The Sf Marathon Route will take over San Francisco this weekend, with road closures beginning at 9 p.m. Saturday and lasting until 3 p.m. Sunday. More than 30,000 runners are expected at the starting line on July 26, making it a major citywide event with a schedule that stretches from early Saturday morning into Sunday afternoon.
The race remains one of the city’s biggest draws because it crosses the Golden Gate Bridge and passes through several major corridors and neighborhoods. The route includes areas around the Ferry Building, the Embarcadero, North Beach and the Marina, the Presidio, Golden Gate Park, Haight Ashbury, Lower Haight, Mission Potrero Hill and Dogpatch, and Rincon Park. For many runners, that scenery is part of the appeal.
Randy Shirley said the bridge views are a major reason the marathon stands out. He pointed to the morning view across the iconic Golden Gate Bridge and said the setting is hard to beat. He also noted that runners tend to stop for selfies and videos along the way, which speaks to how much the route itself is part of the experience.
Race weekend schedule
The weekend begins Saturday at 8 a.m. with a 5K race, followed by an Ultra marathon at 10:15 p.m. Sunday’s action starts at 5:15 a.m. when more than 30,000 runners are expected, then continues with a half-marathon at 6:30 a.m., a 10K at 7:15 a.m., another half-marathon at 8:30 a.m. and a 5K at 9 a.m.
The Golden Gate Bridge sidewalks will also be used in a limited way during the event. At 9 a.m. Sunday, the east side bridge sidewalk opens to bikes and pedestrians. At 10 a.m., the west side bridge sidewalk opens to bikes only.
The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency said it expects to move people to and from special events and described public transit as the most affordable and reliable choice for special events in San Francisco. The agency also contrasted marathon weekend with the gridlock seen on the Fourth of July, saying the heavy traffic then was an anomaly that constrained Muni service delivery.
For runners like Brisa Garcia, the challenge is part of the appeal. Garcia said she heard the race is really challenging and added that challenging herself is something that motivates her. She said she expects to walk to the start line and then go with it after that.
The combination of a scenic course, a packed race schedule and citywide travel restrictions makes this one of the busiest weekends of the summer in San Francisco. For residents, the key timing is simple: closures start Saturday night and end Sunday afternoon.
