Marathon Race-Day Guides

New York, New York

Five boroughs, five bridges, and a deceptively tough finish in Central Park.

Chicago, Illinois

Pancake-flat, crowd-lined, and one of the fastest marathons on earth.

Berlin, Germany

The flattest, fastest Major — home of the marathon world record.

London, United Kingdom

Flat, fast, and famous for huge crowds and world records.

Tokyo, Japan

Flat, immaculately organized, and increasingly a record-chasing course.

Boston, Massachusetts

A net-downhill course that punishes anyone who banks time early.

Sydney, Australia

The newest World Marathon Major — rolling, scenic, and finishing at the Opera House.

Honolulu, Hawaii

A pre-dawn start, tropical heat, and Diamond Head — pace for the conditions, not the clock.

Orlando, Florida

Flat and festive, running through four theme parks — a celebration more than a time trial.

Los Angeles, California

The “Stadium to the Sea” route — rolling hills early, a net drop toward the coast.

Arlington, Virginia & Washington, D.C.

“The People’s Marathon” — rolling hills, monuments, and a final climb to the Iwo Jima Memorial.

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Flat to gently rolling, cool November air, and a fast out-and-back second half.

Sacramento, California

Net-downhill and famously fast — a favorite for Boston qualifiers and PRs.

Houston, Texas

Flat, fast, and cool — one of the best PR and Boston-qualifying courses in the US.

Minneapolis & St. Paul, Minnesota

“The Most Beautiful Urban Marathon” — scenic and rolling, with a tough uphill finish.

Duluth, Minnesota

A fast, scenic point-to-point along Lake Superior with a gentle net descent.

Indianapolis, Indiana

Flat, fast, and cold — a quietly excellent PR and Boston-qualifying course.

San Francisco, California

A hilly, scenic city tour that runs out and back across the Golden Gate Bridge.

Austin, Texas

A genuinely hilly Texas capital course — uphill through the first 17 miles, then a long drop to the Capitol finish.

Columbus, Ohio

A flat, well-organized city tour with mile markers dedicated to children’s-hospital patient champions.

Portland, Oregon

A mostly flat fall tour of Portland with Willamette River crossings and bridge climbs.

St. George, Utah

A big net-downhill point-to-point through red-rock country — fast, but the descents demand respect.

Detroit, Michigan

An international marathon that crosses into Canada over the Ambassador Bridge and returns through the only underwater mile in the sport.

Richmond, Virginia

“America’s Friendliest Marathon” — rolling miles and a fast downhill finish to the river.

Big Sur, California

One of the most beautiful — and hilly — marathons in the world. Run it for the experience, not a PR.

Cleveland, Ohio

A gently rolling downtown-and-lakefront loop along the shore of Lake Erie.

Cincinnati, Ohio

A hilly, festive loop with an early river crossing and a long mid-course climb known as “the Climb.”

Nashville, Tennessee

Music City’s marathon — a genuinely hilly, live-music course that rewards effort over a fast clock.

Eugene, Oregon

Flat, fast, and finishing on the Hayward Field track in the heart of Tracktown USA.

Miami, Florida

A flat single loop over the causeways to South Beach and back — fast, but humidity is the real test.

Virginia Beach, Virginia

A flat, fast oceanfront course that finishes on the Virginia Beach Boardwalk by the King Neptune statue.

Dallas, Texas

Texas’s oldest marathon — a rolling downtown-to-White-Rock-Lake loop in cool December air.

Long Beach, California

A flat, fast fall course along the Long Beach waterfront and bike paths.

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

The “Run to Remember” — a moving, rolling course honoring the 168 lives lost in the 1995 bombing.

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

A bridge-crossing city tour with a genuine mid-race climb — strength over speed.

Savannah, Georgia

A flat tour of Savannah’s moss-draped squares and oak-lined streets, set to live bands the whole way.

Scranton, Pennsylvania

A net-downhill point-to-point that has long been a Boston-qualifying machine.

