Detroit Marathon course.

How I’d run it, stretch by stretch

Miles 1 and 2: Fort Street to the bridge plaza

Over these 2.1 miles the course climbs 9 feet and drops 17, 7 feet net down.

The first two miles run west on Fort Street, flat and wide, before sunrise with a 7 a.m. start. Nerves want to bank time for the bridge, which makes this the easiest place on the course to run too fast. I’d settle into goal pace here and nothing quicker. The ramps up to the bridge plaza loop around tightly at mile 2, so expect to slow for the turns.

Miles 3 and 4: the Ambassador Bridge

Over these 1.9 miles the course climbs 143 feet and drops 134, 9 feet net up. The climb: The Ambassador Bridge from mile 2.2 (+137 feet over 0.9 mi, 2.8%).

The Ambassador Bridge is the biggest climb on the course, about 140 feet up over most of a mile and then down into Canada. It’s exposed, so whatever wind there is off the river hits you full on. Run the climb by effort and let the pace slip, because you’ll get it back on the way down without trying. The Canadian plaza ends in a tight U-turn, so shorten up through it.

Miles 5 to 7: Windsor

Over these 3.1 miles the course climbs 32 feet and drops 32, about level overall.

Windsor is flat: a long stretch of Riverside Drive with the Detroit skyline across the water, then a few blocks through downtown Windsor. The crowds are smaller and loud. It’s a good stretch to settle back into goal pace, drink, and take a gel before the tunnel.

Mile 8: the tunnel

Over these 1.4 miles the course climbs 104 feet and drops 102, about level overall. The climb: Up out of the tunnel from mile 7.7 (+104 feet over 0.8 mi, 2.4%).

The tunnel is the mile people remember: about 100 feet down to 75 feet below the river, then the same back up the spiral ramp to Jefferson Avenue. GPS drops out, so your watch will misread pace for a while afterward. The air is warm and still. Keep the descent controlled, and treat the climb out as what it is, the second-biggest hill of the day.

Miles 9 to 15: downtown, Woodbridge and Midtown

Over these 6.7 miles the course climbs 57 feet and drops 51, 6 feet net up.

After the tunnel the course is flat for the rest of the day. These miles wind through downtown, past Cass Park, and through Woodbridge and Midtown, with plenty of turns and a few short rises over the freeways. This is where you find your rhythm and lock in. The turns make it feel slower than it is, so judge it by your mile splits rather than the watch’s live pace.

Miles 16 to 19: Eastern Market and the Dequindre Cut

Over these 3.4 miles the course climbs 23 feet and drops 42, 19 feet net down.

Brush Park and Eastern Market bring more turns, then the Dequindre Cut: over a mile of greenway about 30 feet below street level, quiet and sheltered, with a ramp back up at the Lafayette exit. It’s one of the few places the crowd thins out, which is exactly when pace drifts. Check in here: if goal pace still feels controlled, you’re on track.

Miles 19 to 23: Lafayette and Indian Village

Over these 4.2 miles the course climbs 34 feet and drops 25, 10 feet net up.

The east side is flat and residential: East Lafayette Street, then a loop through Indian Village’s big old houses. This is where the marathon starts to feel like a marathon. Keep fueling on schedule, and run the loop one street at a time instead of thinking about the miles left.

Miles 23 to the finish: back west to Campus Martius

Over these 3.4 miles the course climbs 17 feet and drops 21, about level overall.

The last three miles run nearly straight west on East Lafayette, flat, with downtown getting bigger ahead of you. If you held back on the bridge and in the tunnel, this is where it pays. It’s a fair place to push, one block at a time, to the finish on Woodward Avenue at Campus Martius.