North Carolina fun runs
71 seasonal, themed and one-of-a-kind fun runs in North Carolina.
Holiday and seasonal: 14 · Costume and theme: 12 · Food and drink: 11 · Novelty course: 10 · Mud and obstacle: 8 · Animals: 6 · Color, glow and night: 5 · Iconic tradition: 3 · Quirky format: 2
- Costume and theme Zombie Run & Spooky Family Fun Run A downtown 5K where zombies try to grab flags off runners' belts.
- Animals Howl-O-Ween 5K & Dog Walk A Halloween 5K and dog walk tied to the NC State Vet School community, with costume contests for people and pets.
- Quirky format Sandhills Sasquatch 4-Hour 1-Mile Repeat & Sasquatch 5K Runners or ruckers do as many 1-mile loops as they can in four hours, passing a longleaf pine estimated at about 470 years old.
- Food and drink Hawg Run 5K The morning 5K of the Lexington Barbecue Festival.
- Costume and theme Monsters & Mimosas 5K A Halloween-costume cross-country 5K through a Yadkin Valley vineyard, with a mimosa at the finish.
- Costume and theme Costumes & Cardio 5K A free Halloween-eve costume run from a Ninth Street running shop.
- Costume and theme Wicked Spooky 5K & Creepy Crawly Climb A Halloween-morning costume 5K from Wicked Weed's Funkatorium sour-beer taproom on Asheville's South Slope.
- Novelty course OBX TowneBank Outer Banks Marathon & Southern Fried Half The marathon starts at Fort Raleigh National Historic Site (the Lost Colony site), and the weekend 8K/5K runs at the Wright Brothers National Memorial.
- Animals Beaufort Bridge Run 5K & Dog Strut A historic-town 5K over the Gallants Channel and Turner Street bridges, plus a 1+ mile strut for dogs and their people.
- Animals Sgt. Ruff's Color Run A dog-friendly color run on the Lenoir Greenway that raises money for service dogs, with Pup Run and Big Dawg entries.
- Novelty course Battleship Half Marathon, 10K & 5K The half and 10K cross the Cape Fear Memorial Bridge and loop around the USS North Carolina, and the bib includes entry to the ship.
- Holiday and seasonal CPI Security Charlotte Turkey Trot North Carolina's largest road race, a Thanksgiving trot at SouthPark Mall that drew a record 12,233 people in 2025.
- Holiday and seasonal High Country Turkey Trot 5K & 10K Overall winners get a fresh pumpkin pie from Boone's Stick Boy Bread Co. after a Thanksgiving trail race on the Boone Greenway.
- Holiday and seasonal Raleigh Turkey Trot The Triangle's Thanksgiving-morning 8K, with a costume contest and Thanksgiving hats encouraged.
- Color, glow and night ChristmasTown 5K A night 5K through "Christmas Town USA," McAdenville's famous light display, with Buddy the Elf and a costume contest.
- Holiday and seasonal Jingle Bell Run Raleigh, NC Arthritis Foundation holiday 5K where runners wear jingle bells and festive costumes.
- Costume and theme Ugly Sweater Run An ugly-sweater 5K/10K from Oskar Blues Brewery in Brevard, with free beer for adults and pets in holiday gear welcome.
- Costume and theme Carolina Ugly Sweater 5K & 1K Elf Run An ugly-sweater 5K walk/run by Lake Norman, plus a 1K Elf Run for kids.
- Holiday and seasonal Jingle Bell Run Charlotte, NC Arthritis Foundation holiday 5K where runners wear jingle bells and festive costumes.
- Novelty course Lights & Sirens Race for Hope A December 5K on the Charlotte Motor Speedway track, hosted by the NC State Highway Patrol, with Speedway Christmas light-show vouchers for early registrants.
- Costume and theme Santa Dash 5K Every packet includes a Santa costume, so the field turns into a herd of Santas.
- Holiday and seasonal Santa Shuffle 5K & 1 Mile Every entrant gets a Santa suit, so the Cape Fear River Trail fills with running Santas, and dogs dressed as 'Santa Paws' are welcome.
