Mountains 2 Beach Marathon training plan: course, start dates, and plan options
Ventura, CAApril 18, 2027
Mountains 2 Beach starts at 6:10 a.m. in downtown Ojai, just over 700 feet up, and finishes on the sand near the historic Ventura Pier. Across those 26.2 miles the course loses 1,260 feet and gains 536, a net drop of 724, and 18.3% of its 2026 finishers ran Boston qualifying times.
Answer a few questions, choose your plan, then create your account and subscribe to start training in Stride.
That qualifying rate is why people fly in for it. The descent is why some of them do not get the time. A runner who trains flat roads for a course like this will have quads that stop absorbing impact somewhere around mile 19, no matter how good the long runs were.
206 days to race day
Mountains 2 Beach Marathon · April 18, 2027 · about 29 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 Mountains 2 Beach Marathon 2027
Race day is April 18, 2027, which is 206 days from today. Counting back from that date, here is when each length of build starts.
- 30-week buildWindow has passed
- 24-week buildStart November 1, 2026
- 18-week buildStart December 13, 2026
- 16-week buildStart December 27, 2026
- 12-week buildshortest Stride acceptsStart January 24, 2027
You have about 29 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 April 18, 2027.
Answer a few questions, choose your plan, then create your account and subscribe to start training in Stride.
Mountains 2 Beach Marathon course facts
- Course
- Point to Point · Downhill · Road/Pavement
- Elevation gain / loss
- 536 ft gain, 1,260 ft loss
- Net elevation drop
- About 724 ft lower at the finish than the start
- Highest / lowest point
- 941 ft / 8 ft
- Marathon finishers
- 2,060 in 2026 (mid-size field)
- Boston qualifier
- Certified Boston qualifying course
- Finishers running a qualifying time
- 18.3% in 2026
- Typical race morning
- 55°F at the start, 87% humidity, overcast
- Race day high / low
- 68°F / 52°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 Mountains 2 Beach 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 Mountains 2 Beach 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: a loop through East Ojai first, then twenty miles down to the pier
The Mountains 2 Beach course opens with a six mile loop through East Ojai, heads toward Meiners Oaks and onto back country roads, then trends downhill through the Ventura River basin toward the coast. The last stretch is just over a mile of beachfront running to the finish at Ventura State Beach Park.
The race describes the route as descending to sea level over 22 miles, which is accurate about direction and generous about difficulty. There are still 536 feet of climbing in there, so the descent is not continuous and the opening loop asks real work of you before anything gets easy.
Cutoffs are published and enforced: mile 6.4 by 8:05 a.m., mile 12.4 by 9:45 a.m., mile 23 by 11:30 a.m. Past mile 23 the roads reopen and normal traffic rules apply, though finishers still get an official time.
How to train for Mountains 2 Beach
Train for Mountains 2 Beach by building eccentric quad durability, not only aerobic fitness. A 724 foot net drop means thousands of footstrikes land with your quads working as brakes, and that damage accumulates quietly through the middle miles. Runners who arrive fit but downhill-untrained lose the race around mile 19.
Start downhill work about twelve weeks out and build it slowly, because it is the one stimulus that leaves people sore for days. Begin with two or three miles of moderate descent inside a long run at goal effort and work toward eight or ten. Short quick steps, and no leaning back.
Train the opposite thing too. There are 536 feet of climbing here and a 6.4 mile cutoff at 8:05 a.m. that assumes you can move well through the opening loop, so keep hill work in the plan. A pure downhill specialist gets caught out in the first hour.
Rehearse the 6:10 a.m. start as well. That means a 3:30 or 4:00 a.m. breakfast, so do it for real on at least two long runs instead of discovering your stomach's opinion on race day.
Getting in
Getting in is the hard part. The race has sold out every year, several months early, and 2,060 people finished the marathon in 2026 after growth in every year since 2022. Register the day entries open rather than the week after, and book lodging at the same time, since the start in Ojai and the finish in Ventura are in different towns.
Where does the Mountains 2 Beach Marathon get hard?
Miles 18 to 23, where two hours of free descent turns into quads that will not absorb another footstrike and there is still a beach to run.
