REVEL Big Bear Marathon: Pacing & Race-Day Strategy
A screaming mountain descent from Big Bear toward Redlands, a BQ magnet that eats quads alive.
- Where:
- Big Bear, California
- When:
- Saturday, November 7, 2026
- Course:
- Steep net downhill · point-to-point
- Best run as:
- Even pace
Course & elevation
REVEL Big Bear plunges roughly 5,000 feet from the alpine start near Big Bear down the mountain highway toward Redlands, making it one of the steepest net-downhill marathons in the country. The relentless drop is a Boston-qualifying magnet, but the grade is severe enough to shred unprepared quads, so downhill-specific training is non-negotiable here.
- Start → Finish
- 6,629 → 1,545 ft
- Net
- −5,084 ft
- Total gain
- ≈ 280 ft
Key moments
- Mile 1–6Steep alpine descent off the mountain; hold back hard, because the grade is steepest early.
- Mile 7–20Sustained downhill on the canyon highway; keep a quick, light cadence to spare your quads.
- Mile 23–26.2The grade mellows toward Redlands, where battered quads make these flatter miles the real test.
Pacing strategy
Resist the temptation to bomb the early descent. The steepest grades come first, and over-striding them will destroy your quads by mile 18. Run a short, fast, low-impact stride and let even effort carry you to a fast time; weeks of downhill training beforehand are essential.
Pacing by goal time
Checkpoint splits for four common goals at REVEL Big Bear Marathon. These are effort-even rather than pace-even: the paces shift with the course profile, so climbs are slower and descents faster by the amount the grade actually costs. For any other goal time, use the planner below.
| Checkpoint | Sub-3:00 | Sub-3:30 | Sub-4:00 | Sub-4:30 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mile 3.1 | 21:537:10/mi | 25:328:22/mi | 29:119:34/mi | 32:5010:46/mi |
| Mile 6.2 | 43:036:60/mi | 50:148:09/mi | 57:249:19/mi | 1:04:3510:29/mi |
| Mile 9.3 | 1:03:216:40/mi | 1:13:557:46/mi | 1:24:288:53/mi | 1:35:029:59/mi |
| Mile 12.4 | 1:22:596:29/mi | 1:36:497:34/mi | 1:50:398:39/mi | 2:04:299:44/mi |
| Mile 15.5 | 1:42:266:29/mi | 1:59:317:34/mi | 2:16:358:39/mi | 2:33:399:44/mi |
| Mile 18.6 | 2:02:126:39/mi | 2:22:347:45/mi | 2:42:568:52/mi | 3:03:189:58/mi |
| Mile 21.7 | 2:22:376:49/mi | 2:46:237:57/mi | 3:10:109:05/mi | 3:33:5610:14/mi |
| Mile 24.9 | 2:43:437:10/mi | 3:11:008:22/mi | 3:38:179:34/mi | 4:05:3410:45/mi |
| Finish | 2:58:237:21/mi | 3:28:078:35/mi | 3:57:519:49/mi | 4:27:3511:02/mi |
Grade adjustment is a model, not a promise. It assumes even effort and ignores wind, heat, and how well your legs handle sustained descent — which on a steep course is often the deciding factor.
Plan your mile splits
Enter your goal time to get a mile-by-mile pacing band for REVEL Big Bear Marathon. The even pace option is pre-selected to suit this course.
| Mile | Pace | Elapsed |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 9:09/mi | 9:09 |
| 2 | 9:09/mi | 18:18 |
| 3 | 9:09/mi | 27:28 |
| 4 | 9:09/mi | 36:37 |
| 5 | 9:09/mi | 45:46 |
| 6 | 9:09/mi | 54:55 |
| 7 | 9:09/mi | 1:04:05 |
| 8 | 9:09/mi | 1:13:14 |
| 9 | 9:09/mi | 1:22:23 |
| 10 | 9:09/mi | 1:31:32 |
| 11 | 9:09/mi | 1:40:41 |
| 12 | 9:09/mi | 1:49:51 |
| 13 | 9:09/mi | 1:59:00 |
| 14 | 9:09/mi | 2:08:09 |
| 15 | 9:09/mi | 2:17:18 |
| 16 | 9:09/mi | 2:26:28 |
| 17 | 9:09/mi | 2:35:37 |
| 18 | 9:09/mi | 2:44:46 |
| 19 | 9:09/mi | 2:53:55 |
| 20 | 9:09/mi | 3:03:05 |
| 21 | 9:09/mi | 3:12:14 |
| 22 | 9:09/mi | 3:21:23 |
| 23 | 9:09/mi | 3:30:32 |
| 24 | 9:09/mi | 3:39:41 |
| 25 | 9:09/mi | 3:48:51 |
| 26 | 9:09/mi | 3:58:00 |
| 26.22 | 9:09/mi | 4:00:00 |
Fueling & hydration
Aid stations sit roughly every 2 miles with water and sports drink along the canyon road. The fast, cool descent makes fueling easy to skip, so keep a disciplined gel schedule, since late-race quad fatigue is brutal without steady energy.
Weather
Mid-November starts are cold at altitude near Big Bear (often 30s°F, sometimes below freezing) and warm steadily during the descent toward the lower desert — layer for a cold start you’ll shed quickly.
Is REVEL Big Bear Marathon a good Boston qualifier?
It can be, but with an asterisk. The course drops 5,084 ft net, which puts it in the band where the B.A.A. adds 10:00 to your submitted time for 2027. That does not disqualify the race — it means you need to run 10 minutes faster here than the standard alone suggests.
A drop this size is fast and punishing at once. Sustained descent loads the quads eccentrically, and runners who have not trained for it tend to lose more in the last 10K than the profile gave them in the first. If you target this race, train downhill specifically.
This drop is our estimate rather than a figure from the course's certificate. If it sits near a threshold, confirm with the organizer.
Dial in your pacing & fueling
New to how training builds toward a race like this? Start with Anatomy of a Running Plan, find your zones with the pace calculator, and plan race-day nutrition with the fueling calculator.
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