- Weather
- 48°Ftypical startModelled estimate
- Field size
- ~1,500 runners
- Course
- Rolling
- Elevation
- 500 ft gain
State Capitol grounds and Gray's Lake
PR7Weather9Experience7
Early October · Midwest · Point-to-Point
Twin Cities Marathon
Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN · Sunday, October 4, 2026
Trademarked as "the most beautiful urban marathon," tracing the Mississippi River and the Minneapolis chain of lakes before finishing at the Minnesota State Capitol in St. Paul. Rolling rather than flat, with early October timing that usually brings favorable racing weather.
"Most Scenic Urban Marathon"
- Scenic
Opens the race organizer's website
Typical start
43°
Cooler than 76% of U.S. marathons
Modeled historical conditions
Elevation gain
500ft
Flatter than 30% of races
Estimated total climb
Field size
8K
Larger than 95% of races
Estimated field
PR potential
7.5/10
Ahead of 39% of races
Almanac model
Percentiles compare this race against all 224 U.S. marathons in the Almanac.
Course profile
500 ft gain
Rolling course, point-to-point.
0510152026.2
Race-day weather
Modeled from location, month and coastal proximity, not verified race history.
6 AM
35°
Start
43°
Midday
54°
ExcellentGoodWarmHeat risk
Typical start sits at 43°F, excellent marathon conditions.
Typical dew point 36°F, 22% chance of precipitation, wind around 10 mph. All modeled.
The bottom line
A balanced race that suits most goals without specialising in any.
Twin Cities 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 point-to-point course around Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN, 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
- Point-to-Point
- Surface
- Road
- Profile
- Rolling
- Total gain
- 500 ft(estimated)
- Field size
- ~8,000 runners(estimated)
- Crowd support
- Steady crowd support
- Entry
- Data coming soon
- Start / finish
- Start and finish in different locations
Race details
- Typical timing
- Early October
- Next confirmed date
- Sunday, October 4, 2026
- Region
- Midwest
- Editorial tier
- Featured
- Data last reviewed
- 2026-08-26
- Scenic
- Point-to-point
- Destination race
Similar races
Races with a comparable profile.
- Weather
- 47°Ftypical startModelled estimate
- Field size
- ~1,200 runners
- Course
- Rolling
- Elevation
- 600 ft gain
Gateway Arch Riverfront
PR7Weather9Experience7
- Weather
- 47°Ftypical startModelled estimate
- Field size
- ~1,200 runners
- Course
- Rolling
- Elevation
- 600 ft gain · 0 ft net
Event listed as: Marathon
PR7Weather9Experience7