Clarence DeMar Marathon training plan: course, start dates, and plan options
Keene, NHSeptember 26, 2027
The Clarence DeMar Marathon starts at 7:00 a.m. in Gilsum, New Hampshire, a village of a few hundred people, and finishes 429 feet lower on Appian Way at Keene State College. In between it runs past Surry Mountain Dam and Bretwood Golf Course, and it spends miles 22 to 24 inside the Greenlawn and Woodland cemeteries, where the road climbs.
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That last detail is the entire race. On paper this is a net downhill course. In practice the organizers put a long climb at mile 15 and steeper ones at miles 22 and 24, which means the hardest running happens after your legs have already absorbed roughly 1,100 feet of descent. Runners who read the word downhill and train accordingly get caught out.
367 days to race day
Clarence DeMar Marathon · September 26, 2027 · about 52 weeks out
Your plan starts with your race and works backward. Every week lands on a real calendar, with race day at the end.
When to start training for the Clarence DeMar Marathon 2027
Race day is September 26, 2027, which is 367 days from today. Counting back from that date, here is when each length of build starts.
- 30-week buildStart February 28, 2027
- 24-week buildStart April 11, 2027
- 18-week buildStart May 23, 2027
- 16-week buildStart June 6, 2027
- 12-week buildshortest Stride acceptsStart July 4, 2027
You have about 52 weeks until race day, so there is still room for a full build. Stride reads the runway you actually have and maps every week from today to September 26, 2027.
Answer a few questions, choose your plan, then create your account and subscribe to start training in Stride.
Clarence DeMar Marathon course facts
- Course
- Point to Point · Downhill · Road/Pavement
- Elevation gain / loss
- 706 ft gain, 1,135 ft loss
- Highest / lowest point
- 928 ft / 495 ft
- Marathon finishers
- 308 in 2025 (small field)
- Boston qualifier
- Certified Boston qualifying course
- Finishers running a qualifying time
- 14.3% in 2025
- Typical race morning
- 51°F at the start, 88% humidity, clear
- Race day high / low
- 68°F / 42°F on average
Let’s find the plan for you.
Your race, current mileage, longest run, marathon experience, and available days decide the best fit. Stride maps the plan you choose to race day at the Clarence DeMar Marathon.
- Stride Run-Walk FinisherThree sessions a week with planned walk breaks, cover the full distance before race day.
- Stride First MarathonThe classic four-day first-marathon build: easy running and one weekly long run, no speedwork.
- Stride First Marathon PlusA first-marathon build with a little more volume and weekly race-pace miles.
- Stride 6-Day FinisherFinish your first marathon on frequency: six easy-leaning runs a week, no monster long runs.
- Stride 5-Day Pace BuilderFive days a week with race-pace runs before your long runs, built for a mid-pack time goal.
- Stride 6-Day RhythmSix days a week with three quality sessions, steady fatigue that teaches you to finish strong.
- Stride Time-Based FoundationFive time-based runs a week, mostly easy, the injury-averse way to a strong finish.
- Stride Time-Based BuilderSix time-based runs a week at a strict 80% easy / 20% hard split, chase a time goal without breaking.
- Stride 3-Day Cross-TrainThree runs plus two cross-training days over 24 weeks, marathon fitness on a busy schedule.
- Stride 3-Day QualityExactly three hard runs plus two mandatory cross-training sessions, every workout counts.
- Stride 6-Day CumulativeThe six-day cumulative-fatigue build with quality from week two, for PR chasers with a base.
- Stride Threshold 55The serious BQ/PR build to 55 miles a week: threshold work, medium-long runs, and 20-milers.
- Stride Threshold 70The high-mileage BQ/PR build to 70 miles a week for veterans with a deep base.
- Stride 2-Quality FlexTwo fixed quality sessions a week, everything else flexible easy running, fits any schedule.
Answer a few questions, choose your plan, then create your account and subscribe to start training in Stride.
Choose your Clarence DeMar Marathon training window.
Compare 12, 16, 18, and 20 weeks counted back from race day. The 18-week option includes the complete four-day schedule.
The course: Gilsum to Keene, downhill on paper, uphill at the end
The Clarence DeMar Marathon is a point to point road race from Gilsum, New Hampshire down to Keene, dropping about 429 feet net across 26.2 miles. The organizers call the first half 'mostly gentle rolling hills,' then place a long climb at mile 15 and steeper climbs at miles 22 and 24. Their own summary is 'a challenging yet fair test.'
The route runs the Surry Road down through Surry Mountain Dam, past Bretwood Golf Course, and into Keene for a final third that goes around and through the town. Miles 22 to 24 pass through the Greenlawn and Woodland cemeteries. It's quiet ground, and it's also where the road tilts up for the last time.
Race morning is shaped by the bus. Coaches leave the Spaulding lot at Keene State College between 5:15 and 5:45 a.m., going when full, and drop you at Gilsum Elementary School. There is no bus back to Gilsum afterward, so you park at the finish. The Surry Road from Gilsum through Surry and the Surry Dam Road are closed to through traffic, and 15 aid stations put water and Gatorade roughly every mile and a half.
How to train for the Clarence DeMar Marathon
Train for the Clarence DeMar Marathon as a downhill race with an uphill finish, which is an unusual combination and the reason a generic plan fails here. You need quads that can absorb about 1,100 feet of cumulative descent and still produce force on climbs at miles 22 and 24, when most runners have nothing left to give.
