The Running Thread - 2026

[Professor_Cookie]

Attqotd: sub 2:00 half. It’s a big ask At my age and general size, but I think doable. It’s going to be early December, so I can start serious training in September and focus on strength, consistency, and weight loss until then.

This is a big part of dropping the 50k, it seemed a distraction and it will be there next year.

As @The Expert said, check with me again in August

 

[PrincessV]

ATTQOTD: same as last year for me - no goals other than run as much and as far as my body and mind dictate and do it because it feels good!

 

[Herding_Cats]

For marathons, Big Sur in April and Detroit in October. I'm signed for the North Country 50K in August, but I might defer if training doesn't go well over the summer. For years I always thought I would one day run an ultramarathon, but now that I've actually signed up for one, I'm starting to question whether I really want to or not.

NCT is highly walk-able. Don’t believe the published gain…it’s only about half of what they say.

 

[RuntheMouse]

ATTQOTD: My goal for the year is to run TC marathon again but finish this time! My DNF was heartbreaking so I really want to try it again. I’d also like to find a half that I could do a solid PR attempt in. Had a great PR year in 2025 but didn’t run a half so another challenge to tackle.

 

[michigandergirl]

It’s only five more miles. Piece of cake at that point.

Yeah, yeah...I know, but it's the training! Just not sure I want to spend 42-48 weeks out of the 52 weeks this year marathon training. I'm not even through week one of Big Sur training and already questioning my sanity!

NCT is highly walk-able. Don’t believe the published gain…it’s only about half of what they say.

I did the half marathon there a few years ago, so I know what I'm in for. I'll see how beat up I feel after Big Sur and decide if I want to spend my summer training or not

 

[avondale]

For marathons, Big Sur in April and Detroit in October. I'm signed for the North Country 50K in August, but I might defer if training doesn't go well over the summer. For years I always thought I would one day run an ultramarathon, but now that I've actually signed up for one, I'm starting to question whether I really want to or not.

Ah, good (potential) choices. Everyone says Big Sur is gorgeous.

I keep thinking I should do the Detroit marathon (my husband's family is from there), so that is a little tempting, but I'm not sure if I want to do another road marathon. At least October in Detroit is cooler than October here (for MCM).

North Country is another one sort of on my list, except I can't realistically train for a 50k in the summer heat and humidity in Maryland....

Ah, FOMO.

 

[prncssjas]

I keep thinking I should do the Detroit marathon (my husband's family is from there), so that is a little tempting, but I'm not sure if I want to do another road marathon. At least October in Detroit is cooler than October here (for MCM).

Unfortunately, the Detroit full sold out last night, after only 7 (!!) days of being open. There is a waitlist though and a strong to high likelihood to get in if you wish. Many get injured or are unable to run as the summer goes on.

 

[Tomaso12]

ATTQOTD....I have some minor time goals, but biggest would be completing Hartford half this fall...not worried about the distance but as a type 1 diabetic fueling/maintaining blood sugar is getting a bit tricky after 5ish miles, still trying to figure out what works best.

 

[Mr_Incr3dible]

My goal for this year is to try to drop another 5 pounds, continue running and training, and do the race or two that my son said he would like to do with me

 

[Jules76126]

My goals this year is to actually get back into running. I have spent the last five years getting pregnant/pregnancy/ postpartum cycle and I haven’t been able to run consistently. We are done having children so I finally feel like I can devote time to this. I am setting no goals except being consistent and like to run 1 to 2 races. I really want to run beach to beacon next year as well as a fall half so 2026 is all about getting back into the routine.

 

[fatmanatee]

Attqotd: sub 2:00 half. It’s a big ask At my age and general size, but I think doable. It’s going to be early December, so I can start serious training in September and focus on strength, consistency, and weight loss until then.

This is a big part of dropping the 50k, it seemed a distraction and it will be there next year.

As @The Expert said, check with me again in August

Same goal! I’ve had it for awhile but haven’t really been able to commit to going for it. We’ll see what happens, I think I need a race where I can join a pace group to give it a go.

 

[PrincessV]

ICYMI, rD announced today that it will be adding capacity at future 5Ks, starting with W&D.

Anyone have a handle on 5K caps recently - say, the last two years? There was a time when they hovered around the 10,000-12,000 mark, but I think they dropped back to around 5,000 post-pandemic closure. I wonder if they’ve crept back up to those previous peak caps, or will the added spots get it there.

The wait times for characters were SO long at the last 5K I did, I haven’t done another since. I can’t imagine adding even more capacity!

 

[IamTrike]

ATTQOTD:
Loose about 30 pounds.
Increase running volume from 24 miles per week(ish) to back up to about 35-40 miles per week
Get more consistent with interval work to hopefully drop my pace about 2 min per mile.

 

[jmasgat]

55° here (Detroit area) today! Felt weird but great to go for a run with shorts and a t shirt. I’ll take it.

 

[GollyGadget]

ICYMI, rD announced today that it will be adding capacity at future 5Ks, starting with W&D.

Anyone have a handle on 5K caps recently - say, the last two years? There was a time when they hovered around the 10,000-12,000 mark, but I think they dropped back to around 5,000 post-pandemic closure. I wonder if they’ve crept back up to those previous peak caps, or will the added spots get it there.

The wait times for characters were SO long at the last 5K I did, I haven’t done another since. I can’t imagine adding even more capacity!

I saw this and had similar thoughts. I’ve actually never ran the 5K because it just seems like a disaster. I’ve run a couple of 10Ks and did not enjoy the corral shoving so I pretty much stick to distances that require POT.

Very curious how this plays out. The 5K is early enough that they can just add more corrals but that’s really only going to lead to even longer character lines and more folks inputting inaccurate pace estimates which will mean even more corral shoving.

 

[DisneyParrothead]

ICYMI, rD announced today that it will be adding capacity at future 5Ks, starting with W&D.

Anyone have a handle on 5K caps recently - say, the last two years? There was a time when they hovered around the 10,000-12,000 mark, but I think they dropped back to around 5,000 post-pandemic closure. I wonder if they’ve crept back up to those previous peak caps, or will the added spots get it there.

The wait times for characters were SO long at the last 5K I did, I haven’t done another since. I can’t imagine adding even more capacity!

I think they are trying to get races back to pre-2020 field sizes. If the course can handle it, fine. But the issue with the 5k is lack of characters. Add more characters to spread some things out, and honestly, I think the 5k should be timed as well.

 

[PrincessV]

I think they are trying to get races back to pre-2020 field sizes. If the course can handle it, fine. But the issue with the 5k is lack of characters. Add more characters to spread some things out, and honestly, I think the 5k should be timed as well.

It kind of is “timed,” in that they absolutely WILL tell folks to get a move on or hop into a golf cart if it’s getting late and they need to wrap it up. I’ve been in character lines late in EP that were closed and we were politely asked to get going or hop into a a cart.

I did most of my 5Ks when caps were high and don’t ever recall 20-60 min waits like there are now. I could take a bunch of guesses at to the why of that, but I think in today’s world, adding more racers without more characters can only explode wait times. Course congestion-wise, it was less congested overall, but they also let more time pass between waves at the start.

 

[fatmanatee]

Worth noting that they're losing the DL races, and after a few years of very mild price increases, there was a bit of sticker shock to this year's MW races. Adding a bunch of 5k bibs is an easy way to make more money at minimal cost.