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Right when the meaty part of Fall marathon training starts, D.C.’s primary long run route continues to be a challenge. “The Big Loop,” the popular 20-mile route carrying runner around the Capital Crescent and Georgetown Branch trails to Rock Creek Park’s Beach Drive is still compromised, though in new ways.

The Georgetown Branch Trail remains closed during construction of the Purple Line. The Beach Drive rebuilding project has moved north, closing most of the 2.7 miles between the Maryland state line and Joyce Road. And now the Zoo loop, the roughly half-mile trail circumnavigating the Beach Drive tunnel, is apparently in danger of falling into the creek following heavy rains and erosion, so pedestrians and cyclists are forced to share a five-foot-wide sidewalk, feet from automobile traffic.

The College Park 5k didn’t feel like any race I had run before. Sure there were cones, a course, other runners and a starting line, but right behind that starting line, my son Miles was sitting in our running stroller.

It wasn’t that long ago that Saturday mornings meant an early wake up for long runs with my club, followed by brunch, a nap, then hitting the bars at night. Now, I ‘m up just as early but it is to turn on Elmo and Sesame Street for Miles, while my wife and I get a little more sleep. Then we hit the road for a run, me pushing him.

Some running groups in the D.C. area are competitive, challenging cohorts; that’s not the case with several of the running groups based out of D.C.’s H Street Northeast neighborhood.

Much like the street itself, many of H Street’s running groups are eclectic, vibrant and down for a good time.

Alisa Harvey started her running career as a sprinter.

The now 52-year-old wanted to run the 100-meter and 200-meter races in her middle school track races at Thomas Jefferson High School in Alexandria. She did OK. But when she moved to the 800-meter races, something unexpected happened — she started winning.

It’s free and the best way to reach runners in the D.C. area looking for a race. If your local race is between September and next April and you have it on the race calendar before July 31, it will be included in the next magazine.

The midway point of 2018 is a good time to check your runner ranking and make sure your results are showing up for all of the races you’ve run. To qualify for the year-end rankings, you will have had to have run three ranked races in the first six months and three in the second six months.

Check your ranking here

As a freshman at Georgetown, Mike Crozier didn’t see himself leading the workouts and trying to make a name for himself.

He wanted to show up, shut up and be patient.

The Washington, D.C. area is spoiled with more than 200 organized runs each week. Some are organized by running specialty stores, others by running clubs, and almost all are open to new members. We’ve organized a calendar that compiles meeting times and details about each run, along with where you can find more information.

Some groups are pretty casual. Others are hardcore. Some ask that you RSVP and others require you to be a member. Some days have more than three dozen different runs.