Mississippi Blues Marathon training plan: course, start dates, and plan options
Jackson, MSFebruary 20, 2027
The Mississippi Blues Marathon is two laps of its own half marathon course, starting and finishing at Jackson State University's Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium on North State Street, with live blues musicians playing at points along the road. Whatever the first lap does to you, the second lap does again.
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That structure is the whole training problem. This is rolling ground rather than flat, and the climbs are small enough that on a fresh first lap you barely register them. They are not small on the second lap. Runners who go out on feel here almost always run a first half they cannot repeat.
149 days to race day
Mississippi Blues Marathon · February 20, 2027 · about 21 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 Mississippi Blues Marathon 2027
Race day is February 20, 2027, which is 149 days from today. Counting back from that date, here is when each length of build starts.
- 30-week buildWindow has passed
- 24-week buildWindow has passed
- 18-week buildStart October 17, 2026
- 16-week buildStart October 31, 2026
- 12-week buildshortest Stride acceptsStart November 28, 2026
You have about 21 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 February 20, 2027.
Answer a few questions, choose your plan, then create your account and subscribe to start training in Stride.
Mississippi Blues Marathon course facts
- Course
- Multiple Loops · Rolling Hills · Road/Pavement
- Elevation gain / loss
- 1,193 ft gain, 1,193 ft loss
- Highest / lowest point
- 381 ft / 272 ft
- Marathon finishers
- 237 in 2026 (very small field)
- Boston qualifier
- Certified Boston qualifying course
- Finishers running a qualifying time
- 4.2% in 2026
- Typical race morning
- 45°F at the start, 79% humidity, clear
- Race day high / low
- 57°F / 40°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 Mississippi Blues 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 Mississippi Blues 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: one loop, run twice, through Jackson
The Mississippi Blues Marathon starts at 7:30 a.m. at Jackson State University's Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium on North State Street and covers the half marathon route twice. The terrain rolls. The course sits inside a band of about 110 feet between its low and high points, so the hills are frequent and short rather than long.
Aid comes every two miles and then every mile over the last five, with medical stations at miles 5, 10, 15 and 20. Read that as a map of where the race expects people to unravel, and it lines up with the lap structure. Mile 15 and mile 20 are both on your second time around.
Live blues is the identity of this event and it is not decoration. Musicians play at the start and finish and at points on the course, which matters more than usual because the marathon field is genuinely small: 237 people finished in 2026 and 105 in 2025. On the second lap the band is often the only thing on the road with you.
How to train for the Mississippi Blues Marathon
Train for the Mississippi Blues Marathon by running loops instead of lines. The marathon covers the half marathon course twice, so the single most useful workout is a rolling five to seven mile loop repeated three or four times at goal effort, which teaches you exactly what your first pass costs you on the second.
Then work the rollers themselves. Short hills reward high cadence and punish anyone who tries to hold pace up them. Practice letting your pace sag ten to fifteen seconds on the way up and taking it back on the way down, so your effort stays level even though your splits do not.
And practice the loneliness. With a field this size, the half marathoners finish and leave you a nearly empty course for the back thirteen miles. Do a few long runs alone at goal effort with nobody to run beside. Holding pace with nothing external pulling you along is the specific skill this race asks for.
Getting in
Entry is easy. Registration runs through RunSignUp, the race does not sell out, and the marathon has finished somewhere between roughly 100 and 250 runners in recent years. Worth knowing: the marathon shares the morning with several shorter distances, so the start area at the stadium is busier than the marathon field size alone would suggest.
Where does the Mississippi Blues Marathon get hard?
The second lap from roughly mile 16 to mile 22, climbing grades you already know on a course that has mostly emptied out.
What is the weather like at the Mississippi Blues Marathon?
Late February mornings in Jackson typically start near 45F with humidity around 79% under clear skies, and the day tops out near an average high of 57F. That is close to ideal: cold at the 7:30 a.m. start and mild by the finish. Dress for mile 5 rather than for the start line and plan on shedding a layer early.
Is the Mississippi Blues Marathon a good Boston qualifier?
The course is USATF certified and Boston eligible, and it is not a fast qualifier. 4.2% of finishers ran a qualifying time in 2026 and 3.8% did in 2025, though the rate reached 10.2% in 2022. Rolling terrain covered twice, plus a very small field, makes the yearly number swing hard. Come here for the race rather than for the clock.
Is the Mississippi Blues Marathon a good first marathon?
It works as a first marathon if a small race appeals to you. The limit is 7 hours with the course closing at 2:30 p.m., aid is frequent, and the loop structure means you are never far from the finish area if things go badly. The honest downside is that a double loop is mentally hard for anyone who has never run past 20.
Mississippi Blues Marathon questions, answered.
Is the Mississippi Blues Marathon hilly?
It rolls. The Mississippi Blues Marathon sits inside a band of about 110 feet between its lowest and highest points, so there is no long climb, but the grade changes often and you cover the same ground twice. Runners who train on flat roads tend to find the second lap much harder than the first.
Is there really live blues music on the course?
Yes. Live blues musicians play at the expo, at the start and finish, and at multiple points along the route, which is the reason the race exists in the form it does. With a marathon field of a few hundred, those bands are often the only company you have on the second lap.
How many loops is the Mississippi Blues Marathon?
Two. The marathon is a double loop of the half marathon course, starting and finishing at Jackson State University's Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium. You meet every hill twice and pass the finish area before you are done, which is either a useful preview or a cruel one depending on your temperament.
What is the time limit for the Mississippi Blues Marathon?
Seven hours. The race starts at 7:30 a.m. and the course closes at 2:30 p.m., after which runners may continue at their own risk without law enforcement or volunteer support. Aid stations run every two miles and then every mile across the final five miles.
Where does the Mississippi Blues Marathon get hard?
The second lap from roughly mile 16 to mile 22, climbing grades you already know on a course that has mostly emptied out.
What is the weather like at the Mississippi Blues Marathon?
Late February mornings in Jackson typically start near 45F with humidity around 79% under clear skies, and the day tops out near an average high of 57F. That is close to ideal: cold at the 7:30 a.m. start and mild by the finish. Dress for mile 5 rather than for the start line and plan on shedding a layer early.
Is the Mississippi Blues Marathon a good Boston qualifier?
The course is USATF certified and Boston eligible, and it is not a fast qualifier. 4.2% of finishers ran a qualifying time in 2026 and 3.8% did in 2025, though the rate reached 10.2% in 2022. Rolling terrain covered twice, plus a very small field, makes the yearly number swing hard. Come here for the race rather than for the clock.
Is the Mississippi Blues Marathon a good first marathon?
It works as a first marathon if a small race appeals to you. The limit is 7 hours with the course closing at 2:30 p.m., aid is frequent, and the loop structure means you are never far from the finish area if things go badly. The honest downside is that a double loop is mentally hard for anyone who has never run past 20.
When should I start training for the Mississippi Blues Marathon 2027?
Race day is February 20, 2027. Counting back from that date, a 20-week build starts around October 3, 2026, a 16-week build around October 31, 2026, and a 12-week build around November 28, 2026. Already inside that window? Stride maps a plan from today to race day, whatever the runway.
How does Stride's Mississippi Blues Marathon plan work?
Download the app, pick the Mississippi Blues 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 February 20, 2027, adjusts when life gets in the way, and puts you in a feed of runners training for the same race.
Choosing a training app?
A Mississippi Blues Marathon buildup is months of your life. See how Stride compares before you commit it to an app.
Find your plan.
Your race, current mileage, recent longest run, goal, and run days determine which plans rank first. Choose one and subscribe, then open every workout in Stride.