Category:Races

Racing teaches us to challenge ourselves. It teaches us to push beyond where we thought we could go. It helps us to find out what we are all made of. This is what we do. This is what it’s all about. - PattiSue Plummer

There is nothing that inspires one more than having a challenging goal to look forward to in the company of friends. Cape Cod has a truly active road-racing scene with events ranging from 1 mile through the marathon and even a few triathlons and duathlons. As you’ll see by thumbing through the following pages, there’s a race available almost every weekend, some weeks sporting several. Competition can range from the newly initiated through local elites and famous visitors. As a vacation destination, race dynamics are constantly changing as we’re visited by college athletes on break, the fast and the slow tourist alike, and the competitive from the extremely active greater Boston running community. To fill the bare spots on the race calendar, local clubs sponsor race series and fun runs so you’ll never be at a loss finding someone to run with.

In the early 70’s, Cape Cod was a bit of a nexus in the running world and you can find many course records held by past national and Olympic champions. Races were frequented by the likes of Bill Rodgers, Frank Shorter and Joan Benoit Samuelson, faces you may see at a race or two over the season.

Most of the races will have fields ranging from 50-200 although some of the more popular summer races draw upwards of 1500 competitors. If you really miss that big event feel, sign up for the Falmouth Road Race. Boasting a field of 12,000 on a unique 7.05 mile course which winds from Woods Hole to Falmouth, the race brings world class competition to Cape Cod in August between the main event and the Falmouth Mile held the evening before.