Info

Course Descriptions

*Course is subject to change.

Marathon

MILES 1 - 5

The marathon begins at the base of South Mountain Park, with 16,000 acres of raw Sonoran Desert rising at your back and the full length of Phoenix spread out ahead. The air at race start is cool and still. The ridgelines above are just beginning to catch the light.

The opening miles follow Central Avenue north through the quiet residential streets of south Phoenix on a long, steady descent, nearly 300 feet of elevation loss spread generously across the first several miles, the grade gentle enough to feel like momentum rather than gift. The mountains fall behind you slowly. The Salt River corridor opens up ahead.

MILES 5 - 16

At mile five the course leaves the streets and drops onto the Salt River trail and the race becomes something else entirely.

For eleven miles the course follows the paved path along the south bank of the Salt River, heading east on the outbound leg, turning at roughly the midpoint, and returning west on the same corridor. The riverbed here runs wide and open through the heart of the city, and the trail gives you the full sweep of it: creosote flats, restored riparian wetlands thick with native vegetation, and the particular quality of light that comes from running under an unbroken desert sky with nothing tall enough on either side to interrupt it.

South Mountain rises behind you as you head east, growing smaller but never disappearing. The restored habitat along the riverbanks is home to hundreds of bird species that use the corridor as a seasonal migratory path, herons, egrets, shorebirds, raptors working the thermals overhead. The city exists out here, but at a distance, and the sense of having stepped outside it without actually leaving, is one of the things that makes this stretch of the course unlike anything else in Phoenix running.

The trail is flat and uninterrupted. No intersections, no traffic, no decisions. Just the river corridor and eleven miles to settle into whatever kind of race you're running.

MILES 16 - 20

Leaving the river, the course turns north and climbs back into the city, a gradual reintroduction to the urban grid after the open quiet of the trail. The Arizona State Capitol appears to the west as the course moves up through the civic corridor, its copper dome catching the midmorning light above the mall grounds. Running past it in the middle miles of a marathon, when the legs have already done real work, gives the building a different weight than it has from the sidewalk.

From the Capitol the course moves into the heart of downtown along the Washington and Central corridor, the city's original axis, where the street numbers start at zero and every era of Phoenix is stacked on top of the last. The civic towers press in on both sides and the crowd energy builds. Downtown Phoenix on a race morning has a genuine charge that arrives exactly when the course needs it most.

MILES 20 - 23

The course passes alongside the ASU Downtown Phoenix campus, where the streets narrow and the crowd tends to be loudest. The buildings sit flush with the city grid and the energy here is young and loud and welcome at mile twenty.

Hance Park follows, 32 acres of green draped over the I-10 tunnel, the Japanese Friendship Garden tucked into one corner, the trees spreading overhead. A short climb carries you up onto the park deck. After the long flat miles of the river trail and the concentrated city miles below, the park is a breath of open space at exactly the right moment.

MILES 23 - 26.2

North of Hance Park the course moves onto 3rd Street, trading the downtown density for a quieter northward corridor through midtown. These are honest late-race miles, no dramatic scenery, no crowd noise borrowed from downtown cooridor, just the city passing at whatever pace the legs have left. The street is wide and the grade is flat and the finish is close enough to feel without being close enough to coast.

At mile 25 the course enters Steele Indian School Park for a brief loop through the grounds, the trees closing in, the pathways familiar to anyone who has spent time in this corner of the city, the weight of the place settling in right as the finish line comes into view. The loop is short but it earns its place. It gives the race a proper ending rather than just a stopping point.

The finish line sits inside the heart of Steele Indian School Park, 72 acres on the grounds of a federal boarding school that operated from 1891 to 1990, where thousands of Native American children from nearly two dozen tribes were educated. The park holds that history carefully, in the spiral garden made from the original pathways, in the preserved buildings, in the interpretive columns along the Circle of Life promenade.

