Care Packages at Carderock
Potomac, MD
- Half Marathon, 10K, 5K
- Trail (Unpaved)
- Official race website
Come enjoy the fast and flat courses at Carderock Recreation Area. They are perfect for PRs! All three routes run along the C&O Canal path which is a light gravel dirt trail. Each route is out-and-back once. There are minimal elevation gains along the route.
Local Historical Weather (Mar 31):
| 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | |
| H (°F) | 66 | 64 | 73 | 64 | 54 |
| L (°F) | 43 | 39 | 52 | 55 | 43 |
Find Nearby Lodging (hotel, rental, etc.):
Early Bird Sees the Deer
This is a race in Maryland produced by Bishop's Events a company that produces a lot of smaller, laid back races in MD, VA and DC. I've discovered them during … MORE
This is a race in Maryland produced by Bishop’s Events a company that produces a lot of smaller, laid back races in MD, VA and DC. I’ve discovered them during the pandemic and continue to support them when I am in the area as they are a very friendly, charity focused company. There races are generally a bit bare bones but with solid production and often on beautiful trails. The races in Potomac, MD are the prettiest. I actually had plans to be in Baltimore this weekend so this race worked perfectly. Potomac is closer to DC than Baltimore so it was about a 50 minute drive but not too bad. There was limited pre-race emails but the website is very updated. Once thing I love is they have the GPS coordinates for where to park so it is easy to find the race. The half has a 3:15 time limit but this is a back of the pack friendly race company so you can request an early start and it is generally granted as long as you ask about 2-3 weeks before the race. I was hoping I wouldn’t need the early start but completing 4-5 half marathons a month to get to Sun level in Half fanatics does not leave enough time for recovery or speedwork to get faster and I’ve been stuck around 3:20 so I requested it. It was very easy and I received a reply shortly after my request. I arrived at the race a little before 7. Picked up my swag, brought it back to my care and then did the early start. Bishop’s events swag keeps getting better. The shirt is a solid tech shirt. The early start is a bit anti-climatic but there were a couple other runners with me. The course is an out and back on the towpath. This a different part of the path in Potomac than the course I did at Fallen Soldiers but still extremely scenic. Shortly after I started I saw a bunch of deer. I don’t think the regular starters saw them so sometimes it pays to be slow. The course is easy on non-technical trail but there is the occasional loose rock to watch out for. Weather was absolutely perfect today. The course is gorgeous and there is always lots of wildlife. Along with the deer, there were turtles and lots of cool birds. There were also beautiful wildflowers. It is a very pleasant course to run on but as this was a small race with about 50 participants I was by myself a lot. Production as I said is a bit bare bones but adequate. There were 4 aid stations you past twice. One with just water and one with water and gatorade. There is no nutrition or porta potties on course though there are plenty of trees. There were well marked, accurate turn arounds for the 5K, 10K, and half. At the end you get your medal. The medal is a bit smaller than average for a half marathon medal but I loved the Easter egg design they used this year. It also has the race name, date and distance on the back. Timing was very accurate as it is chipped time and my results were available immediately and were correct accounting for the early start. There were some basic snacks like oreos and goldfish at the end. Overall this is a very nice event on a beautiful course. It does not have the crowd support or energy of the Baltimore Running Festival another race I did for MD but also does not have the hills and has better scenery. If you like smaller, scenic races I would recommend doing one of the Bishop’s Events in Potomac for MD. Although if you like the higher energy and large crowds I’d recommend Baltimore Running Festival.
Great small train race!
Loved the folks at Bishops Events who put on this small race on a beautiful trail. There were only 57 of us in the half, probably because it was Easter … MORE
Loved the folks at Bishops Events who put on this small race on a beautiful trail. There were only 57 of us in the half, probably because it was Easter Sunday. But what a great event. The trail was hard-packed dirt alternating with some gravel and a few bridges, wide enough for runners and cyclists also using the trail to pass easily. It was pretty much flat, an easy to navigate out-and-back route, and ran parallel to the C&O Canal. The route had lots of spring wildflowers to see. There was a park bathroom in the parking lot, water and Gatorade along the course (I think 4 stops and we passed each one twice) a nice short sleeve tech shirt, and an Easter egg medal plus packaged snacks at the finish. The only thing I would have liked was a bathroom along the way but I guess that would be the park’s responsibility! They allowed 3:15 to finish and I think the RD was open to earlier start if someone requested. They posted individual photos taken on FB the next day. I will be back to do more Bishop’s Events runs!