THOUSANDS of runners will put on their running shoes for the New Forest Marathon this weekend. Here's your guide to the popular event.

When will the take place?

All races will take place on Sunday (September 8) and all routes will start and finish from New Park Showground, Brockenhurst and wind through the heart of the New Forest National Park.

How many races are there?

There are five races in total - the Full Marathon, Half Marathon, 10k, 5k, Junior 1k and the Junior 200m - plus a Woodland Walk.

The P&P/Southern Events Full Marathon will kick things off at 9am. The route leads through the New forest, down to Sway and around to the Wilverly Inclosure before leading back to New park Showground.

The ORA Events Half Marathon, which follows at 9.55am, will feature a blend of forest enclosures, open roads, far reaching views and, of course, famous New Forest ponies.

The Woodland Walk starts at 10.15am, with the New Forest Health and Leisure 10k next at 10.25am. While the ExxonMobil 5k sets off at 10.40am.

The Junior Race is open to children aged between five and 12-years-old, plus there's a 200m course for under fives which runs down the New Forest Marathon final straight and under the start/finish bridge.

Can I still enter?

Unfortunately, you can't enter any of the races now as all 2019 events are sold out. Youngsters can enter the Junior Race on the day at 1pm in the Race Village.

How do I get there?

There are regular trains from Bournemouth, Southampton and Lymington to Brockenhurst railway station plus regular bus services from Bournemouth, Southampton and Lymington.

Event bus

A New Forest Marathon Shuttle Bus will operate from Brockenhurst Railway Station to New Park (Race Village/Start/Finish) throughout the day. A single costs £4 and a return is £6.

I'm coming by car, where do I park?

New Park Showground has lots of parking on site. Parking will cost £5 per car all day.

Camping

There's camping on site on Friday and Saturday for £20 per pitch with a limit of 100 pitches.

Which charities will benefit?

There are three charity partners; the NSPCC, Run 4 Cancer and the New Forest Community Fund. This year, £1 from each entry goes towards the New Forest Marathon Community Fund, helping fund local projects across the New Forest community. Each project focuses on getting more people active helping to create a healthier community.

Race Packs

Participants can pick up their race packs from the New Park Showground between 4pm and 9pm on Friday, 10am and 7pm on Saturday and from 6am onwards on Sunday.

Drinks stations

For the full marathon, half marathon and 10k run, drinks stations will be located every two to four kilometres along the courses offering Bowser water. Some stations will also offer energy source and jelly for runners.

Road closures

In Brockenhurst, Rhinefield Road will be closed between the A35 and Beachern Wood Car Park from 9.00am until 1.30pm.

North Weirs track will see restricted movement while the peak flow of runners pass between 10am and 11.00am. People should exit via Burley Road until 1.30pm. Organisers say although runners will be using this until 4pm, numbers will be light so they aim to "maintain access in and out of properties throughout this period". They ask people to drive with extreme caution and add a little extra time for your journey.

Burley Road will be closed between North Weirs and The Rise between 9.50am and 11.00am.

Burley Road from Wilverley top to North Weirs will be accessible for residents and businesses only.

Sway Road will remain open both ways with approximately one metre lane coned off for runners between the school and the T-junction after the railway bridge.

A diversion route will be implemented, access to the Brockenhurst village via Longslade Bottom.

Although organisers have applied for road closure orders, they aim to maintain full access to the Sway area. For the safety of the runners, traffic flow may be restricted at times while the main bulk of runners pass through. People should allow extra time for their journey and take extreme caution of runners using the roads.

Runners will approach Sway from Brockenhurst along the B3055 and will turn right into Manchester Road then left into Middle Road. They will turn right into Brighton Road before turning left into Set Thorns Enclosure.

What will the weather be like?

According to the Met Office, Sunday is looking dry with sunny intervals in the morning giving way to cloud by lunchtime with highs of 17C.

Accuweather says it will be partly sunny with highs of 17C.