- Animals Jingle Jog 5K & Santa Strut A brewery holiday 5K where dogs get their own bibs and runners can borrow an adoptable shelter dog for the race.
- Costume and theme Santa Run 8K/5K & Snowman Dash Runners choose a character outfit (Santa, Elf, Reindeer or Snowman) and race uptown from the Charlotte Knights' ballpark.
- Costume and theme Santa Shuffle An untimed holiday run where every registration includes a Santa suit.
- Holiday and seasonal Charlotte New Year's Day 5K A New Year's Day 5K at UNC Charlotte that pairs with a "NOON Year's Eve" 5K the day before for a New Year's Double.
- Food and drink New Year's Day 5K & Half at Cape Fear Vineyard & Winery Start the year with a vineyard run and a drink included in registration.
- Color, glow and night Running of the Lights At the stroke of midnight on New Year's, runners set off through the Tanglewood Festival of Lights.
- Holiday and seasonal Wrightsville Plunge A New Year's Day noon dash into the Atlantic beside Oceanic Pier, with a costume contest and a surf-shop after-party.
- Food and drink Krispy Kreme Challenge The rules are 12 doughnuts, 5 miles and 1 hour: run from the NC State Belltower to a Krispy Kreme, eat a dozen, and run back.
- Holiday and seasonal Love on the Run 5K & Sweetheart Mile A Valentine's trail run through the rows at Sanctuary Vineyards, followed by a wine, cheese and chocolate party.
- Food and drink SKECHERS Hot Chocolate Run Charlotte Uptown Charlotte race ending in a chocolate fondue mug, near Valentine’s weekend.
- Holiday and seasonal Running of the Leprechauns 5K & 10K An Outer Banks St. Patrick's race with a costume contest, Irish stew, beer and live music at the finish.
- Holiday and seasonal Shillelagh Shuffle 5K A St. Patrick's 5K from Lost Worlds Brewing with a costume contest for people and pets.
- Holiday and seasonal St Paddy's Day 5K & Little Leprechaun Dash A St. Patrick's brewery 5K at Trailside Brewing, with a Little Leprechaun Dash for kids.
- Holiday and seasonal St. Patrick's 5K & Pub Crawl An afternoon St. Patrick's 5K in 'Little Washington' that turns into a downtown pub crawl.
- Novelty course Black Mountain Marathon & Mount Mitchell Challenge The Challenge climbs 36 miles round trip from downtown Black Mountain to the 6,684-foot summit of Mount Mitchell, the highest peak east of the Mississippi.
- Mud and obstacle Charlotte Spartan Event Weekend Red-clay Spartan course on farmland a few miles from Charlotte Motor Speedway country.
- Costume and theme Flying Pirate Half Marathon A pirate-themed Outer Banks race weekend where runners dress as buccaneers and finish at a Pirate Jamboree with a beer garden.
- Mud and obstacle Fayetteville Spartan Trifecta Weekend Trifecta and Ultra weekend on a 1,000-acre farm with Cape Fear riverbanks and a 200-foot quarry.
- Costume and theme May The Course Be With You 5K & 10K A Star Wars-themed 5K/10K timed around May the Fourth, with a costume contest for Jedi, Sith and droids.
- Food and drink OBX Independence Beer Mile A July beer mile at Outer Banks Brewing Station: four beers, four laps.
- Mud and obstacle Asheville Spartan Event Weekend Spartan course through horse trails and creek beds at an international equestrian center in the Blue Ridge foothills.
- Mud and obstacle Ohana Mud Run A 1-mile, 16-obstacle mud run on a private motocross track that ends with a lazy river.
- Food and drink Beer City 20K Relay & 5K An Asheville Beer Week relay from New Belgium's riverside brewery, where teams of two or four split 20K and finish with a pint.
- Novelty course Biltmore Kiwanis Classic 15K & 5K A rare chance to race on the private grounds of Biltmore Estate; the 15K passes in front of Biltmore House.
