15 Night-time Half Marathons Across the USA

A pair of runners on the course at the Tread Brightly Half Marathon, which runs the hilly trails of the U.S. National Whitewater Center. (Photo courtesy Whitewater Race Series)

“In the midst of winter, I found there was, within me, an invincible summer. And that makes me happy. For it says that no matter how hard the world pushes against me, within me, there’s something stronger – something better, pushing right back.” — Albert Camus

1) Summer Night Trail Half Marathon

Limited to several hundred runners, this race also requires you to wear a headlamp out on the course at Indianapolis’s Eagle Creek Trail, which starts off as single-track but widens to dirt and gravel double-track trails after a half-mile or so.

Saturday, June 2, 2018 • Indianapolis, IN

2) MatchStick Challenge Half Marathon

Set for its first-ever running with the half marathon distance this year, the Wadsworth MatchStick Challenge is an evening run through the parks, neighborhoods and business district of this small city in northern Ohio, and starts at $35.

Friday, June 22, 2018 • Wadsworth, OH

3) Rock the Night Away Trail Half Marathon

Set for a run along the trails at the Branded B Ranch on Lake Perry just outside Topeka, this race starts in the darkness after 9 PM and requires runners to wear a headlamp, and unfolds entirely  along single-track trails.

June • Lake Perry, KS

4) Davis Moonlight Run Half Marathon

Run along the neighborhood streets of this city in Northern California’s Sacramento Valley, this race features a 7:00 PM start with two waves: runners who expect to take less than (and longer than) 3 hours to finish.

Saturday, July 7, 2018 • Davis, CA

5) Legacy Midnight Run Half Marathon

Glow sticks, flashing glow-in-the-dark balloons, LED glowing wands and more light up the trails just north of Salt Lake City at this race, which unfolds entirely along the Legacy Parkway Trail, a paved running, walking and jogging trail that’s so flat one observer described it this way: “Grandma could do it.”

Friday, July 27, 2018 • Farmington, UT

6) Tromptown Run Half Marathon

With a loop route that unfolds along the country roads here in the foothills of central New York, this race is run in conjunction with the annual Tioughnioga Firemen’s Fair and features a starting time of 5:45 PM.

August • DeRuyter, NY

7) Tread Nightly Half Marathon

Run along the challenging hills and trails that surround the U.S. National Whitewater Center near Charlotte, N.C., this race offers a perspective you can only see when you’re wearing a headlamp at night.

Friday, August 17, 2018 • Charlotte, NC

8) Area 13.1 Half Marathon

Nicknamed the “Alien Half” thanks to its nighttime running and the glow-in-the-dark gear organizers hand out before the start, this race gets started just as the sun is going down, and requires you to wear a headlamp to navigate the out-and-back course along the Chattahoochee River.

Saturday, August 18, 2018 • Roswell, GA 

9) Full Moon Race Half Marathon

Ready to run a half-marathon by the light of the full moon? You’ll get a chance at this race along the 17-mile-long Old Plank Road Trail between the Wisconsin towns of Plymouth and Kohler, which starts just as the sun is setting.

August • Plymouth, WI

10) Desert Dash Moonlight Madness Half Marathon

Run under the sky of a full moon in Las Vegas’s Cottonwood Valley at this all-new race, which will open up to just 150 entrants and feature a route along the trails of the south side of the valley in the Red Rock National Conservation Area.

Saturday, August 25, 2018 • Las Vegas, NV

11) E.T. Full Moon Midnight Half Marathon

Run through a tiny town about two and a half hours north of Las Vegas, this race takes runners on a midnight run through the desert along some of the most active hotbeds of “extraterrestrial” activity in the U.S.

Sunday, August 26, 2018 • Rachel, NV

12) Hamilton NightGlow Half Marathon

Ready for a night-time run along the Great Miami River that snakes through this city (named for Alexander Hamilton!) just outside Cincinnati?

Saturday, September 1, 2018 • Hamilton, OH

13) Twilight Red Rock Half Marathon

Lying just outside the city but still a world removed from the pulsating neon lights, glitz and glamour of the Las Vegas Strip, the Calico Hills of Nevada’s Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area beckon the hundreds of runners who make their way out here each year.

Saturday, October 13, 2018 • Las Vegas, NV

14) Trinity River Run Half Marathon

Run as the sun is setting over the Dallas skyline, at a time of year when this famously hot city should see much milder temperatures and you can enjoy a beer right after you cross the finish line next to the river.

Saturday, November 10, 2018 • Dallas, TX

15) Rock ‘n’ Roll Las Vegas Half Marathon

With a full, half and a 10K, this Rock ‘n’ Roll race takes more than 20,000 runners each year past many of the casinos that Glitter Gulch is known for, like the Bellagio, the Venetian, Caesars Palace, the Flamingo, the Mirage, Treasure Island and the Wynn.

Sunday, November 11, 2018 • Las Vegas, NV

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