They call it Hospital Hill for a reason. At mile 10 of the Marine Corps Historic Half Marathon it rears up against the sky. With proper training, you won’t need the hospital that sits at the top, but it’s always good to have a plan b. Marine Corps drill sergeants yelling at you to run up it and conquer the pain help too. This is the Marine Corps historic half and only the tough survive.

The Rutgers Half Marathon, held in mid-April each year on the campus of Rutgers University in New Brunswick New Jersey, passes through the picturesque campus and back through the athletic fields. With some nice swag including a mug, shirt, and a pretty hefty medal, it’s great for a beautiful spring day race. This year, the weather couldn’t have been better. It was sunny with a nice moderate breeze and never went above about 68.

For the second year in a row, I ran the Philadelphia Hot Chocolate 15K in early April. Like last year, a strong wind blows, but this year adds the pleasant addition of on and off rain, shifting from drizzle to a light pour periodically throughout the morning. Our friends John and Becca now live right down the street from the start line, but in our infinite wisdom, we decide to drive down the morning of the race.

Every year in New York City, millions gather around Times Square to revel in memories of the previous year, celebrate the upcoming one, and see the ball drop. At midnight, the immense ball descends the tower, and confetti sprays across the whole city. Revelers cheer, toast, kiss, or possibly do all three. Several blocks uptown, another group, a somewhat smaller and less warmly dressed one, watches fireworks in Central Park, and begins running a four mile loop of the park on the stroke of midnight.

As the door closes on 2015 and another opens on 2016, it’s the most magical time of the year, time to plan your races for 2016. 2015 saw the most participants ever in marathons world wide, as well as the biggest increase in half and full marathons ever recorded. While this means there are more great races than ever before, it also means some are harder to get in to and planning a schedule is more important than ever.