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At a glance
— Fifth annual Raptor Run 5K returns to the hills around the Anniston Museum of Natural History with a mix of road and gravel to challenge local runners
— Family friendly Dino Dash fun run invites younger participants to sprint past dinosaurs, snag goodie bags and soak up cheers from volunteers along the route
— Pre-registration for both events ends April 3 at 4 p.m., with race day sign-ups beginning at 7 a.m. April 4 outside the museum
ANNISTON — The hills around the Anniston Museum of Natural History will be filled with footsteps and cheers again on the first Saturday in April as runners line up for the fifth annual Raptor Run 5K and Dino Dash fun run.
The event, organized by the Anniston Museums and Gardens, has grown from an early virtual race into a signature in-person community tradition. Assistant director Sarah Woolmaker said in the making of the course, organizers walked the route runners would be taking several times to make sure it measured out and felt right.
The Raptor Run starts and ends outside the Anniston Museum of Natural History, with a horn sending runners of all ages onto a challenging 3.1-mile loop at 8 a.m. April 4.
Racers head up Museum Drive toward the Longleaf Event Center, weave through the Berman Museum parking lot, loop near the former Anniston Star building, circle Lagarde Park, then return to the museum. A full lap of Lagarde’s walking trail adds a stretch of gravel that gives runners a break from pounding pavement.
Woolmaker said organizers learned quickly that finishing on the steepest hill was just too much.
“The first year we had it where at the very end you went all the way up Museum Drive all the way to the Longleaf Event Center, and it was brutal,” she said. “Now we run the Longleaf hill first, and so we get it out of the way.”
Roads along the route are closed, and volunteers line the course with cowbells, signs and plenty of noise.
“When I’m seeking volunteers, I’ll say it’s a bright and early morning, we’re done by 10 a.m. and we’re looking for energy and excitement,” Woolmaker said. “This is a tough course, and we want people to be encouraged, whether it’s a dinosaur chasing you or a cheerleader cheering for you.”
The Dino Dash, which Woolmaker calls “just cool” for younger visitors, is a shorter fun run that starts at 9:30 a.m. It does not crown first, second or third place finishers. Instead, kids run for the thrill of the course and the goodie bags waiting at the finish line.
“That is really geared towards our younger visitors and our younger participants,” she said. “It is a fun run. It’s participation and excitement.”
Between the 5K and the fun run, organizers present awards for the Raptor Run, then call the crowd back outside to cheer on “the littles” as they take off, Woolmaker said.
The race relies on a strong local volunteer base. Past helpers of other museum events, United Way groups, service organizations, banks, Jacksonville State University fraternities and sororities and museum staff volunteers all pitch in to staff the route and finish area, she explained.
“We’ve got really great running communities,” Woolmaker said. “Whether you’re just starting, you’ve been doing it for decades, you’ve got your stroller, you’re a walker, you’re a tutu wearer, we have a really great sense of community and support.”
Woolmaker said the organization is also doing two sessions of dino-themed fun inside the museum that same day.
“We're also going to have our education department hosting Dino day inside the Anniston Museum, and it has two sessions, a 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. and a 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.,” she said.
Pre-registration for the Raptor Run and Dino Dash ends April 3 at 4 p.m. Day-of registration opens at 7 a.m. outside the museum on race morning.
Continue reading...
— Fifth annual Raptor Run 5K returns to the hills around the Anniston Museum of Natural History with a mix of road and gravel to challenge local runners
— Family friendly Dino Dash fun run invites younger participants to sprint past dinosaurs, snag goodie bags and soak up cheers from volunteers along the route
— Pre-registration for both events ends April 3 at 4 p.m., with race day sign-ups beginning at 7 a.m. April 4 outside the museum
ANNISTON — The hills around the Anniston Museum of Natural History will be filled with footsteps and cheers again on the first Saturday in April as runners line up for the fifth annual Raptor Run 5K and Dino Dash fun run.
The event, organized by the Anniston Museums and Gardens, has grown from an early virtual race into a signature in-person community tradition. Assistant director Sarah Woolmaker said in the making of the course, organizers walked the route runners would be taking several times to make sure it measured out and felt right.
The Raptor Run starts and ends outside the Anniston Museum of Natural History, with a horn sending runners of all ages onto a challenging 3.1-mile loop at 8 a.m. April 4.
Racers head up Museum Drive toward the Longleaf Event Center, weave through the Berman Museum parking lot, loop near the former Anniston Star building, circle Lagarde Park, then return to the museum. A full lap of Lagarde’s walking trail adds a stretch of gravel that gives runners a break from pounding pavement.
Woolmaker said organizers learned quickly that finishing on the steepest hill was just too much.
“The first year we had it where at the very end you went all the way up Museum Drive all the way to the Longleaf Event Center, and it was brutal,” she said. “Now we run the Longleaf hill first, and so we get it out of the way.”
Roads along the route are closed, and volunteers line the course with cowbells, signs and plenty of noise.
“When I’m seeking volunteers, I’ll say it’s a bright and early morning, we’re done by 10 a.m. and we’re looking for energy and excitement,” Woolmaker said. “This is a tough course, and we want people to be encouraged, whether it’s a dinosaur chasing you or a cheerleader cheering for you.”
The Dino Dash, which Woolmaker calls “just cool” for younger visitors, is a shorter fun run that starts at 9:30 a.m. It does not crown first, second or third place finishers. Instead, kids run for the thrill of the course and the goodie bags waiting at the finish line.
“That is really geared towards our younger visitors and our younger participants,” she said. “It is a fun run. It’s participation and excitement.”
Between the 5K and the fun run, organizers present awards for the Raptor Run, then call the crowd back outside to cheer on “the littles” as they take off, Woolmaker said.
The race relies on a strong local volunteer base. Past helpers of other museum events, United Way groups, service organizations, banks, Jacksonville State University fraternities and sororities and museum staff volunteers all pitch in to staff the route and finish area, she explained.
“We’ve got really great running communities,” Woolmaker said. “Whether you’re just starting, you’ve been doing it for decades, you’ve got your stroller, you’re a walker, you’re a tutu wearer, we have a really great sense of community and support.”
Woolmaker said the organization is also doing two sessions of dino-themed fun inside the museum that same day.
“We're also going to have our education department hosting Dino day inside the Anniston Museum, and it has two sessions, a 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. and a 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.,” she said.
Pre-registration for the Raptor Run and Dino Dash ends April 3 at 4 p.m. Day-of registration opens at 7 a.m. outside the museum on race morning.
Continue reading...
