Your plan in four answers
Set for March 20, 2027, about 21 weeks out.
- Distances
- Half marathon, 10K, 5K
- Terrain
- Rolling
- Field
- Up to 3,750 runners across all events
- Taper starts
- March 8, 2027
Course
The Annapolis Running Festival course
All three races start and finish at Navy-Marine Corps Stadium and head into historic downtown Annapolis, up Main Street and around Church Circle, then down to City Dock and Ego Alley before turning back past the Naval Academy campus. The half marathon then crosses the Naval Academy Bridge over the Severn River to the B&A Trail for a 1.5-mile out-and-back before recrossing the bridge to the stadium.
Read the full course notes
The 10K runs the downtown loop and U-turns at the Naval Academy Bridge, and the 5K is an out-and-back from the stadium to City Dock. The organisers call it fair yet challenging: the climb up Main Street and the bridge ramps are the main rises, so expect a rolling rather than flat run. Time limits are 3.5 hours for the half, 2 hours for the 10K and 1 hour 15 minutes for the 5K.
- Terrain
- Rolling
- Distances
- Half marathon, 10K, 5K
- Field
- Up to 3,750 runners across all events
- Weather on race day
- Late March mornings in Annapolis usually start around 35–50 °F, with highs in the low to mid 50s. Wind off the Severn River and Chesapeake Bay can make the bridge feel colder and push back on the way out, so start in a throwaway layer and run the windy sections by effort.
What to train for
Prepare for short, punchy rises rather than long climbs: add 8–10 x 45–60 seconds uphill at 5K effort once a week, and practise driving back to goal pace over the top.
For the half, build long runs to 11–13 miles on rolling routes and include a few miles at goal pace late in the run, since the bridge crossing comes back near the finish.
A weekly tempo of 3–5 miles at half marathon effort teaches the rhythm, while 5K and 10K runners can use 5–6 x 800 m at 5K pace. Winter training into a March race means many runs in the cold, so practise fueling and drinking even when you do not feel thirsty.
Sample week
A sample Annapolis Running Festival training week
A week from the middle of the build, about six weeks out. Your plan sets the real distances and paces from your own fitness and adjusts them every week as you train.
- Monday
- Rest, or 20 minutes of mobility
- Tuesday Key session
- Intervals: 5 × 1 km at 5K to 10K effort, easy jog between
- Wednesday
- Easy run, 5–6 mi
- Thursday Key session
- Goal-pace run, 7 mi with 4 mi at race pace
- Friday
- Recovery run, 4 mi, or cross-train
- Saturday Key session
- Long run, 10–12 mi easy
- Sunday
- Easy run, 4 mi, then 6 relaxed strides
Your build to race day
Taper
Tapering for the Annapolis Running Festival
Start the taper ten to fourteen days before race day. Cut your weekly volume by about a third, then by half in race week, and keep a few short efforts at race pace so your legs stay sharp. The course rolls, so keep one short session on undulating ground in the first taper week. With the race on March 20, 2027, your taper starts around March 8, 2027.
Also in Claude
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Add AthleteSpace to Claude once, then paste this prompt and put in your own numbers.
Build me a training plan for the Annapolis Running Festival (Half marathon) on March 20, 2027. I run [distance] a week, [days] days a week, easy pace [pace].
Annapolis Running Festival training questions
How long should I train for the Annapolis Running Festival?
Most runners give a half marathon twelve to sixteen weeks of focused training on top of an existing base. The plan above counts back from your actual race date, so if you have less time than that it builds the best plan the remaining weeks allow rather than pretending you have longer.
Is the Annapolis Running Festival course hilly?
Rolling. All three races start and finish at Navy-Marine Corps Stadium and head into historic downtown Annapolis, up Main Street and around Church Circle, then down to City Dock and Ego Alley before turning back past the Naval Academy campus.
What is the weather usually like at the Annapolis Running Festival?
Late March mornings in Annapolis usually start around 35–50 °F, with highs in the low to mid 50s. Wind off the Severn River and Chesapeake Bay can make the bridge feel colder and push back on the way out, so start in a throwaway layer and run the windy sections by effort.
When should I start tapering for the Annapolis Running Festival?
Start the taper ten to fourteen days before race day. Cut your weekly volume by about a third, then by half in race week, and keep a few short efforts at race pace so your legs stay sharp. The course rolls, so keep one short session on undulating ground in the first taper week. With the race on March 20, 2027, your taper starts around March 8, 2027.
Do I need an account to get a Annapolis Running Festival training plan?
No. The plan above builds in your browser with no account, no email, and no card. Make a free account only if you want to keep it, log your runs against it, and have the coach keep adapting it as your training goes.