Invite your friends to join you at the Delaware Running Festival. If you get 5 friends to sign up using your special referral link that is contained in your confirmation email , you will receive a refund of up to $25.00 as our Thank You!

PLUS if you refer 10 or more friends you will earn an exclusive gifts like an Under Armour backpack, Native Eyewear Sunglasses or an Garmin Watch! These gift items are ONLY available through our referral program so don’t miss out on the opportunity! Rewards are cumulative so you can earn ALL the prizes if you keep recruiting!

Referred registrants MUST use the unique URL that is contained in your confirmation email in order to receive credit for their entry. The system will keep track of your referrals through this link and cannot be added retroactively. Cash refund will go back to the credit card you used when you registered. Refund amount is limited to the amount paid (so if your entry fee was less than $25, you will only receive what you paid back). Referral Rewards program is not valid for Kids Fun Run or Charity Team registrations. If you are signing with a Charity Team, you are not eligible for cash refunds or any prizes.

The Delaware Running Festival was started in 2004 to provide those runners who were seeking to complete a marathon in every state a way to check Delaware off their list.  Over those 15 years, the event has added other distances, tweaked the course and changed the benefits.  But the one thing that has always stayed constant is the strong and loyal support of the community and the runners who participate.

In 2019, we look forward to continue to grow the Delaware Running Festival to include runners of all levels and age groups while remaining the best option for future members of the 50-State Marathon Club to check “The First State” off their bucket list.  Here is how we plan to do it:

THE COURSE–  Most runners rave about the beauty of the course and how it takes them through some of the most scenic parts of Wilmington.  We will continue to highlight these landmarks but plan to tweak the course to remove some of the sharp turns and unclear course features that sometimes cause confusion amongst the runners.  While doing so, we will unify the full, half and relay courses so everyone uses the same routes. We will use buses to shuttle relay runners of legs 2 & 4 to an exchange point on the course.  The full marathon will likely remain a double-loop course as the infrastructure of Wilmington and its city services are not conducive to a 26.2-mile layout.

ONE RACE DAY– As a way to better celebrate all the participants’ accomplishments and increase the excitement that a larger crowd brings, we will hold the 5K and Kids Fun Run on the same day as the full marathon, half-marathon and 4-person relay.   We are exploring our options so we can continue to offer the Dare Devil Challenge as a race option. We hope that bringing everyone together will fill the park and add to the buzz on race day.

EXPO–  We received some very positive feedback on the indoor expo that was added in 2018.  Next year we have secured a larger room in the same hotel that will allow us to include more vendors and provide more space for the race logistics.

BENEFITS– We will continue to offer some of the best premiums in the business with the high quality, name brand race shirts, free race photos for all finishers, finisher medals for every race and other amenities.  We willl also make adjustment to the pricing schedule to keep costs down.  Runners who commit early can take advantage of our preferred early bird rates and register at a discount.

DATE– We know the Spring race calendar in the Mid-Atlantic is a busy one. With races in Philadelphia, New Jersey, Maryland and the coastline all competing for participants, there is really no “perfect” time.  We did feel it was important for the long-term success of the event to move off of Mother’s Day.  We have decided to remain the last weekend in April and run on Sunday, April 28.

We appreciate all those who took the time to complete the survey. Your feedback is instrumental in the continued success of the Delaware Running Festival.  We know that runners have lots of options these days and we hope we remain your race of choice.

Registration will open soon for the 16th Annual Delaware Running Festival.  We will send an email once it available.  Stay tuned!

Sincerely,

Lee Corrigan
President

Your Race Photos are Ready for Viewing HERE

Delaware Online

These 3 runners never miss the Delaware Marathon event

Run Horowitz

A GEM OF A RACE IN DELAWARE

5K: https://www.novatimingsystems.com/results.aspx?race_id=11366

Full:  https://www.novatimingsystems.com/results.aspx?race_id=11368

Half: https://www.novatimingsystems.com/results.aspx?race_id=11369

4PR: https://www.novatimingsystems.com/results.aspx?race_id=11370

MINOR COURSE CHANGES ANNOUNCED DUE TO CONSTRUCTION

IMPORTANT NOTE: As announced earlier this week, the full marathon and half marathon courses will have a few minor changes this year due to construction along the Riverfront passed the St. Francis Healthcare building. Both courses have been re-certified.

The turn-by-turn directions are attached below. Changes are minor with no drastic alterations to the route. We will pass many of the same areas and roads as in year’s past but know that certain mile markers may change slightly from previous years.   Please pay attention to route markings on race day.

Thank you.

• Full course map – https://www.mapmyride.com/routes/fullscreen/2031858805/
• Full course turn-by-turn – CLICK HERE

• Half course – https://www.mapmyride.com/routes/fullscreen/2031840109/
• Half course turn-by-turn – CLICK HERE

The Discover Bank Twilight 5K has a new course this year.  in 2018, we will be running along the Christina River waterfront.

