Ogden Marathon course: route, elevation and race day

The race names its marathon certificate on its registration and race week pages: UT26008TJD, issued for the Ogden Marathon 2026, measured in April and May 2026, effective May 12, 2026 and valid until the end of 2036. It puts the start at 1,652 m and the finish at 1,313 m above sea level, and those are also the highest and lowest points on the course. The race's own pages give 5,423 ft at the start and 4,308 ft at the finish, which agree with the certificate to within a few feet.

Spread over 42.195 km, 339 m is an average drop of 8.03 m per km, the figure printed on the certificate. The start and finish are 30,224 m apart in a straight line, 71.63% of the race distance. By the race's feet figures, the half marathon start at the midway point sits at 4,948 ft, so the first half drops about 145 m (475 ft) and the second half about 195 m (640 ft). A certificate gives the start, finish, lowest and highest points, not the climbs between them, so do not read it as every mile going down.

Boston arithmetic. The B.A.A. defines net downhill as start elevation minus finish elevation, and adjusts qualifying times only from courses with a net downhill of 1,500 ft (457.2 m) or more. For Ogden: 1,652 m minus 1,313 m is 339 m, which is about 1,112 ft (339 ÷ 0.3048). That is about 118 m (388 ft) short of the line, so an Ogden time goes in as run. The race's FAQ gives 340 m (1,116 ft) and reaches the same answer: standard qualifying times apply. The B.A.A. also accepts times only from certified courses, and this one is. The standards are on our Boston qualifying times page, and the BQ Course Index compares other certified courses.

This section is Runsy's advice, not the race's. It is how we would run this course from the facts above.

• Do not bank time on the drop. The course loses 339 m, an average of 8 m per km. Downhill running feels free early and costs your quads later, and by the race's own figures more of the drop comes in the second half. Run the first half at goal pace, not faster.
• Respect the altitude. The start is at 1,652 m (about 5,420 ft) and even the finish is at 1,313 m. If you train near sea level, the same pace will cost more effort here, so run the first miles by feel, not by the watch.
• Miles 0 to 13.1: hold back to Eden Park. The certificate gives the start as the high point, not a steady slope, so some early miles may not drop at all. Check effort, not pace, and reach halfway feeling you have more.
• Miles 17 to 22.5, Ogden Canyon: run your lane. The race requires you to stay in the right-hand, westbound lane inside the cones, and leaving it means disqualification. You cannot run tangents or pass wide here, so settle into your pace group before the canyon.
• Miles 22.5 to 26.2: the payback miles. After the canyon come about 2 miles of the Ogden River Parkway and the Grant Avenue finish. A canyon run too fast gets paid back here. Save something for it.
• Train your quads for downhill. In the last two months, finish some long runs on a gradual downhill road, so a long descent is not new on race day.
• Train for a Saturday race and an early bus. In 2026, full marathon buses loaded from 4:45 to 5:15 a.m. for a 7:00 start. Move long runs to Saturday mornings and rehearse an early breakfast.

Turn a goal time into splits with the marathon pace chart, or sanity-check the goal with the race time predictor.

From the race's course logistics, race week and FAQ pages. The race says it is updating its website ahead of registration, and its race week page says those details are from 2026, so check them again before race week.

• Aid stations: at the start, at miles 3, 5, 7, 8.5, 11, 13, 14, 15.5, 17, 18, 20, 21.5, 23, 24 and 25, and at the finish. Every one has water and Gatorade, and portable restrooms.
• Gels: neutral-flavor energy gels at miles 5, 8.5, 13, 17 and 23.
• Cutoffs: Aid Station D (mile 7) before 9 a.m., Eden Park (13.1) by 10:30 a.m., Aid Station J (mile 17) by 11:30 a.m., Ogden Canyon (mile 22.5) by 1:00 p.m. and the finish by 2 p.m. The time limit is 7 hours, 16 minutes per mile. Miss a cutoff and you ride the bus to the finish.
• Getting to the start: buses are mandatory. There is no parking at any start line, you show your bib to board, and if you miss the bus there is no other way to the start.
• Cold start: the race says to come prepared for cold and wet weather, and there are fire barrels at the start. Your drop bag goes on a truck at the start and waits in the Ogden Amphitheater until 2 p.m. Clothing left on buses or dropped on the course is not returned.
• Pacers: American Flyer Pacers at 3:15, 3:30, 3:45, 4:00, 4:15, 4:30, 5:00 and 7:00. They pace by chip time, except the 7:00 group, which paces by gun time.
• Packet pickup: the Friday before the race, 10:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., at the Fleet Feet Fun and Fitness Expo at Union Station, 2501 Wall Avenue. Very limited race-day pickup costs $30.
• Course records: 2:21:56 for men (Riley Cook, 2018) and 2:38:42 for women (Paige Nelson, 2026), by gun time.

Training for it: our intermediate marathon plans are the base the plan bridge above builds from. The 16-week beginner plan suits a first marathon, and the advanced plans suit runners chasing a qualifying time.

Runsy is not affiliated with or endorsed by the Ogden Marathon. Course facts come from the race's own pages and its USATF certificate.