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Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon

Start 06:306:30 AM Oklahoma City

The Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon is a course of 42.2 km (26.2 miles) with 112.6 m (369 ft) of climbing. Its lowest point is 344 m (1,129 ft) and its highest 384 m (1,260 ft) above sea level. Next race: Sunday 25 April 2027, starting at 6:30 AM.

Oklahoma City
Oklahoma City. Photograph by Greater Oklahoma City Chamber and Oklahoma City Convention and Visitors Bureau, CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons . Course line © OpenStreetMap contributors

At a glance

Race day
The 2027 race
Start
06:306:30 AM
Distance
42.2 km26.2 mi
Marathon · Half marathon · 5K
Total climb
112.6 m369 ft
Highest point 40 m131 ft above lowest
Entry fee
US$157
For the 2027 race
Time limit
6 h 30 min

The course

Pick a place, or drag along the profile

The marathon is a certified single loop that starts at the Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum, runs through downtown, Bricktown and northeast Oklahoma City, and finishes at Scissortail Park.

StartFinish

© OpenStreetMap contributors

  1. Photo: User:Dual Freq, CC BY 2.5
  2. Photo: Quintin Soloviev, CC BY 4.0
  3. Photo: Oklahoma Legislative Services Bureau, CC0

km 1.4mile 0.9

Bricktown

Early in the race the course winds through Bricktown, where thousands of runners are still together.

Photo: Quintin Soloviev, CC BY 4.0

Height drawn many times taller than life · GEDTM30

Cut-off, km 12.1mile 7.5
Cut-off, km 32.2mile 20
Course elevation profile, 8× vertical exaggeration Elevation along the course from km 0 to km 42. The trace runs between 344 and 384 metres, a range of 40 metres, drawn at 8 times vertical exaggeration so the shape is legible. Smoothed over 1 km before this profile was derived. An unsmoothed urban surface carries the buildings and would assert a climb that is not there. Marked points: Cut-off at km 12.1; Cut-off at km 32.2.
0 10 20 30 40 km
0 10 20 26.2 mi

Your 5 gels, at the orange marksFor a 4:00 finish, one every 40 minutes

  1. km 7mile 4.4
  2. km 14.1mile 8.7
  3. km 21.1mile 13.1
  4. km 28.1mile 17.5
  5. km 35.2mile 21.8

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  • One loop, from the National Memorial to Scissortail ParkA Boston-qualifying single loop that starts at the Memorial and finishes in the park downtown.
  • A 40 m course with one late rise to km 38A 40 m band; the high point comes at km 38, then the road drops to the finish.
  • Two checkpoints before the 6.5-hour limitMiss mile 7.5 and you are moved to the half marathon course; miss mile 20 and you are shuttled to the park.
Course notes 4 short reads on the course
km 0 to 42.2GeometryOne loop, from the National Memorial to Scissortail ParkA Boston-qualifying single loop that starts at the Memorial and finishes in the park downtown.

The organiser describes a “certified 26.2-mile single-loop course”, a Boston qualifying USATF sanctioned event. It “begins at the Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum and winds through downtown, Bricktown, past the State Capitol, through northeast Oklahoma City and through some of the city’s most beautiful and historic neighborhoods.” Along the way 168 banners, each bearing the name of one of those killed in the 1995 bombing, line the course. The marathon finishes at Scissortail Park in the heart of downtown, where the Finish Line Festival is held.

Sourced

km 33 to 42.2GradientA 40 m course with one late rise to km 38A 40 m band; the high point comes at km 38, then the road drops to the finish.

The course starts at about 371 m and finishes at about 364 m, and the whole loop stays inside a 40 m band: the low point, 344 m, is at km 13.4 and the high point, 384 m, at km 38.2. In all the race climbs about 113 m, about 22 m of it in the first 10 km and 38 m from km 30 to the finish. The one sustained rise in the last 10 km starts at the 348 m low near km 33.3 and gains about 36 m in 4.9 km to the top at km 38.2, after which the road runs down to the finish. A watch that counts every short rise will read higher.

Measured

Whole courseTacticsTwo checkpoints before the 6.5-hour limitMiss mile 7.5 and you are moved to the half marathon course; miss mile 20 and you are shuttled to the park.

Runners “must maintain an average 14-minute-per-mile pace and reach Mile 7.5 within 1 hour and 45 minutes of the last starter. Runners arriving after this cutoff will be redirected to the Half Marathon course.” The mile 20 cut-off is 5 hours after the last starter, an average 15-minute-per-mile pace, and runners arriving after it “will be shuttled to Scissortail Park to enjoy the Finish Line Festival.” The organiser says the limits exist so that public streets in Oklahoma City, Nichols Hills and The Village can re-open promptly.

Sourced

Whole courseCrowdWhere spectators watch along the loopBricktown early, Classen Boulevard at mile 20, and the finish straight.

The list begins with the start and goes on to Bricktown, where “the race has not begun to string out yet”; Lincoln Terrace and Nichols Court Park at NE 18th and Culbertson; Sparrow Park and Edgemere Park; Crown Heights, Gorilla Hill and Irish Alley at 38th and Shartel, where the Half Marathon turns around; The Village and Waverly Avenue between Wilshire and Britton; Nichols Hills and Grand Boulevard; Lakehurst, which the marathon wound through for the first time in 2021; Classen Boulevard between 63rd and 50th, which “includes the 20-Mile mark, which is an important point for runners to have support”; 18th and Classen at Mesta Park; and the finish. The organiser notes that from Grand Boulevard you can proceed downtown to watch the finish.