What is the weather like at the Mountains 2 Beach Marathon?
April race mornings in Ventura County usually start near 55F under overcast marine-layer skies, humidity around 87%, with barely any wind, warming to an average high near 68F. The cool damp start is friendly and the beachfront final miles are open ground. Train in early morning humidity and plan for the day brightening as you finish.
Is the Mountains 2 Beach Marathon a good Boston qualifier?
Mountains 2 Beach is a USATF certified course with a genuine qualifying record: 18.3% of finishers ran Boston qualifying times in 2026, 21.6% in 2025 and 24.8% in 2024. The rate has eased as the field grew from 1,423 finishers in 2023 to 2,060 in 2026, but it remains one of the more productive qualifiers in the country.
Is the Mountains 2 Beach Marathon a good first marathon?
It is not the obvious first marathon. The cutoffs at miles 6.4, 12.4 and 23 are firm, and a 724 foot net drop takes apart legs that have not practiced descending. If you do pick it as a first, spend the last two months of training on downhills and treat the descent as the event rather than a bonus.
Mountains 2 Beach Marathon questions, answered.
How much does Mountains 2 Beach drop?
Mountains 2 Beach loses 1,260 feet and gains 536 across 26.2 miles, for a net drop of 724 feet. It starts just over 700 feet up in downtown Ojai and finishes at sea level in Ventura, and the race describes the route as descending to sea level over roughly 22 miles.
Is Mountains 2 Beach a good Boston qualifier?
Yes, one of the better ones. 18.3% of finishers ran Boston qualifying times in 2026, 21.6% in 2025 and 24.8% in 2024, on a USATF certified course. The catch is that the downhill only helps runners who trained for it. Untrained quads hand the advantage straight back after mile 18.
How do you train for a downhill marathon like Mountains 2 Beach?
Build eccentric quad strength with progressive downhill running, starting around twelve weeks out. Put two or three miles of descent inside long runs at goal effort and grow toward eight or ten, using short quick steps rather than braking. Keep climbing in the plan too, since the course still gains 536 feet.
Does Mountains 2 Beach sell out?
Yes, every year, and usually several months early. The marathon had 2,060 finishers in 2026, up from 1,314 in 2022, and demand has risen each year. Plan to register on opening day rather than a week later, and sort lodging then, since the start in Ojai and the finish in Ventura are separate towns.
Where does the Mountains 2 Beach Marathon get hard?
Miles 18 to 23, where two hours of free descent turns into quads that will not absorb another footstrike and there is still a beach to run.
What is the weather like at the Mountains 2 Beach Marathon?
April race mornings in Ventura County usually start near 55F under overcast marine-layer skies, humidity around 87%, with barely any wind, warming to an average high near 68F. The cool damp start is friendly and the beachfront final miles are open ground. Train in early morning humidity and plan for the day brightening as you finish.
Is the Mountains 2 Beach Marathon a good Boston qualifier?
Mountains 2 Beach is a USATF certified course with a genuine qualifying record: 18.3% of finishers ran Boston qualifying times in 2026, 21.6% in 2025 and 24.8% in 2024. The rate has eased as the field grew from 1,423 finishers in 2023 to 2,060 in 2026, but it remains one of the more productive qualifiers in the country.
Is the Mountains 2 Beach Marathon a good first marathon?
It is not the obvious first marathon. The cutoffs at miles 6.4, 12.4 and 23 are firm, and a 724 foot net drop takes apart legs that have not practiced descending. If you do pick it as a first, spend the last two months of training on downhills and treat the descent as the event rather than a bonus.
When should I start training for the Mountains 2 Beach Marathon 2027?
Race day is April 18, 2027. Counting back from that date, a 20-week build starts around November 29, 2026, a 16-week build around December 27, 2026, and a 12-week build around January 24, 2027. Already inside that window? Stride maps a plan from today to race day, whatever the runway.
How does Stride's Mountains 2 Beach Marathon plan work?
Download the app, pick the Mountains 2 Beach 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 April 18, 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 Mountains 2 Beach 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.