The California International Marathon vanguard will hit the half-way mark in Carmichael on Dec. 7. Pounding feet will close 17 county streets along the marathon route from Folsom to the Capitol. Photo by Susan Maxwell Skinner

SACRAMENTO COUNTY, CA (MPG) - Fair Oaks Boulevard is one of many streets that will channel almost 10,000 California International Marathon contestants to Sacramento this Sunday, Dec. 7.

The marathon samples Californian history and scenery. Athletes follow the path trekked by 1850s goldminers.

The predominantly-downhill course makes the race among the fastest marathons in the nation. Participation is favored by elites who seek to qualify for the 2026 Boston Marathon in April. 

This Sunday's top placegetters will share a purse of more than $116,000 

Runners will slog 26.2-miles from Folsom Dam through Citrus Heights, Fair Oaks, Carmichael and Arcade. Reaching downtown Sacramento to the cheers of thousands, athletes then hit the home stretch to the Capitol. 

In a cloudy-day forecast for this Sunday, spectators can admire a pageant of honed physiques, slicked by sweat but no rain, unless the forecast changes after press time.

Last year, Flagstaff-based East African Tsegay Weldlibanos broke the event's record in a blistering two hours and seven minutes. Finishing more than 17 minutes later, British Olympian Callie Hauger-Thackery broke previous female records.

Carmichael’s “Great Wall” is the marathon's half-way mark.  Leaving Folsom at 7 a.m., a lithe bunch of professionals reach central Carmichael around 8 a.m. Within 30 minutes, miles of Fair Oaks Boulevard will reverberate under thousands more feet. 

The symbolism of Carmichael’s wall is not lost on runners.  A marathoner's “wall,” where endurance is most painfully challenged, often occurs near this landmark. 

“I reached my own wall before I got there,” said race veteran and Carmichael resident Susan Powers. “Seeing my husband and friends at the Landis Avenue intersection made up for the pain. I knew I would complete the course for them.”

In the event's 42nd year, forerunners will set a formidable pace. Also-rans slog the weary path for hours after the finishing tape is breeched. They are lauded by cheers and horn-blasts from passing motorists.

“The support of strangers is what keeps you going,” Powers said. “I remember a sign that said, ‘Pain Now – Bragging Rights Forever,’ that encouraged me to finish.”

Dec. 7 traffic will be curtailed along the marathon route. For street closure details, visit online https://runsra.org/california-international-marathon/course-information.