Burlington, Vermont

A scenic Lake Champlain course with a famous mid-race hill and a festive Burlington atmosphere.

Denver, Colorado

Denver’s only marathon — flat and fast on paper, but run a mile above sea level.

Long Branch, New Jersey

A flat Jersey Shore course of boardwalks and ocean roads — fast when the sea breeze cooperates.

Newport Beach to Costa Mesa, California

A gentle net-downhill point-to-point from the Newport Beach coast to the OC fairgrounds.

Las Vegas, Nevada

An aggressive net-downhill plunge off the Spring Mountains into the Las Vegas valley — fast times, brutal quads.

Ogden, Utah

A scenic net-downhill Boston qualifier that drops gently through the Wasatch into historic Ogden.

Charlotte, North Carolina

A rolling tour of Charlotte’s neighborhoods with cool November air and a steady set of climbs.

Fort Worth, Texas

Fort Worth’s signature race — rolling city miles past the historic Stockyards and along the Trinity Trails.

Mesa, Arizona

A fast net-downhill desert course with cool February mornings — a PR-hunter’s favorite.

Cary, North Carolina

A flat, fast course run mostly on the American Tobacco Trail — a converted rail bed with a downhill finish.

Jacksonville Beach, Florida

A flat, fast Boston-qualifying coastal course — and the only U.S. marathon devoted entirely to finishing breast cancer.

Hartford, Connecticut

A flat-to-gently-rolling fall loop through Hartford and along the Connecticut River.

Fargo, North Dakota

“Flat and friendly” across the North Dakota plains, with a finish inside the Fargodome.

Kansas City, Missouri

A genuinely hilly city loop past the Country Club Plaza and the National WWI Museum — run it by effort, not splits.

Milwaukee, Wisconsin

A lakefront marathon organized by the Badgerland Striders, with more than 40% of the course hugging Lake Michigan and two Hoan Bridge climbs.

Ventura, California

A fast net-downhill point-to-point from Ojai to the Ventura coast — a BQ machine.

Napa, California

A gentle net-downhill cruise down the Silverado Trail through the heart of wine country.

Tulsa, Oklahoma

A rolling tour of Tulsa’s neighborhoods and downtown — home of the famous “Center of the Universe” detour.

Huntington Beach, California

A flat, fast Pacific Coast Highway course along the Huntington Beach shoreline.

Corning, New York

A gentle net-downhill point-to-point through the Finger Lakes — a beloved BQ and PR course.

Akron, Ohio

A twisting, rolling tour of downtown Akron, its parks and the canal towpath, finishing on the field at a minor-league ballpark.

Des Moines, Iowa

A rolling city tour past the Iowa Capitol, Drake University and Gray’s Lake, with enough roll to demand pacing by effort.

Salt Lake City, Utah

A steep plunge out of Big Cottonwood Canyon — a BQ magnet that’s ruthless on untrained quads.

Cocoa, Florida

Florida’s oldest marathon — a flat riverfront out-and-back with a space-themed finish and a rocket-sized medal.

Provo, Utah

A fast canyon-fed downhill out of Provo Canyon — a longtime Boston-qualifying favorite.

Kiawah Island, South Carolina

A flat, shaded resort-island course with a reputation as one of the country’s most reliable Boston qualifiers.

Myrtle Beach, South Carolina

One of the flattest, fastest courses in the country — a pancake-flat oceanfront loop built for PRs.

Lowell, Massachusetts

A flat, fast double-loop along the Merrimack River — a no-frills Boston-qualifying favorite.

Portland, Maine

A rolling out-and-back along Casco Bay from Portland — coastal Maine scenery with honest hills.

Traverse City, Michigan

A flat, scenic out-and-back along Grand Traverse Bay and a perennial favorite for fast spring Boston qualifiers.

Buffalo, New York

A flat, fast late-spring course along the Buffalo waterfront — a solid BQ option.

Carlsbad, California

A rolling out-and-back along the Pacific Coast Highway with constant ocean views.

