Palio di Sonoma - Marathon Challenge on the Fairgrounds Racetrack
About this race
Footraces at the Sonoma County Fairgrounds Racetrack
Marathon Challenge and Kids’ Fun Run
Inaugural Event- Monday, August 10, 2026
Marathon Challenge | 3:30–7:00 PM (Fair admission not included)
Run a single one-mile lap or as many as you can before the 7:00 PM cutoff! Participants may start anytime after 3:30 PM, and the runner with the most completed laps by 7:00 PM wins. (Laps not finished by 7:00 PM do not count.) Awards ceremony at 7:10 PM.
Kids’ Fun Run | 6:30 PM (Fair admission not included)
A free 1/8-mile race for young runners. Three age-group heats begin at 6:30 PM, 6:35 PM, and 6:40 PM, with 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place awards in each division. Register at the racetrack at 6:15 PM.
Registration
Empire Runners members (advance) FREE includes a fair entry ticket! Join Empire Runners today! (Adult $36, 21 & Under $12, Family $48). For registration discount code contact sponsorship@empirerunners.org
General public (advance) $5; (day of event) $10. Does not include fair entry $17.25! Order at Sonoma County Fairgrounds.
Kids Run is FREE, Advance and day of event registration.
City Challenge- Palio banner award presented to the North Bay city with the highest participation rate.*
*Based on the number of runners (including kids) relative to the city’s population. Runners self-identify the city they represent.
For race details, email to: sponsorship@empirerunners.org
Pick your distance
Running
Marathon Challenge - run as many laps as you can on the one-mile track
Run a single one-mile lap or as many as you can before the 7:00 PM cutoff! Participants may start anytime after 3:30 PM, and the runner with the most completed laps by 7:00 PM wins. (Laps not finished by 7:00 PM do not count.) Awards ceremony at 7:10 PM.
Kids Run - Furlong Sprint (1/8 mile)
Kid’s FREE, day of event registration.
Run the Full Marathon Challenge
Runners aiming to run 26 laps register here. We may stay open an extra half-hour if you are close to completing 26.2 miles. Run as many as you can before the 7:00 PM cutoff! Participants may start anytime after 3:30 PM, and the runner with the most completed laps by 7:00 PM wins. (Laps not finished by 7:00 PM do not count.) Awards ceremony at 7:10 PM.
Typical race-day weather
Based on 2 years of Open-Meteo archive data for this event's race dates in Santa Rosa, plus the 3 days either side.
The sun rises at 6:21 AM and sets at 8:11 PM local time (PDT) in Santa Rosa on August 10, 2026 — 13h 50m of daylight.
Course
No course map published yet.
The organizer hasn't released a route for this event, and we don't publish guesses. If you're the organizer, send us a GPX file and we'll draw the profile.
Reviews
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Other races near Santa Rosa
Different organizers, within 40 miles, in the next three months
Santa Rosa Turkey Trot
Tunnel to Towers 5K Run & Walk - Santa Rosa, CA
Cindy's Race 10 Mile |10k | 6K | Kid's 1K
Sebastopol Turkey Trot - 5K
🏃 Plan Your Next Race in Santa Rosa
Find upcoming events by distance:
- Santa Rosa 5K Races 7 races
- 10K Run Events in Santa Rosa 2 races
- Santa Rosa Running Calendar 2026 10 races
Where this page comes from. Race details were last updated on . We re-check listings regularly and again in the week before race day.
- Entries, prices, waves and inclusions — the event's official registration page
- Temperature and humidity — Copernicus ERA5 reanalysis via Open-Meteo (CC BY 4.0)
- Elevation and terrain relief — Copernicus DEM GLO-90, ESA (CC BY 4.0)
- Comparisons and counts — Race Discovery calendar, 11 Santa Rosa events
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