If you ever wanted to find out what your body’s absolute limit is, then Beach to Brother is the event which could tick all the right boxes.

The main event involves a 42-kilometre marathon run from Town Beach which follows the coast down to Laurieton, but the final step is a killer.

Runners will be required to run up North Brother Mountain, but the view at the top is breathtaking and worth the hard work which is required.

Organiser Mick Maher said the event wasn’t the first of its kind nationally, but it is for the region.

“In saying that, I can’t find any other event that starts on a beach and finishes atop a mountain in a national park,” he said.

“Competitors will encounter beaches, coastal paths, more beaches, dramatic headland tracks, coffee rock, bush-trails, break wall paths that are flat, undulating, or downright vertical.

“The coffee rock section of the beach as you approach Lake Cathie is a killer if the tide is a little high because the higher the tide the more time you spend on the rock platform.”

Maher said it had been a couple of years in the making and came about due to people in the running community always looking for the next challenge.

“In the early 80s finishing a half marathon was the challenge and in the 90s finishing a marathon was unique, but now most people just shrug and say ‘yes, I’ve completed a marathon too’ as if it’s nothing at all,” he said.

If the full marathon and then running up a mountain isn’t quite for you, there are two other options on the day.

“Having the option to conquer such a challenging hill at the end of a marathon, or a half-marathon, or a 10km run, is what raises the bar. It’s about bragging rights I suppose,” Maher said.

Already more than 100 registrations have been received in two weeks, with more than 80 per cent coming from areas well outside Port Macquarie.

Maher has received entries from people in the ACT, Queensland and even those in Western Australia are contemplating heading east to tackle the mountain.

“I’d say the biggest benefit is getting our community out and about and showing them places they might not have known about before,” he said.

“Areas such as the whole Grant’s Head area of stunning headlands and trails that run from Bonny Hills through to Camden Haven are amazing.

“Many locals, even runners, still haven’t ventured up the North Brother trail and it’s good to have an event they don’t have to drive seven hours to compete in,” Maher said.

For further information head to www.facebook.com/beachtobrother.

Early bird entries are still available for those who want to grab a bargain.

The marathon costs $110, the team-relay marathon costs $160, the half marathon $75, and the 10-kilometre costs $45.