It is a finish line that has earned its gravity. Cross it knowing you've covered the full length of this city, from the wild desert edge of South Mountain, along the open banks of the Salt River, through the heart of downtown, and all the way home.

Please Note: Registration for the Phoenix Marathon is limited.

Additional Marathon Information

All participants receive a tech shirt - choose from a long sleeve, short sleeve, tank or tri blend t-shirt.

Run The Valley - finisher medals will be given to those who complete the course in less than 6.5 hours.

Awards go to the top 3 in each age division in the marathon.

Top 3 men and women receive prize money.

The Phoenix Marathon is USATF sanctioned and certified.

Half Marathon

MILES 1 - 2.8

The half marathon begins at El Reposo Park on Alta Vista Road, a neighborhood park tucked into the residential streets of south Phoenix, quiet at race start, the South Mountain ridgeline still dark in the early morning behind you. The opening miles move west and then north, picking up Central Avenue and beginning the long northward push through the city.

These are transitional miles, south Phoenix giving way to the urban core, the streets widening, the skyline ahead filling in block by block. The grade descends gently as the city draws you in.

MILES 2.8 - 3.6

Just before mile three the course briefly joins the canal trail, and the city steps back on both sides. It's a short stretch, less than a mile, but it arrives at exactly the right moment, a quiet corridor of moving water and open sky wedged between the residential miles behind you and the downtown miles ahead. The surface is smooth, the grade flat, and the transition back to the street grid comes before you've had time to settle into it, which makes it feel less like a detour and more like a breath held and released.

MILES 3.6 - 7

Back on the street grid, the course moves north through the downtown corridor. The Arizona State Capitol announces itself before you reach it, the copper dome catching the early light above the mall grounds, a landmark that has defined the western edge of downtown since statehood. Running past it with fresh legs and the full morning ahead is one of the half marathon's best early miles.

From the Capitol the course pushes into the heart of downtown along the Washington and Central corridor, the city's original axis, where the street numbers start at zero and every era of Phoenix is stacked on top of the last. The energy here on a race morning is genuine and loud, the city fully awake and paying attention.

MILES 7 - 9

The course moves north past the ASU Downtown Phoenix campus, the buildings flush with the street grid, the urban campus energy spilling out onto the sidewalks, before arriving at Hance Park. Thirty-two acres of green draped over the I-10 tunnel, with the Japanese Friendship Garden tucked into one corner and the trees spreading out overhead. A short climb carries you up onto the park deck. After the concentrated energy of the downtown miles, the park is a genuine exhale, open space arriving right when you need it.

MILES 9 - 13.1

North of Hance Park the course turns onto 3rd Street and heads north through midtown, quieter than the downtown corridor, the energy more residential, the miles measured and honest. The legs know what they've done by now and the finish is close enough to pull you forward.

As the course approaches mile 12 it enters Steele Indian School Park for a loop through the grounds before the final stretch to the finish line. The park closes in around you, trees overhead, pathways underfoot, the weight of the place arriving right at the end when you're most open to it.

MILE 13.1

The finish line sits in the heart of Steele Indian School Park, 72 acres built on the grounds of a federal boarding school that operated from 1891 to 1990, where thousands of Native American children from nearly two dozen tribes were educated. The park holds that history in the spiral garden made from the original pathways, in the preserved buildings, and in the interpretive columns along the Circle of Life promenade.

From the neighborhood streets of south Phoenix through downtown and all the way home, 13.1 miles of the real city, earned step by step.

Please Note: Registration for the Phoenix Half Marathon is limited.

Additional Information

All participants receive a tech shirt - choose from long sleeve, short sleeve, tank or a tri blend t-shirt.

Run The Valley - finisher medals will be given to those who complete the course in less than 6.5 hours.

Awards go to the top 3 in each age division in the half marathon.

Top 3 men and women receive prize money.

This Arizona Half Marathon is USATF sanctioned and certified.

