2015 Boston Marathon registration starts Monday – What you need to know

Registration for the 2015 Boston Marathon begins on Monday,  Sept. 8, at 10:00 a.m EDT. The 119th annual event, hosted by the Boston Athletic Association, is set to take place on Monday, April 20, 2015, Patriot’s Day in the state of Massachusetts.

The field for the 2015 event has been set at 30,000 which is several thousand more than usual but less than the 36,000 who registered in 2014. record participation stands at 38,000 from the 1996 race, the event’s centennial year. Last year’s event saw high demand and an overwhelming number of applications in the wake of the bombings which took place in 2013. Even with tough qualifying standards already in place, interest to compete in the prestigious and storied race has been on the rise for several years.

To deal with the growing demand of participants, the event will again use a rolling registration process which has been considered a success for the past two years which it has been used.

The registration is not at straightforward as most races, but it’s simple enough to figure out. Those with the fastest qualifying times, respective of age and gender, will be given priority access to register for the event. Starting at 10 a.m. on Monday, anyone with a qualifying time 20 minutes faster, or better, than their entry standard will be allowed to register. Two days later, on Wednesday, those with a qualifying times 10 minutes faster will become eligible to enter. Finally, those with a qualifying time five minutes or faster will be permitted to register starting on Friday. Registration will be temporarily suspended over the weekend and if spaces are still available, which most expect to be the case this year, registration will open up again on Monday, the 15th, until the limit — approximately 24,000 to time qualifiers — has been reached.

For a more comprehensive explanation, the BAA has produced a useful video as well as an easy-to-use calculator that will help you know exactly when you are eligible to register.