- April 6, 2026
Ella Tower, 5, finished third in the 8 and under category of the 2-mile race. Photo by Sierra Williams
Kids race in the 50-yard dash at the Daytona Beach Easter Beach Run. Photo by Sierra Williams
Ben Tackett was the top male runner for the 2-mile run. Photo by Sierra Williams
The overall 4-mile male and female run winners, Seth Augustynowski and Shannon Jones. Photo by Sierra Williams
The 2026 Daytona Beach Easter Beach Run. Photo by Sierra Williams
Jonathan Stephens and Alexis Day finish the 2-mile beach run hand-in-hand. Photo by Sierra Williams
The McGuire family, across three generations, has run in the Daytona Beach Easter Beach Run since the 1970s. Photo by Sierra Williams
Chris Nash bunny hops over the Easter Beach Run finish line. Photo by Sierra Williams
Morgann Robinson and Ray Jarrett cross the finish line. Photo by Sierra Williams
The Petrella family and friends, across multiple generations, ran the Daytona Beach Easter Run together. Photo by Sierra Williams
The 2026 Daytona Beach Easter Beach Run finished its 59th annual race on April 4. Photo by Sierra Williams
Kim Raymond and daughter Christina Craig with puppy Jolene at the race. Photo by Sierra Williams
Juanita Garza finishes her 2-mile run. Photo by Sierra Williams
Ava Biege was the top female runner in the 2-mile Daytona Beach Easter Beach Run. Photo by Sierra Williams
For Nathan Castor, 23, running the annual Daytona Beach Easter Beach Run is a family affair.
Castor and his family have been participating in the Easter Beach Run since the late1970s, when his grandparents, Tom and Jeannie McGuire, purchased a condo in Daytona Beach. The 23-year-old has run the race every year for almost 20 years, since his first 50-yard dash at just 4-years-old.
He returns every year, he said, because of the memories.
"We've been doing it for so long that it's just something you look forward to at a certain point," Castor said.
Hundreds of participants of all ages lined up at the starting line on April 4, with the city's Easter Bunny cheering from the sidelines. The race had several divisions: the 2-mile race, the 4-mile race, and the kids' 50-yard, 100-yard and .25-mile dashes.
The 2-mile race had 301 finishers, with 15-year-old Emmett Buffington taking the overall best male gun time of 11.43.55 and Ava Biege, 10, the best female time of 13.55.23.
In the 4-mile, Seth Augustynowski, 23, took first place with 22.57.68 while Shannon Jones, 40, took third place and the best overall female time of 25.22.74.
Parks and Recreation Director Keith Willis said the city keeps the race between 800 and 1,000 participants, and this year had to turn people away. Willis has been working the Easter run for 40 years with Daytona Beach, and his own children grew up running the kids' dashes. Now, he said they're running in the big races.
Many people in Daytona Beach look forward to the race, he said, and come back even from out of state to run the race year after year.
"It brings everybody together and everybody looks forward to it," he said.
Tom and Jeannie McGuire , married for 60 years, have been coming to Daytona Beach as snowbirds since 1976. They started running the Easter Beach Run around 1977 with their children, and have returned almost every year since, collecting the race shirts.
Tom McGuire said its great to see their grandkids continue the tradition and Jeannie McGuire said the family never wants to sell their condo and can't wait to return every year for the race.
"We feel so blessed to be part of Daytona Beach Florida all these years as snowbirds," she said. "We will never leave here."
Despite the large crowds the event draws, Castor said the participants are always supportive of each other.
"Everybody's cheering everybody on," he said. "Even when you're trying to pass someone, they're trying to bring you up to finish with them. It's just an awesome experience."