10 Miler

MILES 1 - 2

The 10 Miler begins at Central Avenue and Pioneer Street, in the middle of the Roosevelt Row arts district, murals on the block walls, coffee shops open early, the creative and civic energy of Phoenix's most expressive neighborhood humming at race start. It's a fitting place to begin a course that runs straight through the heart of the city.

The first two miles head north on Central through the midtown corridor, the light rail running alongside you, the street wide and the grade flat.

MILES 2 - 5

The Arizona State Capitol appears to the west as the course moves into the downtown corridor, its copper dome above the mall grounds, calm and authoritative in the early morning light. Running past it a couple miles into a race, when the body is warm and the pace is found, is one of those moments that makes a point-to-point course feel purposeful rather than arbitrary.

From the Capitol the course continues north through the downtown core along the Washington and Central corridor. The civic towers, the wide intersections, the particular energy of downtown Phoenix on a race morning, it all builds through these miles, loud enough to carry you and quiet enough to let you run.

MILES 5 - 7

The course moves north past the ASU Downtown Phoenix campus, its buildings integrated directly into the city grid, the campus and the neighborhood indistinguishable from one another at street level, before arriving at Hance Park. The park sits 32 acres above the freeway tunnel, green and generous, with the Japanese Friendship Garden in one corner and the city spread out on all sides. A short climb brings you up onto the park deck. After the downtown miles, it lands like a pause between sentences.

MILES 7 - 10

North of Hance Park the course turns onto 3rd Street and heads north through midtown. The streets are quieter here, the city residential and unhurried, the pace whatever you've made of the miles behind you. These are the finishing miles in the truest sense, no new landmarks to navigate, just the corridor ahead and the legs doing what you trained them to do.

After a little over two miles of straightaway along 3rd Street, the course makes its last turns onto Indian School Road, then Central Avenue, before the final stretch to the finish line at Steele Indian School Park.

Ten miles through the living core of Phoenix, from the arts district to the finish, with nothing wasted in between.

Additional Information

All participants receive a tech shirt - choose from long sleeve, short sleeve, tank or a tri blend t-shirt.

All additional information regarding parking & busing, start lines, on-course amenities, finish festival, etc, can be found on the Race Day Info page.

Pacers will be running both the full marathon and half marathon to lead everyone to a fast time. Pacers will be implementing Smart Pacing strategy, which is an effort-based strategy that varies the pace of each mile according to course elevation changes. Pace guide wristbands will be available at the expo.

The Marathon will offer pacers at the following paces:

• 3:10 (7:14/mile pace)
• 3:15 (7:26/mile pace)
• 3:20 (7:37/mile pace)
• 3:25 (7:49/mile pace)
• 3:30 (8:00/mile pace)
• 3:35 (8:12/mile pace)
• 3:45 (8:35/mile pace)
• 3:50 (8:46/mile pace)
• 4:00 (9:09/mile pace)
• 4:05 (9:20/mile pace)
• 4:20 (9:54/mile pace)
• 4:40 (10:41/mile pace)
• 5:00 (11:27/mile pace)
• 5:30 (12:35/mile pace)
• 6:00 (13:44/mile pace)
• 6:33 (15:00/mile pace)

The Half Marathon will offer pacers at the following paces:

• 1:25 (6:29/mile pace)
• 1:30 (6:52/mile pace)
• 1:40 (7:38/mile pace)
• 1:45 (8:00/mile pace)
• 1:50 (8:24/mile pace)
• 2:00 (9:10/mile pace)
• 2:10 (9:55/mile pace)
• 2:20 (10:41/mile pace)

Time Limits

Because the roads used for the race must be re-opened for normal traffic patterns, we are required to set course time limits that must be strictly adhered to.

The course time limit for the full marathon is based on a 15:00 minute per mile pace, which is a light jog. This equates to a 6:33 marathon.

The time limit for the half marathon is based on a 29:00 minute per mile pace, which is a leisurely walking pace. This equates to a 6:20 half marathon.

