A Midsummer Night's Run 5K

Let's close out the summer with Lexington's most exciting race!

The 42nd Annual A Midsummer Night's Run!

The 2026 A Midsummer Night's Run presented by CHI Saint Joseph Health is a live, in-person race in downtown Lexington scheduled for Saturday, August 8, 2026 at 7:30pm.  We are providing a virtual participant option for those who can't (or choose not to) join us in person.  Additionally the Fastest Kid In Town Kids Races (Ages 2-12) will be held at 6pm.

RACE DAY SCHEDULE (Saturday, August 8, 2026)

• 4:30PM --- Packet Pickup Opens (Packet Pickup Tent on Courthouse Plaza Lawn)
• 5:45PM --- Fastest Kid In Town Meeting with Parents/Kids (Corner of Limestone & Short Streets)
• 6:00PM --- Fastest Kid in Town Races (Ages 2-12)
• 7:20PM --- Brief Pre-Race Program
• 7:30PM --- A Midsummer Night's Run 5K START
• 8:00PM --- Awards Tent Open (For pickup of Age Group Awards (Top 3 M/F in each 5 year division)
• 8:15PM --- Awards Presented to Top 3 Male & Female Overall winners

RACE FEATURES

• A unique downtown race in the heart of Lexington, Kentucky
• Commemorative race T-shirts
• 5K Run/Walk and Fastest Kid In Town (Ages 2-12)
• Awards for top Overall & Age Group finishers
• Free Race Photos
• Team Pricing (Teams of 5 or more SAVE $5 on each team member's registration fee)
• Virtual Option for those who can't join the race in-person
• DJ & Food Trucks

RACE DONATIONS   All race donations made by A Midsummer Night’s Run participants will support the Saint Joseph Hospital Foundation’s Yes, Mamm! program which provides free mammography screening, diagnostics services, and program support to uninsured or underinsured women and men.

PACKET PICKUP   There will be two prerace packet pickup opportunities.  We encourage all local runners to pickup in advance.  You can pickup for friends, family and team members with no credentials, paperwork or ID's required.

• Packet Pickup #1: Location TBD, Thursday, August 6th from 12pm-6pm
• Packet Pickup #2: Location TBD, Friday, August 7th from 2pm-7pm

5K AWARDS   Awards will be presented to the Top 3 M/F Overall finishers and Top 3 M/F in the following Age Groups (0-14, 15-19, 20-24, 25-29, 30-34, 35-39, 40-44, 45-49, 50-54, 55-59, 60-64, 65-69, 70-74, 75-79, & 80+)

5K ROUTE MAP

We have 3 opportunities to pickup your race packet.

Thursday, 8/6/26 from 12:00-6:00pm at Location TBD

Friday, 8/7/26 from 2:00-7:00pm at Location TBD

• We encourage all local runners to pick up on Thursday or Friday. 
• Picking up for family/friends/team members in encouraged
• No credentials, ID or paperwork are necessary to pick up for you or others

LAST CHANCE PPU (For out-of-town participants) --- Saturday, 8/8/26 from 5:30-7:30pm at the Robert F. Stephens Courthouse Plaza

Relive the vibes from our celebration of the 41st running of A Midsummer Night's Run.

We are pleased to partner with CHI Saint Joseph Hospital Foundation's Yes, Mamm!, Yes, Cerv! as the charitable beneficiary of A Midsummer Night's Run.

All race donations made by A Midsummer Night’s Run participants will support the CHI Saint Joseph Hospital Foundation’s Yes, Mamm!, Yes, Cerv! program which provides free mammography screening, diagnostics services, and program support to uninsured or underinsured women and men.

MAKE A DONATION

Refer 5 or more participants and get a refund of up to $10.00.

When you register, you will be provided with a unique registration link that you can share with your friends, family, and social media.  Get 5 people to register for A Midsummer Night's Run via your unique registration link, and we'll refund you back $10.00 on your original registration.  Refer 5 more and you'll get another $10 back.  If you have enough friends you can convince to sign up, you'll run the race for free.

Our 5K race starts/finishes on Short Street between the two courthouses (120 N Limestone, Lexington, KY 40507).  Runners will head east on Short Street making a right on Elm Tree and left onto East Main Street.  Runners will proceed east on Main on the inbound two lanes making a 180 degree turn around the median at Bassett Avenue.  Runners return on the outbound lanes of East Main Street until making a right on Martin Luther King and then a left on Short Street to the finish line.

There is one hydration station setup along East Main Street that runners will pass by twice.  The elevation change for the course is 154 feet.  All runners will be chip timed but the Overall Top 3 M/F awards will be based on a "head to head" gun time.