Disclaimer: I received a free entry to the New Jersey Marathon as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador), and check out BibRave.com to review find and write race reviews!
I hope you’ve had a great week! In case you missed it, I shared that I will be training for my 2nd marathon – the New Jersey Marathon! It takes place on April 29, 2018. As you can imagine, I’m nervous but excited to see how things go!
I thought now would be a great time to share 5 reasons why you should consider joining me in New Jersey!
I’m joining Running on Happy and Fairytales and Fitness for the Friday 5 2.0! I’m also linking up with Marcia, Patty, and Erika for Tuesdays on the Run, Susie, Debbie, Lora, and Rachel for the Running Coaches Corner and Annmarie, Nicole, and Jen for Wild Workout Wednesday!
[bctt tweet=”Check out these 5 reasons why you should sign up for the @njmarathon! #runchat #bibchat ” username=”Janelle_RWNR”]
5 Reasons to Run New Jersey Marathon Weekend
The New Jersey Marathon has been completely revamped for 2018 and will be a fun-filled weekend including:
- RWJBarnabas Health Family Day including a 5K and various Kids Races
- Half Marathon
- Full Marathon
- Marathon Relay
Here are just 5 reasons why this race should be on your radar!
Enjoy a Weekend at the Jersey Shore
Can I make a confession? I’ve never gone to the Jersey shore. Seriously. I live in Philadelphia so it’s super close, but the closest I’ve gotten was the beach in Atlantic City…and I was not impressed! While the weather may not be warm enough to fully enjoy the Atlantic Ocean, I’m really excited to have another racecation and check out the boardwalk and local towns. Bret will also be joining me for the weekend and running the half marathon. It’ll be great if he can cheer me on the marathon course when he finishes his race!
Nail a PR with a Flat and Fast Course
Are looking to PR a race distance next year, or maybe even BQ? From what I’ve been told, New Jersey is where you can get it done! The course is point-to-point with “no significant hills and…few very gentle rolling stretches and bridge crossings”. There are only about 9,000 runners for the half and full marathons, so hopefully you won’t have to do much bobbing and weaving during the course! While I’m never going to qualify for Boston, my goal is to PR the marathon in 2018, so we’ll see how it goes!
The New Jersey Marathon is also a great race for first-time marathoners and newer runners. Check out some of the reviews on Bibrave to get a better feel for the race experience!
Have a Blast at the Expo and Afterparty
The New Jersey Marathon is having a huge overhaul this year, and for the first time, bib pickup at the Diadora Race Exposition is going to be more of a party! It’s going to be held at the Asbury Park Brewery so it should be a really fun time. If you’ve ever run the Philly 10K, expect a similar experience!
Post-race, the afterparty will take place on the boardwalk in Long Branch and feature a free beer from the Asbury Park Brewery and live music. Fingers crossed for a beautiful day – I may have to dip my toes in the ocean once I’m finished the marathon!
And Of Course, the Swag…
If you run races for the medals, you’ll get no judgment from me! The official swag hasn’t been revealed for the New Jersey Marathon yet – BUT – I have no doubt that they will once again come up with a great design for the finishers medals! Last year, marathon finishers received a nice long-sleeved tech tee from Under Armour. Hopefully, the finisher shirt will be a much higher quality than the disappointment from the 2016 Philadelphia Marathon…yeah, I’m still bitter about it, haha!
You Can Sign Up With a Discount!
A very nice perk of being a BibRave Pro Ambassador is that I always have some race discounts to share! If you want to run the New Jersey Marathon this year, use code “NJMBibrave18” to save $5 on all race distances!
[bctt tweet=”Save $5 on the @njmarathon with code NJMBibrave18 – use for any distance! Hope to see you there! #bibchat #runchat #njmarathon ” username=”Janelle_RWNR”]
What races are you looking forward to this spring? Have you ever run along the Jersey Shore?
I have not done a NJ half yet. I know a couple of people doing the half there, though. It’s tempting, although my husband prefers smaller races (not a crowd person). I, OTOH, truly hate training in winter. And this winter looks to be bad. 🙁 I mean, it already is bad!
I know….what a winter to be training for a marathon, haha! It’s funny, 9,000 total runners is a small race to me! RNR Montreal was huuuuge, that was just too much!
Gotta love a flat fast course!That is one of the reasons I always did them in Virginia Beach.I do not think I have ever been to the Jersey Shore either. I have only been to Ocean City, Atlantic City, and Wild Wood.
Virginia Beach is another race that’s on my bucket list! Maybe we’ll finally get to hit the shore this summer for a proper getaway!
I’ve heard great things about this race! I wish I lived closer so I could do it.
Sigh….so many races! I’m hopeful that this will be a great race!
Really you have never been to the Jersey shore?! That’s crazy! I like the idea of a marathon relay those are always fun. There are so many races that weekend around here. I am already signed up for an 8K.
We always say we’ll make a trip and it doesn’t happen, lol! The marathon relay does look like a fun option – relays in general are great!
This sounds like a bucket list race to add to my ever-growing list. Unfortunately, 2018 it will not be happening for me since that weekend is our daughter’s senior dance recital. Priorities, right? 😉
Oh the dance recital sounds awesome. It’s tough when there are so many races and so many time conflicts!
A marathon? Not me. But good for you.
The half is on my bucket list. So many races, so little time LOL
Haha! Yes, the half marathon looks great too! I know…so little time!!
I’m so excited for you to run this marathon! I runfess that like you, I’ve never been to the Jersey shore, lol. I’ve been to Atlantic City but that’s it.
Wishing you a happy and healthy 2018!
Running Vegas was so much fun with the flat course. I’ve never been to the Jersey shore either, but I’ll be by the Pacific Ocean for my next run.
This sounds like a great race! I hadn’t heard of this one before but a race at the beach definitely sounds promising 🙂
I love the Jersey shore and a flat course sounds great! Rob was considering doing this one but decided to run Delaware the weekend before instead. Looking forward to following along with your training!
Tempting!
I don’t think it will work for me for 2018 as I’m doing the Cherry Blossom 10 Miler earlier in the month, but possible if I don’t do the Shape Women’s Half in NYC. Hard to resist the idea of running at the beach.
Oh Cherry Blossom is a great race, hope you have a blast!
Thank you! I’m looking forward to it. Can’t imagine a prettier course with the blossoms, and I love the tidal basin.
A flat course is definitely something I look for in a race! Next year I am looking forward to the Bank of America Shamrock Shuffle and the IL Marathon. Plus I hope i get picked for a few RnR races I am interested in running.
Whatwhat? I work for RWJ 😛 I don’t think I’ll be ready to run quite that distance by then, but mayyybe I’ll try for the year after, while I’m still on this end of the country! 😛 I hope you have fun and PR!! :]
Sounds like a fun race… will need to put it on my radar for future years. I think dipping your toes in the Atlantic afterwards may be just as good as doing an ice bath 😉