Lincoln, Nebraska

A rolling spring city tour that finishes, unforgettably, on the 50-yard line of the University of Nebraska’s Memorial Stadium.

Birmingham, Alabama

Birmingham’s signature race — a rolling two-loop city course in cool February air.

Missoula, Montana

A flat, fast valley course that pours into downtown over the Higgins Avenue bridge.

Albany, New York

A fast, scenic net-downhill point-to-point along riverside bike paths — a reliable BQ course.

Atlanta, Georgia

A genuinely hilly tour of Atlanta past Georgia Tech, the King Center, and Piedmont Park — strength over speed.

Big Bear, California

A screaming mountain descent from Big Bear toward Redlands — a BQ magnet that eats quads alive.

Fort Collins, Colorado

A river-canyon downhill down the Cache la Poudre into Fort Collins — fast and spectacularly scenic.

North Bend, Washington

A pitch-black tunnel start under the Cascades, then a relentless downhill rail-trail to a Boston qualifier.

Atlantic City, New Jersey

One of America’s oldest marathons — flat boardwalk and city streets beside the Atlantic.

Carmel, Indiana

A flat, fast suburban-Indianapolis Boston-qualifier winding through Carmel’s famous roundabouts and greenways.

Charleston, South Carolina

A flat point-to-point through the Lowcountry and historic Charleston, finishing among the cobblestones and church steeples.

Toledo, Ohio

A flat, fast spring Boston-qualifier through Toledo that finishes with a lap on the University of Toledo track.

Grand Rapids, Michigan

A flat, friendly fall marathon that loops along both banks of the Grand River through downtown Grand Rapids.

Outer Banks, North Carolina

A mostly flat point-to-point down the barrier islands, with one stout bridge climb near the end to test fresh legs.

Santa Rosa, California

A flat, fast wine-country course with long stretches on a smooth bike trail.

Logan, Utah

A net-downhill romp out of Blacksmith Fork Canyon into Logan — fast, scenic, and BQ-friendly.

Falmouth, Massachusetts

A rolling coastal loop around Falmouth and Woods Hole, with ocean views and honest hills.

Fort Oglethorpe, Georgia

A flat, quiet loop through a Civil War battlefield — one of the Southeast’s best-kept Boston-qualifying secrets.

Erie, Pennsylvania

A pancake-flat two-loop on Presque Isle that mints Boston qualifiers by the hundreds.

Moline, Illinois

A flat, two-state tour that crosses the Mississippi River between Illinois and Iowa and loops around historic Arsenal Island.

Deadwood, South Dakota

A crushed-limestone rail-trail through the Black Hills — one early climb, then a long, gentle descent.

Humboldt Redwoods, California

A flat, shaded run beneath thousand-year-old redwoods along the Eel River.

Allentown to Easton, Pennsylvania

A gentle net-downhill point-to-point down the Lehigh Valley — a quiet PR specialist.

Ashland, Wisconsin

A gentle net-downhill on a crushed-limestone former rail bed through peak northern-Wisconsin fall color — a fast Boston-qualifier.

Harrisburg, Pennsylvania

A rolling tour of Pennsylvania’s capital along the Susquehanna, with a City Island finish.

Newport, Oregon

A flat, scenic run along Yaquina Bay — a cool Oregon-coast Boston qualifier.

Roanoke, Virginia

Billed as “America’s Toughest Road Marathon” — thousands of feet of climbing up Mill Mountain and Roanoke Mountain.

Pass Christian, Mississippi

A flat, fast run along Highway 90 beside the Gulf of Mexico — a true PR and BQ course.

Carrabassett Valley, Maine

A fast net-downhill point-to-point down the Carrabassett valley — with one climb that earns the descent.

Gilsum to Keene, New Hampshire

Named for the seven-time Boston champ — a net-downhill point-to-point built for BQ attempts.

Burlington, Washington

Dead-flat farm roads through the Skagit Valley — a small, no-frills race built for honest PRs.