It's time to get out your running shoes and start training for the world's largest 10K.

Fifty thousand runners will take part in the 49th annual AJC Peachtree Road Race on July 4th!

The public lottery registration for the 2018 AJC Peachtree Road Race opens to the public Thursday, March 15th at 5am and continues until March 22nd at 11:59 pm.

Jay Holder with the Atlanta Track Club says, "for the next eight days you've got your chance to be a part of this huge 49-year-old party that we do every year here in Atlanta."

Those who enter the lottery during the registration period will have an equal chance of being picked for the race. "It's totally random, equal opportunity," says Holder.

All lottery entrants will receive an email by Sunday, March 25 notifying them if they were selected.

This year's race will start earlier than in previous years. The first runners will cross the starting line at 7am instead of 7:30 am. The reason for the change is to get the runners out there and finished before the temperatures start to soar. Holder says, "July 4th in Atlanta is not generally a cool time of year."

Of course the highlight of the event is that commemorative T-shirt given to the runners as they cross the finish line; a shirt that can instantly spark a friendship with fellow runners not just in Atlanta but around the world.

To try your luck at a race number, go to: https://www.ajc.com/peachtree