one every 25 minutes, at about 25, 50, 75, and 100 minutes. That lines up well with the stations: the first course gel at 41 minutes and the second at 1:07 can replace two of yours if you know the product. Write the grams next to each item; it is the easiest way to see if a plan is too light or too heavy.

Long day: three hours or more on your feet still needs fuel. At 50 g per hour, a 3:00 finish needs about 150 g, more than many fast runners take. That is six 25 g gels, or a mix of gels and chews. Small doses every 15 minutes are kinder to the stomach than a full gel every half hour. Carry a small bottle or soft flask, because the stations are crowded and you may not want to stop at each one.

Crowded stations: how to get your drink

• The 2026 guide asked runners to move to the right as they approach a station, take items from the volunteers, and keep moving. Do not stop at the first table.
• The first stations are the most crowded, because the field is still packed together. If you drank well in the afternoon and took a gel before the start, you can skip mile 1.1.
• Carry your own gels. Then the stations only need to give you water, and you are never stuck behind a crowd waiting for a gel.
• Tear the top of your gel before the station, so you can drink with the same hand.
• Throw cups into the bins at the stations, not into the road.

Caffeine, sodium, and the things runners forget

• Caffeine: the ISSN position stand supports 3 to 6 mg per kg about 60 minutes before exercise. For a 70 kg runner, 3 mg per kg is 210 mg. Count coffee from lunch, pre-race products, and caffeinated gels together, and remember the race ends at night.
• Sodium: in a cool evening race most runners do not need extra salt. Mortal Hydration at four stations is an electrolyte drink; heavy, salty sweaters can add a tested salt product.
• Cold fingers: gloves make gels hard to open. Practise with gloves, or carry gels with tear tops you can open with your teeth.
• Clothing you drop on the course is donated to a local shelter, so an old layer for the start is not wasted.

Hydration for dry desert air and a cold night

In late February, Las Vegas averages a daily high near 65 °F (18 °C) and a low near 45 °F (7 °C), according to Weather Spark. A wet day comes about one time in eight, and the air is almost never muggy. Sunset is around 5:25 p.m., so you start in the last daylight near the warmest part of the day and finish after dark as the temperature falls. The 2026 guide warned that Vegas can be chilly at night and suggested layers, a thin hat, and gloves.

Dry air makes sweat evaporate fast, so your shirt stays dry and you may not feel how much you lose. The answer is not to drink at every table. World Athletics warns against drinking more than you sweat; finishing heavier than you started is a sign of overdrinking. Drink steadily through the day, take a few sips at your chosen stations, and use thirst as a guide in the cool second half.

• Test your sweat rate on a cool evening run before race week.
• Choose your stations now; eight stations do not need eight decisions.
• Use gear check for a warm, dry top for after the race. You cool down fast once you stop.
• Seek help for confusion, severe headache, repeated vomiting, or collapse, whatever the clock says.

Course tactics: where the Strip tempts you

• Start to mile 3: the whole course runs on Las Vegas Boulevard. You begin at New York-New York, head south at first, and turn back north. Crowds, music, and lights make it easy to start too fast. Your pre-start gel covers this stretch.
• Miles 3 to 8: north past the big resorts toward downtown, with the first gel station at 4.5 and the first cut-off near 5.4. This is where you settle into your gel rhythm. Most runners pass sunset here.
• Miles 8 to 10: the turn near Charleston Boulevard, with cut-offs near miles 8 and 9.7 in 2026. It is darker and cooler now. Take your last full gel by about mile 10 at most paces.
• Miles 10 to 13.1: back south down the Strip to the Bellagio. Stations at 10.3 and 11.8 are for water. Do not stop to film the lights at the finish; keep moving into the finish area.

The rehearsal that makes the plan real

An evening race needs an evening rehearsal. At least once, do a long run that starts at 4:30 in the afternoon. Eat breakfast, lunch at 12:00 to 12:30, and the 2:30 snack exactly as you plan to on race day, then run with the same gels at the same times. Most runners only ever train in the morning, and lunch four hours before running is new to them. Find out in training whether your lunch choice sits well.

Then simplify. If five gels feel like too many, use the course gels for two of them, but only if you have tried the product. If a gel every 25 minutes is hard to remember in the noise, tie them to stations instead. The best plan is the one you can still follow at mile 10 with a band playing next to you.

Race-week Las Vegas checklist

• Download the 2027 Final Information guide and check the station list, cut-offs, and your color group loading time.
• Pick your Saturday dinner and Sunday lunch before you travel; book them if you need to.
• Plan how you get to the Start Village and when, then work your snack time backward from it.
• Lay out every carried item, add one backup, and write grams and timing on one card.
• Pack warm layers for the start and a dry top for gear check.
• Do not buy an unfamiliar gel at the expo because the flavor sounds good.

Frequently asked questions

Sources and update notes

1. 1Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Course OverviewRock 'n' Roll Running SeriesAccessed October 9, 2026; 2027 date, 4:30 p.m. start, start and finish, 4-hour limit, night race
2. 2Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Event ScheduleRock 'n' Roll Running Series2027 expo, Start Village opening, gear check hours, 5K start
3. 32026 Las Vegas Participant Final InformationRock 'n' Roll Running Series2026 station miles and products, color group loading times, cut-offs, minimum pace, finish-area drinks, cold-weather advice
4. 4Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas FAQsRock 'n' Roll Running SeriesWater, sports drink, and sport gel on course
5. 5Nutrition and Athletic Performance (Joint Position Statement)Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (Thomas et al., 2016)Pre-event meal of 1 to 4 g/kg 1 to 4 hours before; carbohydrate in the days before events over 90 minutes
6. 6Exercise and Fluid Replacement: ACSM Position StandMedicine and Science in Sports and Exercise (Sawka et al., 2007)About 5 to 7 ml/kg of fluid around 4 hours before exercise
7. 7Nutrition for Athletics: 2019 IAAF Consensus StatementWorld AthleticsCarbohydrate ranges by event length and hydration guidance
8. 8A Step Towards Personalized Sports Nutrition: Carbohydrate Intake During ExerciseSports Medicine (Jeukendrup, 2014)Multiple transportable carbohydrates and intakes above 60 g per hour
9. 9International Society of Sports Nutrition Position Stand: Caffeine and Exercise PerformanceJISSN (2021)3 to 6 mg per kg dosing guidance
10. 10February Weather in Las VegasWeather SparkLate-February temperature, wet-day, humidity, and sunset averages