Sourced

Race weekend

Bib pickup at Oklahoma City Convention Center, 100 Mick Cornett Dr.

Friday 23 April Bib pickup

  1. 11:0011:00 AM–19:007:00 PM

    Health & Fitness Expo and packet pickup, day one Oklahoma City Convention Center, 100 Mick Cornett Dr.. Opens at 10:00 for Senior Marathon participants. Packets are collected at the expo only, with a photo ID and bib number. 5K, Senior Marathon and Kids Marathon runners must pick up on Friday.

Saturday 24 April Last bib day

  1. 08:008:00 AM–18:006:00 PM

    Health & Fitness Expo and packet pickup, day two Oklahoma City Convention Center, 100 Mick Cornett Dr.. Packet pickup is only available at the expo before race day.

Bib in hand?A number belt holds it without pins through your race top. Clip it on tonight.

Number belt on AmazonAmazon partner link

Sunday 25 April Race day

  1. 06:306:30 AM

    Marathon start Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum. The course begins at the National Memorial.

  2. Time not published

    Course support ends 6.5 hours of course support from when the last corral is released from the start line, an average 14-minute-per-mile pace. 6:30 limit: 9:14/km for 42.195 km6:30 limit: 14:52/mi for 26.2 mi

  3. Time not published

    Finish Line Festival Scissortail Park. The marathon finishes at Scissortail Park, where the post-race festival is held. No hours are published.
Cut-offs (2)

  1. Time not published

    Mile 7.5 cut-off Reach mile 7.5 within 1 hour 45 minutes of the last starter. Runners arriving after this are redirected to the half marathon course.

  2. Time not published

    Mile 20 cut-off Reach mile 20 within 5 hours of the last starter, an average 15-minute-per-mile pace. Runners arriving after this are shuttled to Scissortail Park for the Finish Line Festival. 15:00 a mile is 9:19/km, 5:00:01 for 32.19 km15:00 a mile, 5:00:01 for 20 mi

Times as published by the organiser, in Oklahoma City time, checked . Confirm on their site before you travel.

Add to calendar .ics file, times in Oklahoma City time

Entry

Entry through the organiser

Entry details on the organiser’s site →

The organiser, a third party. We take no entries and have no part in the race.

Race fuel

Energy gel
An energy gel sachet
Illustration · drag to turn

5 gels for Oklahoma City, plus 1 spare

Finish

One every 40 minutes, the orange marks on the profile, by the clock:

  1. km 7mile 4.4
  2. km 14.1mile 8.7
  3. km 21.1mile 13.1
  4. km 28.1mile 17.5
  5. km 35.2mile 21.8

Our pick: SiS BETA Fuel gel, box of 6, strawberry and lime. 40 g of carbohydrate a gel, about twice a usual gel, from two kinds of sugar your body takes up side by side.

Easy to forget on race morning: pack them with your bib the night before.

Get it on Amazon

We earn a small fee if you buy through these links. The price is the same.

In Canada the button opens GU Energy Gel, Salted Caramel, 24-pack, the best seller there.

Outside the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Austria and Switzerland, the UK and Ireland, Spain and Portugal, Italy, the rest of the EU and Canada the button opens GU Energy Gel, Chocolate Outrage, 24-pack on Amazon.com, the best seller there.

Anti-chafe
A small balm stick
Illustration · drag to turn

Compeed anti-blister stick, 8 ml

An invisible layer before the start keeps seams, straps and shoes from rubbing skin raw.

Put it on before you leave for the start: heels and toes, inner thighs, under a bra or heart-rate strap.

Try it on a long run first, like everything you use on race day.

Get it on Amazon

We earn a small fee if you buy through these links. The price is the same.

Number belt
A race number belt
Illustration · drag to turn

Compressport Race Belt

Holds your bib without safety pins through your top, with loops for up to 8 gels.

Clip the bib on the night before, so it goes on with your shorts in the morning.

Keep the number on the front, where officials and photographers can see it.

Get it on Amazon

We earn a small fee if you buy through these links. The price is the same.

Electrolytes
A tube of electrolyte tablets
Illustration · drag to turn

SiS Hydro electrolyte tablets, tube of 20

One tablet in a bottle puts back some of the salt you sweat out.

One tablet in 500 ml of water in the hour before the start.

Only if you have used them in training: nothing new on race day.

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We earn a small fee if you buy through these links. The price is the same.

Blister plasters
A pack of blister plasters
Illustration · drag to turn

Compeed blister plasters, medium, 6

One in a pocket cushions a blister if one starts.

Put it on clean, dry skin and leave it until it comes off by itself.

Give a couple to whoever comes to cheer, so they are there at the km you need them.

Get it on Amazon

We earn a small fee if you buy through these links. The price is the same.

Questions about the Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon

Is the Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon course flat?
Not entirely. It has 112.6 m (369 ft) of climbing over 42.2 km (26.2 miles). The highest point is 40 m (131 ft) above the lowest.
When is the Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon 2027?
Sunday 25 April 2027. The start is at 6:30 AM.
How do I enter the Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon?
Entry is through the organiser. Entry fee: US$157 (for the 2027 race). Entry details on the organiser’s site
What is the time limit at the Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon?
Runners have 6 h 30 min to finish.
Where does the Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon start?
Start: Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum.
Runner talk Questions, tips and race reports from other runners about the course and the city.

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