11th Annual Fast & Furriest 5K/1M - April 19, 2026

Goal Race: Frederick Women's Distance Festival, August 1, 2026

Program Length: 8 weeks

Information Session: Wednesday, June 3, 2026 at 6pm at Baker Park Bandshell

First Group Run: Wednesday, June 10th, at 6 pm at TJ Middle School at 1799 Schifferstadt Blvd.

Ongoing Group Runs

Wednesdays: 6:00 PM meet at TJ Middle School and Baker Park, Frederick. More information will be posted on the "Frederick Women's 5K Training Program" Facebook Group.

Saturdays: 8:00 AM, Various locations in or near Frederick. More information will be posted on the "Frederick Women's 5K Training Program" Facebook Page

Head Coach: Brigitte Farrell

Program Description:

The Frederick Women’s Distance Festival 5k Training Program is ideal for:

• Walkers who would like to begin adding short run segments to improve fitness and run-walk a 5k race.

• Casual runners who would like to be able to consistently run an entire 5k race.

• Intermediate runners comfortable with racing the 5k distance who would like to improve their race time.

• Any women who would like to run with other women to make friends and get motivated to move.

Each participant is given a training plan including recommendations for mileage, cross-training, and days off. While some runs will need to be done on your own, volunteer coaches lead group runs twice a week. Group runs are encouraged, but not mandatory. A private Facebook page provides a place to coordinate additional runs with other participants, and to get support and advice from more experienced participants and your volunteer coaches. We try our best to answer your questions, or at least connect you with someone who can.

You must be a paid member of FSRC to register for this training. If you are not a member, it's only $25 to join FSRC and you get this training and so much more. Click on https://steeplechasers.org/membership/join/ to learn more and follow the instructions to join. If you think you are already a paid member of the club and you can't register, please check the spelling of the name you used to join the club, using the Membership Lookup function at https://runsignup.com/Club/SearchForRenew/668. Once you've joined the club, or renewed your club membership, come back here to register for the training.

Cost: $0 for current Steeplechasers members

Minimum Age: 14

Prerequisites:

To help protect against injury, we strongly recommend you are:

• comfortable walking 30 minutes at any pace

• Have the blessing of your physician if you have some sort of medical issue that may affect your participation (heart issues, orthopedic concerns, etc.)

To Register:

(1) Make sure you are a paid member of the club by checking https://steeplechasers.org/membership/registered-members/. If not already a paid member, you need to join before registering for the training program. You can renew or join at https://runsignup.com/fsrc. Click Renew to renew your membership or Sign Up to join. If you're asked to claim your account, please see https://steeplechasers.org/membership/claim-account-rsu/

(2) Sign up using the "Sign Up" button here.

(3) Ask to join the Frederick Women's 5k Training Program Facebook group. The Facebook group is our primary means of communicating to keep you updated on when and where runs are occurring, to help you find support and get your questions answered by your coaches and fellow participants, and to notify you of cancellations due to weather.

Celebrate the holiday with a FREE 5k race at Riverside Park. (off of Monocacy Blvd). This is a low-key, low-amenity event.

Race Start time is 8:30AM.

Free for FSRC Members

Our low-key races are free for Steeplechaser members, so YAY!

You must be a club member on race day in order to get free race entry.

• If you’re not a club member, you can join at https://runsignup.com/fsrc.

• To check to see if you are a current member, and if so, what your expiration date is go to https://members.loutilities.com/fsrc/members and search for your name. If it isn’t found, your membership has either expired or you may be using an alternate spelling of your name.

• To look up your membership by name or email and to renew see: https://runsignup.com/fsrc and click Membership Lookup. If you’re logged into RunSignup, you should see your membership under “Your Existing Users”. If your membership has expired, click the Renew Now button next to your most recent membership. We have no idea why they have Renew Now next to older memberships, so please click the right one.

• If you think you are a paid member of the club and you still can't register for free, please check the spelling of the name you used to join the club and ensure that the birthdate you're using for registering for the race matches the one in your RunSignUp profile.

• If this still doesn't offer the ability to register for the race for free, email [email protected] for assistance.

Finally - if you currently have an individual membership and would like to upgrade to "Two-In-Household" or "Family" membership in order to get the free race entry for family members, contact our membership committee at [email protected].

Race Day Registration

You may sign up on race day, but you'll need to do it online on your own device. We will not have paper forms or registration kiosks.

Competition

The Independence 5000 will count towards the FSRC Grand Prix.

Low-budget awards are given to the following divisions:

• Top male/female/non binary (clock time)

• Age Group male/female (net time): 12 and under, 13-19, 20-29, 30-39, 40-49, 50-59, 60-69, 70+

Logistics

Park in the lot at Riverside and pick up your bib.

The race will be chip timed, but still please make sure that you stay in order as you cross the finish line where volunteers will scan your bib -- we do this as a backup to resolve any missed chip reads.

The course is an out and back on the paved trail through the park. There will be two water stops.

Please bring a food item to share after the race.

Join us for the 37th annual Frederick Women's Distance Festival!

The Frederick Steeplechasers are bringing this exciting event back to Frederick Community College in 2026!

As with all Steeplechaser races, we will pay your processing fee. The registration fee you see is exactly what you'll pay! No sneaky add-on fees.

Net proceeds will again be donated to The Women's Giving Circle of Frederick County.

MORE INFORMATION

For more information, see our website at https://frederickwdf.com

HISTORY

In 1979, the RRCA started the Women’s Distance Festival in response to the lack of distance running events in the Olympic Games for women. The first Women’s Distance Festival events were held on July 13, 1980, the date of the men’s marathon at the Moscow Olympics. Today, the Women’s Distance Festival celebrates the history of women’s right to participate in running events at any distance and at any age. While women’s participation in distance running nearly matches that of men, the Women’s Distance Festival continues to serve as a celebration of the determination and dedication of women runners across the country.

TEAMS

Participants of the 5k Run/Walk may optionally register as part of a team. In-person runners who are competing on a team are also eligible for individual awards.

Team Type Description Minimum Team Size

Family Any combination of mother, daughter, sister, grandmother, granddaughter, wife, partner, etc (you know who your family is!) 2

Friends Any company, civic organization, club, friends 4

Registrants who wish to participate in the team competition must provide the team name and team category during registration.

If you are registering a large team and would like to pay in a single payment, contact the race director at [email protected].

SPONSORS

Please consider supporting the event through one of our sponsorship opportunities. See www.frederickwdf.com/sponsors.

TRAINING

The Frederick Steeplechasers Running Club offers a nine-week summer training program for women in preparation for the Frederick Women's Distance Festival 5k. The coaches are excited to be able to bring our beloved women's 5k training program back this year for in-person training runs.

Registration for the training program is separate from registration for the race. Signup at: https://runsignup.com/fsrcwdf5ktraining. The training program is free for members of the Frederick Steeplechasers Running Club. If you're not already a member, you will need to signup before registering for the training program.

​For more information about our training program see: https://steeplechasers.org/training/training-programs/wdf-5k-training-program/

About the Frederick Steeplechasers

The Frederick Steeplechasers Running Club has been supporting runners, hosting races, and volunteering in the Frederick community since 1975. We promote running as a fun and healthy activity, and welcome runners of all ages and abilities.

About the FSRC Grand Prix and Maryland RRCA Grand Prix

The Frederick Market Street Mile is a feature race for both the Frederick Steeplechasers Grand Prix series and the Maryland RRCA Grand Prix series.

If you are a member of a Maryland RRCA running club or DC Road Runners, please provide your club affiliation during the registration process.