The new out & back Discover Bank 5K course runs along Riverfront Wilmington path and uses the same Start/Finish line that the Sunday races will use. We are excited to showcase this gem of Wilmington during race weekend.

The course map is posted here: https://bit.ly/2IIFO0j

Bring your friends and neighbors to join in the festivities! Or if you are doing the half or full on Sunday, add the 5K and complete the Dare Devil Challenge. IT’S NOT TOO LATE TO REGISTER!

VIEW YOUR RUNNER HANDBOOK HERE

DEADLINE TO MAKE RACE CHANGES IS APRIL 20

ONLY A FEW MORE DAYS TO MAKE REGISTRATION CHANGES-  We all know that injuries often arise during training after one registers for a race. The Delaware Marathon Running Festival has some of the most generous policies around should this happen to you. We ask that you make your decision as early as you can to avoid issues and possible loss of fees.

REGISTRATION CONFIRMATION

Please Click Here to lookup your registration. If you searched and cannot find your registration please email [email protected].

EDIT REGISTRATION

Need to make a change to your registration? You can edit everything except your name, gender, and date of birth by logging into your registration HERE: https://runsignup.com/Race/DELAWARERUNNINGFESTIVAL/Page-7

Here is where to update your information:

• Email, Phone or Mailing Address- Click PARTICIPANT INFO in the white menu bar
• Emergency contact- Click QUESTIONS in the grey menu bar
• Shirt Size- Click ADD-ONS in the grey menu bar

Having trouble accessing your registration? If you registered prior to Feb. 15th you may need to follow this step before making changes.  Click HERE to claim your registration and account on RunSignUp. The easiest way to claim your account is to type in your email address and click “Claim”. If there are any unclaimed accounts associated with that email address, you will receive the “Claim Instructions” email within a few minutes (the email will be sent to the email address on your registration). If you are still having trouble, view this tutorial for more information.

DOWNGRADE

If you cannot complete the distance you registered for but would still like to participate in the Delaware Running Festival, you may downgrade to a lesser distance. You will not be given a refund for the difference in entry fee. To do so please visit this link and click on TRANSFER EVENT in the white menu bar.

UPGRADE
If your training is going better than expected and you would like to run a longer distance than you originally registered for you may upgrade to a different race by paying the price difference. To do so please visit this link and click on TRANSFER EVENT in the white menu bar. Please note the 5K takes place Saturday night. The Half Marathon and Team Relay take place Sunday morning.

DEFERMENT

If you become injured and cannot participate in the Delaware Running Festival in 2018 you may defer your entry until 2019. There is a $25 processing fee to do so. ALL DEFERMENT REQUESTS MUST BE RECEIVED WITH PAYMENT by April 15. NO EXCEPTIONS!

To take advantage of this offer please log into RunSignUp and Click Here to manage your registration. Click the DEFER REGISTRATION option in the menu and process your deferral payment. You will receive an email with a link to sign up for the 2019 race when registration reopens.

For relay teams that wish to defer their team, they will see an option in the relay team portal.  Once they have deferred, all team members will automatically be deferred.

WITHDRAWAL:  If you choose not to participate in any race this year we ask that you contact our offices by email at [email protected]  so that we will make the change in the system and open your spot up for another runner.  NOTE:  If you do this you will waive your rights to your race premium as well.

The Delaware Marathon Running Festival does not allow refunds or transfers of entry fees to other runners.

Arrive at the Delaware Running Festival start line prepared, motivated and ready to have a great race day with Mbition, our official training partner.

We’ve partnered with Mbition the smart Adaptive Training App to help make sure you are ready for race day on April 28 or 29. The app creates a CUSTOM training plan which is 100% built around the Delaware Running Festival and your fitness, schedule and goal. It then cleverly ADAPTS as you progress to your pacing, distance and activity levels.

Mbition’s personalized training plans are designed to get you fit and fast no matter what life throws at you, as each week the plan adapts to your progress.  So if you are forced to take a break due to a vacation, illness or injury the plan will get you back on track. You also get direct access to their coaching team via online chat if you have a question about training.

Sessions are varied and designed to have maximum impact on your fitness. Plus if a PR is your goal, they schedule speed sessions and optional strength and conditioning workouts that will get you flying round the course on race day.

 Try it out for yourself, go to the link below to start your 30 day free trial.

Getting started on Mbition couldn’t be simpler!

​It takes about 2 minutes to create your own personal plan.  Enter a few details about your current fitness level and Mbition will create a custom plan just for you. Sessions are designed to be varied and interesting to keep you motivated – so you’ll never ever be a one speed runner again and will make great progress towards your goal.

​Their expert coaching team, designers and techies have spent 2 years poring over algorithms, runners’ habits and working through every scenario possible to enable their app to adapt around you and your goals and progress.  You will be amazed!  And it’s FREE for 30 days!