Sioux Falls Marathon training plan: course, start dates, and plan options
Sioux Falls, SDSeptember 19, 2027
The Sioux Falls Marathon finishes on the track at Howard Wood Field, which means the last thing you do after 26.2 miles is run part of a lap on a rubberized surface with a stadium around you. It begins at 6:45 a.m. in the parking lot just east of that same stadium.
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In between, the race uses the city's trail and park system more than its streets. That is the defining feature and it cuts both ways. Paved recreation trail is smooth, gently curved, free of traffic and nearly level, and it is also unvarying in a way that road courses never are.
360 days to race day
Sioux Falls Marathon · September 19, 2027 · about 51 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 Sioux Falls Marathon 2027
Race day is September 19, 2027, which is 360 days from today. Counting back from that date, here is when each length of build starts.
- 30-week buildStart February 21, 2027
- 24-week buildStart April 4, 2027
- 18-week buildStart May 16, 2027
- 16-week buildStart May 30, 2027
- 12-week buildshortest Stride acceptsStart June 27, 2027
You have about 51 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 19, 2027.
Answer a few questions, choose your plan, then create your account and subscribe to start training in Stride.
Sioux Falls Marathon course facts
- Course
- Loop · Mostly Flat · Road/Pavement
- Elevation gain / loss
- 613 ft gain, 613 ft loss
- Highest / lowest point
- 1,534 ft / 1,340 ft
- Marathon finishers
- 404 in 2025 (small field)
- Boston qualifier
- Certified Boston qualifying course
- Finishers running a qualifying time
- 6.7% in 2025
- Typical race morning
- 57°F at the start, 90% humidity, clear
- Race day high / low
- 74°F / 50°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 Sioux Falls 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 Sioux Falls 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: Falls Park, the trail system, and a track finish
The Sioux Falls Marathon starts at 6:45 a.m. beside Howard Wood Field and finishes on the stadium track. The route runs through the historic district and downtown Sioux Falls, past Falls Park on North Phillips Avenue, through Terrace Park and Fawick Park, and out along the city's recreation trail system on a wide southern loop.
The elevation is mild and honest: under 200 feet between the low and high points, with roughly 610 feet of climbing spread thinly across the distance. There is no hill anyone will remember afterward. The city sits on the Big Sioux River and the trail network follows it, so the grade changes you get are the gentle ones a river cuts.
The wide southern arc through the residential streets around 52nd and 57th sits well into the race, and it is where the course stops handing you things to look at. Downtown and Falls Park come earlier. The residential loop and the trail miles back toward the stadium are the part you have to run on your own attention.
How to train for the Sioux Falls Marathon
Train for the Sioux Falls Marathon on flat paved trail, and train your pacing rather than your climbing. With roughly 610 feet of gain across the whole distance and long stretches on the city's recreation path, nothing in the terrain will force you to change gear, which means every pacing mistake on race day is entirely yours.
Do your long runs on a bike path if you can find one. Trail surfaces have a slight camber and a repetitive footstrike, and legs that only know varied road terrain notice it around mile 18. Add calf and hip strength work for the same reason. An unvarying stride loads the same tissue over and over with no relief.
Then rehearse the finish. A track finish is worth training for, because your last quarter mile happens on a fast surface with a visible line, and runners who have never practiced a hard close leave time out on the track. Finish two or three long runs with a controlled, genuinely hard 400.
Getting in
Getting in is simple. Registration runs through RunSignUp, the marathon finished around 400 runners in 2025, and it does not sell out. Shorter races share the morning, so the start area at the stadium is busier than the marathon field alone. Stay near downtown and you can walk to the start.
Where does the Sioux Falls Marathon get hard?
The southern loop and the trail miles back toward the stadium in the last ten, where the course flattens out, empties out and stops changing, and there is nothing external left holding your pace together.
What is the weather like at the Sioux Falls Marathon?
Mid September mornings in Sioux Falls usually start near 57F with humidity around 90% under clear skies, warming to an average high of 74F. The humidity at a 6:45 a.m. start is the part people underestimate, and the last hour of the race can get genuinely warm. Do your long runs mid-morning through the summer rather than at dawn.
Is the Sioux Falls Marathon a good Boston qualifier?
The course is USATF certified and Boston eligible, and it qualifies a decent share of its field: 6.7% of finishers ran a Boston time in 2025 and 10.1% did in 2023. A flat trail course with almost no elevation is a legitimate place to chase a time. September heat and humidity are what is most likely to cost you.
Is the Sioux Falls Marathon a good first marathon?
This is a good first marathon. The course is flat, the field is small at around 400 finishers, much of the route is on forgiving paved trail, and the 6 hour 30 minute limit gives you room to have a bad patch and recover. Finishing on the Howard Wood Field track is a genuinely nice way to end a first one.
Sioux Falls Marathon questions, answered.
Is the Sioux Falls Marathon flat?
Close to it. The Sioux Falls Marathon covers about 610 feet of climbing across 26.2 miles inside a range of under 200 feet, with much of the route on the city's paved recreation trail system. There is no hill worth planning around. The challenge is pacing discipline on terrain that never changes.
Where does the Sioux Falls Marathon start and finish?
It starts at 6:45 a.m. in the large parking lot east of Howard Wood Field and finishes on the stadium track. In between, the route passes through the historic district, downtown Sioux Falls, Falls Park on North Phillips Avenue, Terrace Park and Fawick Park, plus a long southern residential and trail loop.
Is the Sioux Falls Marathon a good Boston qualifier?
It is a good one for a race this size. 6.7% of finishers ran a Boston qualifying time in 2025 and 10.1% did in 2023, on a USATF certified and Boston eligible course. Flat trail helps. The variable is September weather, since the morning starts humid and the day warms quickly.
What is the time limit for the Sioux Falls Marathon?
Six hours and thirty minutes, which works out to just under 15 minutes per mile. The 6:45 a.m. start means the course stays open into early afternoon. Pacers are offered at finish times from 3:30 through 5:30, which is a useful range if you would rather run with someone than alone.
Where does the Sioux Falls Marathon get hard?
The southern loop and the trail miles back toward the stadium in the last ten, where the course flattens out, empties out and stops changing, and there is nothing external left holding your pace together.
What is the weather like at the Sioux Falls Marathon?
Mid September mornings in Sioux Falls usually start near 57F with humidity around 90% under clear skies, warming to an average high of 74F. The humidity at a 6:45 a.m. start is the part people underestimate, and the last hour of the race can get genuinely warm. Do your long runs mid-morning through the summer rather than at dawn.
Is the Sioux Falls Marathon a good Boston qualifier?
The course is USATF certified and Boston eligible, and it qualifies a decent share of its field: 6.7% of finishers ran a Boston time in 2025 and 10.1% did in 2023. A flat trail course with almost no elevation is a legitimate place to chase a time. September heat and humidity are what is most likely to cost you.
Is the Sioux Falls Marathon a good first marathon?
This is a good first marathon. The course is flat, the field is small at around 400 finishers, much of the route is on forgiving paved trail, and the 6 hour 30 minute limit gives you room to have a bad patch and recover. Finishing on the Howard Wood Field track is a genuinely nice way to end a first one.
When should I start training for the Sioux Falls Marathon 2027?
Race day is September 19, 2027. Counting back from that date, a 20-week build starts around May 2, 2027, a 16-week build around May 30, 2027, and a 12-week build around June 27, 2027. Already inside that window? Stride maps a plan from today to race day, whatever the runway.
How does Stride's Sioux Falls Marathon plan work?
Download the app, pick the Sioux Falls 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 19, 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 Sioux Falls 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.