Start downhill work early, at least eight weeks out, and build it slowly. Descents cause eccentric muscle damage and the adaptation to it is slow, but it's real. Run repeats on a moderate grade at goal effort with a short quick stride and no heel braking. Then, and this is the part almost everyone skips, put a climb at the end of your long run.
A good session for this course looks like two hours of rolling running, a sustained descent through the middle, and two short hard hills inside the last twenty minutes. That's race day compressed into one workout. If you can hold your form on those closing hills, the cemeteries at mile 22 will feel like something you already rehearsed.
Getting in
Registration is straightforward. The marathon has drawn between roughly 230 and 370 finishers in recent years, so it doesn't vanish in a morning the way big city races do, though the organizers note registration can close early if the field fills. The bigger logistical fact is the bus: it leaves the Spaulding parking lot at Keene State College between 5:15 and 5:45 a.m. and there is no ride back to Gilsum afterward. Stay in or near Keene, park at the finish, and get to the lot early.
Where does the Clarence DeMar Marathon get hard?
Miles 22 and 24, where the road climbs through the Greenlawn and Woodland cemeteries after your quads have already taken twenty miles of descent.
What is the weather like at the Clarence DeMar Marathon?
Late September in Keene usually starts around 51F with humidity near 88%, climbing to an average high near 68F. That's a damp, chilly wait at the Gilsum start followed by a genuinely warm second half for anyone out past four hours. Get some long runs done in early morning humidity so the opening hour doesn't feel harder than it should, and pack a throwaway layer for the bus.
Is the Clarence DeMar Marathon a good Boston qualifier?
Clarence DeMar is a legitimate Boston qualifier and a productive one: 14.3% of finishers ran a qualifying time in 2025 and 11.3% did in 2024, with rates near 20% in 2021 and 2022. The course is USATF certified and is not subject to the BAA's net downhill adjustment, so a time run here counts as run. The late climbs are what stand between you and it.
Is the Clarence DeMar Marathon a good first marathon?
It's a good first marathon if you're comfortable running mostly alone. 308 people finished in 2025 and 372 in 2024, so the field is small and quiet for long stretches. The seven hour standard, roughly 16 minutes per mile with course support ending at 2:00 p.m., is generous. The climbs at 22 and 24 are the part to respect.
Clarence DeMar Marathon questions, answered.
Is the Clarence DeMar Marathon downhill?
Net downhill, yes, by about 429 feet from Gilsum to Keene. But it isn't a straight descent. The organizers describe mostly gentle rolling hills through the first half, a long climb at mile 15, and steeper climbs at miles 22 and 24, so the hardest running comes late rather than early.
Is the Clarence DeMar Marathon a good Boston qualifier?
Yes, one of the better small-race options. 14.3% of finishers ran a Boston qualifying time in 2025 and 11.3% in 2024, with rates near 20% in 2021 and 2022. The course is USATF certified and its net drop is not large enough to trigger the BAA's downhill adjustment.
How big is the Clarence DeMar Marathon?
Small. 308 runners finished the marathon in 2025 and 372 in 2024, in a race supported by roughly 500 volunteers from around Keene. You'll run long stretches alone through the New Hampshire countryside, so practice generating your own pace in solo long runs well before race day.
What time does the Clarence DeMar Marathon start?
The full marathon starts at 7:00 a.m. sharp in Gilsum, New Hampshire. Buses to the start leave the Spaulding lot at Keene State College between 5:15 and 5:45 a.m., departing when full, and there is no return bus to Gilsum. Course support runs about seven hours and ends at 2:00 p.m.
Where does the Clarence DeMar Marathon get hard?
Miles 22 and 24, where the road climbs through the Greenlawn and Woodland cemeteries after your quads have already taken twenty miles of descent.
What is the weather like at the Clarence DeMar Marathon?
Late September in Keene usually starts around 51F with humidity near 88%, climbing to an average high near 68F. That's a damp, chilly wait at the Gilsum start followed by a genuinely warm second half for anyone out past four hours. Get some long runs done in early morning humidity so the opening hour doesn't feel harder than it should, and pack a throwaway layer for the bus.
Is the Clarence DeMar Marathon a good Boston qualifier?
Clarence DeMar is a legitimate Boston qualifier and a productive one: 14.3% of finishers ran a qualifying time in 2025 and 11.3% did in 2024, with rates near 20% in 2021 and 2022. The course is USATF certified and is not subject to the BAA's net downhill adjustment, so a time run here counts as run. The late climbs are what stand between you and it.
Is the Clarence DeMar Marathon a good first marathon?
It's a good first marathon if you're comfortable running mostly alone. 308 people finished in 2025 and 372 in 2024, so the field is small and quiet for long stretches. The seven hour standard, roughly 16 minutes per mile with course support ending at 2:00 p.m., is generous. The climbs at 22 and 24 are the part to respect.
When should I start training for the Clarence DeMar Marathon 2027?
Race day is September 26, 2027. Counting back from that date, a 20-week build starts around May 9, 2027, a 16-week build around June 6, 2027, and a 12-week build around July 4, 2027. Already inside that window? Stride maps a plan from today to race day, whatever the runway.
How does Stride's Clarence DeMar Marathon plan work?
Download the app, pick the Clarence DeMar Marathon as your race, and answer a few questions about your recent running and your weekly schedule. Stride matches you to one of 14 marathon plans, maps every week from today to September 26, 2027, adjusts when life gets in the way, and puts you in a feed of runners training for the same race.
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