Make the San Francisco Marathon Your 2020 Runcation

December 6, 2019 | Are you looking for an amazing runcation in 2020? The San Francisco Marathon may just be what you’re looking for! The sights, the views, the experience.

If San Francisco is on your bucket list, make the 2020 SFM your runcation of the summer.

The San Francisco Marathon is the only full marathon experience you can have in the City of San Francisco — an experience unlike any other with its bay and ocean views, eclectic neighborhoods and people, parks, amazing houses, hills (both up and down), and running across the city’s iconic Golden Gate Bridge.

“I’ve run all the major races in the City,” said Ron Poggi, San Francisco Marathon Race Ambassador. “I like the experience of the San Francisco Marathon better.”

The San Francisco Marathon is a destination race. People from all over the United States and the world come to run the San Francisco Marathon and experience the beauty and the sights of the city in a brand new way.

“I was surprised to see how many countries were represented or people from other parts of the country,” said Charles Lim, another San Francisco Marathon Race Ambassador.

One year while Charles was working at a booth at the San Francisco Marathon Expo, he had the job of giving out flags to runners from the countries they came from. He said there were runners from countries in Africa, from Sweden, Japan, and many others.

Ron also said he once met a family from Belgium who was going to run the race. In 2019, 82 countries outside of the U.S. were represented at the San Francisco Marathon, with over 1,300 runners from those countries. Mexico brought the most runners, besides the U.S. There were also runners from all 50 states, plus Puerto Rico and Washington, D.C.

Runners come back year after year because of the experience they have in San Francisco. Ron said he once met someone who had been running the San Francisco Marathon for 35 years. In 2019, the San Francisco Marathon had 98 runners who had run 10 years or more consecutively, and about 5,000 total Loyal Runners who have run the race at least two years consecutively.

The San Francisco Full Marathon course is USA Track & Field certified, a Boston Marathon Qualifying race, and an Olympic Time Trials qualifying race. Race Ambassador Charles said he has friends that have qualified for Boston with the San Francisco Marathon, which is not easy to do because of the hills, but it can also make it more exciting and a better experience overall.

“San Francisco is the only marathon that I do every year,” said Charles, who completed his eighth year running the full San Francisco Marathon in 2019. “It’s a tough marathon, but I like doing it year after year.” The SFM Loyal Runners are rewarded with special shirts, medals, and other amazing swag too.

Charles also pointed out that the San Francisco Marathon is one of the few road marathons that also offers an Ultramarathon. Starting at 11 p.m. on Saturday night before the main event begins, run the entire marathon course, from the ending point to the start. Then, when you finish the first loop, start with the rest of the full marathon runners at 5:30 a.m. and run your second marathon! You can also run this epic event as a two-person or four-person team.

San Francisco, the city on the Bay, is a destination in itself, which is why runners from all over the globe and of all ages and athletic abilities come back to run the San Francisco Marathon year after year and make San Francisco their runcation.

If you haven’t already experienced San Francisco on foot in one of our races — the full, a half, a 5k, or the ultramarathon — make 2020 your race.