12-Week Santa Clarita Marathon Training Plan

Santa Clarita, CANovember 15, 2026

Start around August 23, 2026. The calendar below gives each phase a real date, then the course guidance shows where to make the build specific to Santa Clarita Marathon.

The Santa Clarita Marathon is run almost entirely on paseos and a bike path closed to vehicle traffic, which is unusual for a road marathon and changes the character of the whole day. No streets to hold, no traffic to time around, and very few spectators. About 204 people finished the marathon in 2025.

Race day
November 15, 2026
Start window
August 23, 2026
Runway
12 weeks
Course
Mostly Flat · Multiple Loops
Plan choice
Current training

Does this window fit your starting point?

Use this window when your recent training is steady and the opening week will not be a mileage jump. If you are returning after a long break, twelve weeks is too little room to rebuild and peak at the same time.

  • Your weekly mileage has been consistent for the last six to eight weeks.
  • You have completed recent long runs and do not need to rebuild from three easy miles.
  • You can protect the same number of run days from week one through race week.
  • You are prepared to begin race-specific work early instead of using a long base phase.

The 12-week Santa Clarita Marathon calendar

These dates define the job of each phase. Your current mileage, recent longest run, experience, goal, and available days still decide the actual workouts inside them.

Settle

Weeks 1–2

Aug 24, 2026–Sep 6, 2026

Hold close to your current volume, establish the weekly rhythm, and make sure the opening load is honest.

Build

Weeks 3–7

Sep 7, 2026–Oct 11, 2026

Grow the long run and weekly work with step-back weeks intact. There is no room to repay missed mileage.

Peak

Weeks 8–10

Oct 12, 2026–Nov 1, 2026

Complete the most race-specific long runs, rehearse fueling, and practice the terrain that will decide the final 10K.

Taper

Weeks 11–12

Nov 2, 2026–Nov 15, 2026

Reduce volume, keep the routine familiar, and arrive on race day without trying to squeeze in one more big week.

Make the window specific to Santa Clarita Marathon.

Course-specific work starts early in a 12-week build. Put the race's terrain and expected conditions into long runs once the opening weeks feel controlled, without adding extra hard days.

Read the full race guide

How to train for Santa Clarita

Two things separate Santa Clarita from a normal road marathon: you spend it on a narrow bike path with almost nobody around, and you drink from cupless dispensers. Train for both. The physical demand is a mild rolling course. The harder preparation is running a marathon-effort long run with no crowd, no pace group and nobody within sight.

Do at least two long runs entirely solo, on a bike path or greenway, without music, at goal pace. With 204 finishers spread across two loops, you can genuinely run miles here without seeing another runner. That is fine if you have practiced it and demoralizing if you have not.

Then rehearse the fluid plan exactly as you will use it. Practice long runs with a handheld or a soft flask, refilling on the move, because that is the mechanic race day requires. And build steady rolling terrain into long runs rather than doing hill repeats, since the paseos give you constant small changes rather than any climb worth training for specifically.

Santa Clarita Marathon course facts

Course
Multiple Loops · Mostly Flat · Road/Pavement
Marathon finishers
204 in 2025 (very small field)
Boston qualifier
Certified Boston qualifying course
Finishers running a qualifying time
1.5% in 2025
Typical race morning
55°F at the start, 57% humidity, clear
Race day high / low
70°F / 49°F on average

Sources

Let your current training decide the actual plan.

Current mileage, recent longest run, marathon experience, goal, and available days determine which plans rank first. After you choose and subscribe, Stride dates every workout through November 15, 2026.

Build My Plan

12-week Santa Clarita Marathon plan questions, answered.

When should I start a 12-week Santa Clarita Marathon plan?

The 2026 Santa Clarita Marathon is scheduled for November 15, 2026, so the 12-week window opens around August 23, 2026. Treat that as the outside edge of the window, then line week one up with the plan's normal weekly rhythm.

Is a 12-week plan long enough for the Santa Clarita Marathon?

Use this window when your recent training is steady and the opening week will not be a mileage jump. If you are returning after a long break, twelve weeks is too little room to rebuild and peak at the same time. The course does not change the opening load you can handle, so choose from your current mileage and recent longest run before adding race-specific terrain.

How should I prepare for the Santa Clarita Marathon course in 12 weeks?

Course-specific work starts early in a 12-week build. Put the race's terrain and expected conditions into long runs once the opening weeks feel controlled, without adding extra hard days. Two things separate Santa Clarita from a normal road marathon: you spend it on a narrow bike path with almost nobody around, and you drink from cupless dispensers. Train for both. The physical demand is a mild rolling course. The harder preparation is running a marathon-effort long run with no crowd, no pace group and nobody within sight.

What if the 12-week Santa Clarita Marathon window has already started?

Do not double weeks or cram missed mileage into the remaining calendar. Use your current mileage, recent longest run, experience, goal, and available days to choose a plan that can enter at an appropriate point while preserving the taper.

How big is the Santa Clarita Marathon?

Small. About 204 runners finished the marathon in 2025, with 191 in 2024 and 137 in 2023. It is a genuinely low-key race run on car-free paseos and bike path, so expect long stretches alone rather than a crowd. For a certain kind of runner that is exactly the appeal.

What is the time limit for the Santa Clarita Marathon?

Seven hours, which the race describes as about 15 minutes per mile plus. Marathon runners can also request a 6 a.m. early start in advance, an hour before the main 7 a.m. gun, though water stations are not fully operating until 6:30 so early starters should carry fluid.

Put the 12-week window against your actual race.

Each page counts back from race day, maps the 4 phases to real dates, and applies the window to that course and its typical conditions.