The Delco 10 Miler is back with a new course and twice as many runners

The Delco 10 Miler race is back for what organizers hope will be a bigger and better second lap. Changes for 2026 include a revised course, more than twice the number of runners, and a faster pace requirement.

The race will take place on Oct. 4. Registration is open. This year’s race will be capped at 2,500 runners, up from 1,200 last year. About 700 runners registered in the first 24 hours, race director Kevin Nolan said.

While the inaugural race was largely seen as a success by race organizers and runners, Nolan said, there were still some issues to address, particularly along the route.

Some residents and drivers passing through the area were unhappy with road closures, which cut a long swath across the county. The course‘s adjustments should mean fewer closures along main roads.

“Logistically with all this traffic, it’s a tough race to manage,” Nolan said. “It’s tougher than the Philadelphia ones ... because I’ve talked to all the race directors and they don’t have the issues that we have to deal with, with all this traffic.”

The race will again start at Rose Tree Park in Upper Providence and end at Subaru Park in Chester. Last year, the race shut down parts of Route 252 and Route 320, as well as portions of Third, Fourth, and Fifth Streets in Chester, including a loop that took runners past Subaru Park before returning.

This year, runners will turn west on Rose Valley Road in Nether Providence and travel through residential streets before crossing Route 320 and heading into Chester and Widener University’s campus. The course crosses I-95 on the Melrose Avenue bridge again before heading south toward Subaru Park. The loop at the end has been eliminated.

The new course:

Some residents complained to race organizers they weren’t told ahead of time that their streets were being closed.

“As much as you try to get the word out, there are people that don’t know,” Nolan said. “So you have to do more.”

This year, volunteers will walk some sections of the route ahead of time to let residents know about the race and road closures, Nolan said.

St. John Chrysostom Catholic Church in Nether Providence told the Delco Times last year that the parish was not consulted about the race, which took place on a Sunday and impacted their mass schedule. This year’s route avoids St. John’s, as well as St. Katharine Drexel Catholic Church in Chester and some fire departments.

In another change this year, the race will have a faster pace requirement. Runners will have to maintain a minimum pace of 13 minutes, 30 seconds per mile. Last year’s minimum pace was 15 minutes per mile.

“Police are after us to open the course up. They were pretty aggravated last year with all the walkers,” Nolan said. “You hate to kick someone off the course.”

A few more quality-of-life improvements include more bathrooms at the start and at water stops. There will be also be four staggered starts based on runner speeds.

The race will benefit The HEADstrong Foundation, Elwyn, The Riddle HealthCare Foundation, and Delco Volunteers.

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