New Year's Eve Gala

New Year's Eve Gala is a 5K held in Bel Air, Maryland, on December 31, 2026, with a single start at 11:00 a.m. The distance is 5K (3.1 miles) and no elevation gain is listed for the course. The late-morning slot leaves the rest of the day and the evening free, which is part of the appeal of a race on the thirty-first.

Think of it as a marker rather than a peak race: run it hard and you have a benchmark to set January training against, or run it easy and it becomes a pleasant way to earn the evening. Maryland is properly cold by the end of December, so warm up for a good 10 to 15 minutes and keep gloves and a hat on until the last minute. If you are new to racing, three or four runs a week for a month beforehand is plenty of preparation for 3.1 miles.