Running & triathlon

Running in
United States.

Two T100 venues on the West Coast — a pro-only, cold-water classic in San Francisco built around the Escape From Alcatraz course, and a brand-new, still-TBC Venice Beach venue riding the LA28 Olympic wave.

0 running races and 2 triathlons and multisport events, across 1 state.

2
Events
1
states

What it is actually like to run there

Eleven years of daily records at San Francisco, not a seasonal generalisation. "Warm mornings" counts the share of days starting at or above 24°C — the point where heat stops being a detail and starts setting your pace for you.

Month by month at San Francisco

Monthly running conditions at San Francisco
Month Avg high Avg low Rain days Warm mornings
January 13.8°C 7.8°C 9.5 0%
February 14.8°C 8°C 8.5 0%
March 15°C 9.1°C 9.8 0%
April 16.1°C 10°C 4.5 0%
May 17.2°C 11.3°C 2.2 0%
June 19.1°C 12.6°C 0.3 0%
July 19.1°C 13.4°C 0.2 0%
August 20.1°C 14.2°C 0.2 0%
September 21.2°C 14.4°C 1.1 0%
October 20.6°C 13°C 2.9 0%
November 16.4°C 9.9°C 6.9 0%
December 13.5°C 7.9°C 9.8 0%

Hottest: Sep

Averaging 21.2°C by day, 14.4°C overnight.

Easiest: Dec

The coolest month, averaging 13.5°C.

Wettest: Mar

Rain on about 9.8 days in an average month.

By state

2 California 2 triathlon

Triathlon in United States

T100 San Francisco San Francisco, California, USA T100 Los Angeles Venice Beach, Los Angeles, California, USA

Running here as a visitor

The hardest part of training somewhere new isn't the route — it's not knowing anyone. This is who is in the United States over the next three months: runners who live here, and runners passing through.

Checking who's in the United States…

Running in United States: the long reads

The things a race listing can't tell you — what the conditions actually cost you, where people really run, what to carry, and what running is like in every state on the map. 4 guides, 31 minutes of reading.

The conditions

Eleven years of dawn records for San Francisco, and the reason its most famous weather — the fog everyone calls Karl — makes September the warmest month of the year, not July or August.

Running in San Francisco: Fog, Microclimates and Why September Is the Warmest Month San Francisco's defining running condition is fog, not heat — a marine layer known locally as 'Karl the Fog' that peaks from May through September. Counterintuitively, this makes September and October the city's warmest, clearest months, not July or August: Verus's own 2015-2025 dawn records show a 6am July average of 13.6°C against September's 14.9°C, because the fog itself is heaviest in midsummer. 7 min read

Where to run

Golden Gate Park, the hills, the coastal trail and the boardwalk — San Francisco and Los Angeles's real routes, not a generic 'the city has parks' list.

Where to Run in San Francisco: Golden Gate Park, The Wiggle and the Hills San Francisco's core running routes are Golden Gate Park (1,017 acres, with a permanently car-free JFK Promenade), the Golden Gate Promenade from Aquatic Park to Crissy Field and the Golden Gate Bridge, and the roughly 4-mile Baker Beach-to-Lands End coastal trail. For hills, Filbert Street (31.5% grade) is steeper than the famous switchbacked Lombard Street — though Bernal Heights' Bradford Street, at up to 41%, is steeper still. 9 min read Running in Los Angeles and Venice Beach Venice Beach's running centrepiece is the Marvin Braude Bike Trail, a flat 22-mile beachfront path where Venice's boardwalk section splits into separate cycling and pedestrian promenades. Venice Run Club (founded 2020) now draws over 1,100 runners to its Wednesday session. Venice Beach was also selected in 2025 as the LA28 Olympic Triathlon venue and the Marathon's start point — genuinely new infrastructure, not yet built. 7 min read

Triathlon and open water

A 150-year-old Bay swimming tradition, water that never gets warm enough to go wetsuit-free, and the legacy race T100's own pro stop borrows its mystique from.

San Francisco Bay Open-Water Swimming and Triathlon Culture San Francisco Bay has one of the oldest open-water swim cultures in the US: the South End Rowing Club (1873) and Dolphin Club (1877) both still swim from Aquatic Park's historic boathouses. The water stays cold year-round — roughly 11-15°C (52-59°F) — never warm enough to cross the mandatory-wetsuit threshold used across World Triathlon/T100 venues at any point in the year, which is why the Escape From Alcatraz Triathlon and T100 San Francisco both treat wetsuits as effectively essential. 8 min read

Common questions

How many races are there in the United States?

Verus currently lists 0 running races and 2 triathlon and multisport events in the United States, across 1 state.

What is the weather like for running in the United States?

Based on eleven years of daily records at San Francisco, the hottest month averages 21.2°C by day and the coolest 13.5°C. The wettest month sees rain on about 9.8 days. Mornings are generally cool enough to run at any time of day.

Can I find people to run with in the United States?

Yes — Verus athletes list the town they are from, so this page shows who is already here. If you are travelling, adding your own location means runners here can find you too.

Add yourself to United States All races