- Weather
- 42°Ftypical startModelled estimate
- Field size
- ~800 runners
- Course
- Rolling
- Elevation
- 500 ft gain
Mount Baker and Bellingham Bay scenery
PR7Weather9Experience7
Early October · West Coast · Loop
Portland Marathon
Portland, OR · Sunday, October 4, 2026
Portland is known as the "City of Roses" and for its dozen-plus bridges spanning the Willamette River, and this course uses several of them on a moderately rolling route through the city's neighborhoods.
Bridges and scenic neighborhood route
- Scenic
Opens the race organizer's website
Typical start
42°
Cooler than 82% of U.S. marathons
Modeled historical conditions
Elevation gain
600ft
Flatter than 23% of races
Estimated total climb
Field size
4K
Larger than 88% of races
Estimated field
PR potential
7.6/10
Ahead of 41% of races
Almanac model
Percentiles compare this race against all 224 U.S. marathons in the Almanac.
Course profile
600 ft gain
Rolling course, loop.
0510152026.2
Race-day weather
Modeled from location, month and coastal proximity, not verified race history.
6 AM
34°
Start
42°
Midday
49°
ExcellentGoodWarmHeat risk
Typical start sits at 42°F, excellent marathon conditions.
Typical dew point 30°F, 38% chance of precipitation, wind around 7 mph. All modeled.
The bottom line
A balanced race that suits most goals without specialising in any.
Portland Marathon is a strong choice for a first marathon, and the course rolls gently without any sustained climbing. The tradeoff is that nothing about it is extreme in either direction.
Why runners choose this race
A loop course around Portland, OR, with steady rollers that reward even pacing.
The case for it
- Runners who care about scenery
The tradeoffs
- No notable warnings in the data.
Course and logistics
- Course type
- Loop
- Surface
- Road
- Profile
- Rolling
- Total gain
- 600 ft(estimated)
- Field size
- ~4,000 runners(estimated)
- Crowd support
- Steady crowd support
- Entry
- Data coming soon
- Start / finish
- Start and finish in the same area
Race details
- Typical timing
- Early October
- Next confirmed date
- Sunday, October 4, 2026
- Region
- West Coast
- Editorial tier
- Featured
- Data last reviewed
- 2026-08-26
- Scenic
- Loop course
- Destination race
Similar races
Races with a comparable profile.
- Weather
- 37°Ftypical startModelled estimate
- Field size
- ~800 runners
- Course
- Rolling
- Elevation
- 900 ft gain · 0 ft net
Event: Bend Marathon
PR7Weather8Experience7
- Weather
- 52°Ftypical startModelled estimate
- Field size
- ~20,000+ runners
- Course
- Rolling
- Elevation
- 600 ft gain
"The People's Marathon"; military focus
PR8Weather9Experience9