The course time limit for the 10 Miler is based on a 30:00 minute per mile pace, which is a leisurely walking pace. This equates to a 5:00 10 miler.

The course time limit for the 5K is based on a 15:00 minute per mile pace, which is a light jog. This equates to a 46:00 minute 5K.

The marathon will begin at 7:00 AM, and all participants will need to finish by 1:33 PM.

Those who are unable to maintain the required pace at each mile marker must consent to be picked up by an escort vehicle and escorted to the finish venue, where they will still be allowed to cross the finish line and receive a medal. Alternatively they may elect to move to the side of the road or sidewalk and obey standard traffic laws such as stopping at stop lights and intersections. Aid station support and course directional signage will be removed immediately following the rolling closure time at each mile marker.

Based on the USATF certification standards the course is measured on tangents or SPR-Shortest Possible Route. Therefore if you run on the inside or outside line the entire length of the race your GPS may reflect a distance slightly greater than 13.1 or 26.2.

Aid Stations

Aid stations are situated roughly every 2 miles along the course. There are 12 aid stations along the marathon course, 7 aid stations along the half marathon course and 5 aid stations along the 10 Miler course. The 5K will have one aid station. All aid stations will be supplied with Gatorade Endurance, water, portable restrooms, and first aid. When passing an aid station, runners will always be offered Gatorade Endurance first and water second. Certain aid stations will also be supplied with Carbs Fuel 25g energy gels and other amenities. Additionally, several aid stations will be supplied with muscle relief, energy gels, fruit, and medical personnel.

The Phoenix Marathon will have the Carbs Fuel Original 25g Energy Gel on-course at aid stations. To try out the energy gel ahead of time, Carbs Fuel has generated an exclusive discount code for Phoenix Marathon Runners: Use code PHOENIX10 for 10% off at Carbs Fuel. See Aid Station Map below for details on exact locations and amenities at each aid station.

In an effort to contain waste and facilitate cleanup operations, runners are asked to discard trash and shed clothing as close as possible to an aid station rather than elsewhere along the course. Any clothing that is shed along the course or at an aid station will be collected and donated to charity.

Safety & Medical

Course Safety

Various road closures and vehicle traffic patterns will be implemented throughout the entriety of the course. Law enforcement officers, traffic flaggers, course marshals, and volunteers will be positioned along the course to ensure a safe race experience for runners as well as local commuters and residents. Participants should follow instructions from law enforcement officers and race personnel throughout all components of the event.

Medical Assistance

Each aid station will be supplied with a first-aid kit that will include items such as bandages, petroleum jelly, and basic anti-inflammatory medicine.

In addition to the first-aid kits, designated aid stations throughout the course will be staffed by medical personnel and will be equipped with advanced medical supplies. These aid stations will also have access to EMT services for urgent needs requiring medical transport.

SAG vehicles and ambulances will be roaming the course to assist participants who are unable to maintain the minimum pace requirement or complete the course. Participants will be transported to the finish line and offered the race recovery amenities as well as medical services, as needed.

Weather

Although we cannot predict the weather, we can provide some historical weather averages for the area on the date of the race:

• Average Low: 42F (right before sunrise at race start time)
• Average High: 65F (late afternoon)

Please remember that these are average temperatures for central Phoenix and that temperatures may be considerably cooler in the early morning hours priort to the start of the race. While we will provide gloves, we highly recommend that you come prepared for cold temperatures at the start line by layering and then shedding your layers to put in your drop bag just before the race begins.

On Course

Interactive course maps can be viewed on the courses page.

Road Closures

Motorists in the city of Phoenix and surrounding area may experience several marathon course-related street closures on Saturday, December 12, 2026. Expect traffic to be slow in and around areas impacted by the race course. Minimum traffic impacts should also be expected on Friday, December 11, 2026, in the evening for the 5K.

Street closures will begin at 4:00 AM on December 12th. Streets will re-open in stages with all streets re-opened by 2:00 PM Traffic will not be permitted to cross the race route during the event.