- Quirky format Blue Ridge Relay A 208-mile overnight team relay down the Blue Ridge from Grayson Highlands, Virginia, to Highland Brewing in Asheville.
- Color, glow and night Bright Lights 5K & Fun Run A night-before-Thanksgiving 5K through Daniel Stowe Conservancy's holiday lights before the display opens to the public.
- Food and drink Bull City Beer Mile Four laps and four beers in Durham Central Park; the official race beer is a lager brewed for runners.
- Novelty course Bump n' Run 5K & MRO Fest An evening 5K on Charlotte Motor Speedway's ROVAL: pit road, the infield road course and the banked turns, ending at the NASCAR finish line.
- Color, glow and night Cuke Patch 5K Glow Run A glow-in-the-dark night 5K that opens the NC Pickle Festival, followed by a pickle-themed drone show.
- Mud and obstacle Dirty Dozen 5K Obstacle Mud Run A local 5K mud and obstacle course at the Jerry Long YMCA, held the same day as the Clemmons Oktoberfest.
- Animals Divine Llama Haunted Wine Run 5K A Halloween-season vineyard 5K at a llama farm-winery, with a llama visit, a wine pour and a medal that doubles as a wine stopper.
- Iconic tradition Keep Pounding 5K A 5K that finishes on the field at Bank of America Stadium, home of the Carolina Panthers, in honor of Sam Mills.
- Novelty course Lighthouse 5K Series A summer-long Wednesday-morning 5K series around the Whalehead Club and the red-brick Currituck Beach Lighthouse.
- Color, glow and night Moonlight Bootlegger 5K A Prohibition-themed night trail 5K lit by LED tea lights and live bluegrass, finishing with moonshine cocktails in a souvenir mason jar.
- Mud and obstacle Muddy Dash Charlotte Beginner mud run with mud pits on Porter Farms outside Charlotte.
- Mud and obstacle Muddy Princess Charlotte Women-only 5K mud run built around teamwork rather than racing.
- Mud and obstacle Muddy Princess Raleigh Women-only 5K mud run built around teamwork rather than racing.
- Food and drink NC Beer Mile A decade-old beer mile at Bond Brothers Brewing: four beers and four laps, with costumes encouraged and a separate elite wave.
- Novelty course NC Seafood Festival Twin Bridges 8K A point-to-point 8K for the NC Seafood Festival that climbs the Morehead City and Atlantic Beach high-rise bridges.
- Costume and theme Ocracoke Island Run Fest A pirate-named race weekend (Scallywag 5K/10K, Blackbeard's Half) on the ferry-only island where Blackbeard met his end.
- Food and drink Oktoberfest Half Marathon & 5K Runners in lederhosen race along the French Broad River and finish in Hi-Wire's beer garden; top finishers win etched beer steins.
- Novelty course Old Baldy Run for the Light A dusk race on a car-free island reached only by ferry, run on National Lighthouse Day toward North Carolina's oldest standing lighthouse.
- Holiday and seasonal Polar Plunge & Run Kure Beach Run a beach-town 5K, then plunge into the February Atlantic.
- Animals Run Wild 5K at the NC Zoo A 5K through the Africa and North America sections of the North Carolina Zoo; it sells out within hours.
- Iconic tradition Running of the Bulls 8K One of Bull City's oldest road races finishes with a lap of the warning track inside the historic Durham Athletic Park.
- Food and drink Running the Vines 5K & 10K A 5K/10K through Shelton Vineyards, one of the Yadkin Valley's largest wineries, followed by a wine tasting.
- Iconic tradition Tar Heel 10 Miler UNC's signature road race tours Chapel Hill and finishes by Kenan Stadium, and it has a "Crash the Party" division for fans of rival schools.
- Novelty course The Labor Day Lighthouse 5K A Labor Day 5K on the grounds of the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse; locals have nicknamed it the "Topless" Lighthouse 5K while the lantern is off for restoration.
- Food and drink Wilson Doughnut Run A doughnut-challenge run from Wilson's Whirligig Park: runners eat 12 holes, 6 doughnuts or 12 doughnuts at the turnaround.