2017 Race Preview + Discount Codes

With a new year comes a new race season! I’m excited to already have races planned for almost the whole year with a big spring race season. I can’t wait to run new races in new places, while also working in some of my favorites.

January 7th: Walt Disney World Half Marathon! I got a last minute entry when RunDisney opened up extra spots on my birthday. I can’t wait for a girls weekend and for a PR in FUN during the race’s 20th running.

February 4th: Little Patuxtent Trail Half Marathon, Columbia MD. My first trail race in 2.5 years  is going to be interesting. I could be running on trails, snow covered trails, or ice covered trails. This will be a slow one, but a great experience!

March 12th: Shamrock 5K, Baltimore, MD. The first race in the B3 series, which my roommate is also running! I’m helping her train and it’s going to be an interesting run and after-party, sandwiched between a 17-miler and 18-miler.

April 8th: Sole of the City 10K, Baltimore, MD. The second race in the B3 series. This is a fast course which could be a PR, if it wasn’t during the peak week of my marathon training and the day before my last 20 miler. This one will be slow and steady.

April 30th: New Jersey Marathon, Long Branch, NJ. After getting the opportunity to run this race with Bib Rave as a Bib Rave Pro I knew this was the race “to be” for my second marathon. A flat race and *hopefully* perfect spring weather will bring me to my second 26.2 finish line and *hopefully* a little (or big!) PR.

June 3rd: Zooma Annapolis 10K or Half Marathon. I loved the 10K last year and I’m so excited to be back as an ambassador once again. What distance I’ll do will depend on how recovery from the NJ Marathon goes. Registration is open now and you can save 10% with the code SAMANTHA2017.

June 25th: Baltimore Women’s Classic 5K. I really enjoyed this race last year – it’s a great little jaunt around Federal Hill and truly a great day for running in Baltimore. I struggled with the last mile of this in 2016, so I hope I can improve in 2017.

July 4th: 4 on the 4th. I’ll be in NH for the 4th of July, so I’m headed back to the 4 on the 4th in Bridgeton, Maine. I ran this a few years ago and had a great time!

July 8th: Shipyard Old Port Half Marathon. This is why I’m heading North in July. This will be a challenging, potentially HOT race. It will also be an absolutely beautiful course with great beer and pizza at the end. I love that registration is low and you can choose to purchase a shirt, hat, and/or pint glass! (I ordered the hat and pint glass!). Portland, Maine is an amazing place and this is a great racecation in the making!

September 2nd: Charles St. 12 – The 3rd race in the B3 series. I ran this in 2014 and had a horrible, terrible race. This year I’m seeking straight up revenge on this course.

Pain train for 8/12 miles and a 12 mile time slower than ANY of my half marathons. NOT THIS YEAR.

September 10th: Parks Half Marathon: This one isn’t a definite yet, but I ran the race in 2016 (didn’t recap on here) and LOVED it. If I’m not back this year, it’s because of a packed September.

September 18th: Rock N Roll Philadelphia – My first Rock N Roll race! This was on my list for 2016 but I just couldn’t swing it with marathon training and other commitments. I’m excited to see if the RNR races are as great as everyone says they are!

Past this, I’m an open book. I’m unsure if there’s a fall marathon in my future, or if I may go for the Goofy Challenge at Disney in January 2018. If there’s a marathon, I have a big decision to make. Do I go for MCM again, meaning I can’t run the Baltimore half (same weekend) and potentially should try to run the 17.75K? Or do I enter my name for NYC, or do a smaller race like Richmond or Steamtown? I think this will become more clear as I go through this training cycle and experience my first Run Disney weekend.