Mecklenburg County Park and Recreation offers a wide variety of running trails and greenways. All trails are open to the public during the parks hours of operation. For more information on the greenways throughout the county please visit Mecklenburg County Greenways.

Mecklenburg County partners with multiple organizations throughout the city to host races at parks, trails and greenways. For more information on hosting your own race please contact Preston Buckman at 704-529-3273 or Preston.Buckman@mecklenburgcountync.gov. Also, please review the required documents below for hosting events:

Special Event - Races - Requirements

Special Event - Races - Checklist


Schedule of Events                                                                             

Below is a schedule of race events for 2013. Results are listed below.

April 20th – Sarcoma Stomp – McAlpine Creek
-The 2013 Sarcoma Stomp will be held on April 20, 2013 at McAlpine Creek Greenway in Charlotte, NC. This year, in addition to benefiting Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, The Stomp will also be supporting The Levine Cancer Institute in Charlotte. We are thrilled to be working with both of these fantastic insititutions who are doing so much to improve, lengthen, and save the lives of sarcoma patients.

April 20th - Elizabeth 8K Road Race - Independance Park
-The 27th annual Elizabeth 8K Road Race, presented by Presbyterian Orthopaedic Hospital, Harris Teeter and Hawthorne’s NY Pizza & Bar will hit the streets on Saturday, April 20 .   This is Charlotte's oldest 8K race and features a USATF-certified course and a fantastic tour of the scenic residential streets of the Elizabeth neighborhood .  The event also includes a 1.5M untimed run/walk for the casual participants and the Liz Kids' Fun Run for the little ones.  Proceeds benefit the beautification of the Historic Elizabeth Neighborhood and the replenishing of Elizabeth's tree canopy.

April 20th – Kicks for Kids 5k – Jetton Park
-The proceeds received from this event will go to the kids at Brookstone School in Charlotte. With the help of sponors and participants in the 5K they hope to supply all the kids at Brookstone with a new pair of athletic shoes.

April 20th – UNCC Habitat Hard Hat Challenge Fun Run – Toby Creek/Clark Creek
-Come join us on the campus of UNC Charlotte to run part of Mecklenburg County’s beautiful Greenway. This 5k is a fun-run/walk so people of all ages and experience are welcome. Proceeds from this event will go towards the $85,000 needed  for our very first Homecoming Build in October, 2013. Please join us in providing a family with a decent and affordable home! 

May 4th - Run Walk for Clean Air - McAlpine Creek Park
-When you sign-up for the 5K Run & Walk for Clean Air, you’re not only supporting our programs that work to clean-up the Charlotte region’s air quality, you’re supporting efforts for a sustainable planet too! Each year, Clean Air Carolina makes the Pledge of Sustainability with Athletes for a Fit Planet and commits to eco-practices that make our 5K Run & Walk for Clean Air environmentally responsible. Our 5K was the only race in the Carolinas to be verified by Athletes for a Fit Planet in 2010-2012. Our goal is to be a model for other race events around the region – together we can make a big difference!

May 5th - Great Strides Lake Norman - Jetton Park
-More information on this event will be posted soon.

May 11th - Water for People - McAlpine Creek Park
-Join us for the 4th annual Water for People 5k Fun Run. The North Carolina Water For People Committee is committed to making positive changes in people’s lives by helping them acquire and maintain safe water and adequate sanitation. We support Water For People’s mission through community outreach, advocacy, and fundraising.

May 18th - Free 2 Breathe - Park Road Park
-Join us for the 2nd Annual Free to Breathe Charlotte 5K and 1-Mile Run/Walk & Rally to raise awareness and help build the movement to defeat lung cancer! All proceeds will benefit the North Carolina Lung Cancer Partnership’s research, education and awareness programs.

May 19th - The Zombie Run - Freedom Park
-We hope you like to run, because the post apocalyptic playground you’re about to brave offers no protection. At the starting line, you’ll come across a flipped tanker, the source of the toxic compound. After the first kilometer, you’ll enter into a military-controlled apocalypse zone. Beware, this is where your dash from zombies will begin. Around kilometer 3, you’ll make it to a vaccination hydration center. The vaccine will fail, and you’ll have to continue to sprint from zombies. The last 2 kilometers are a free-for-all, as you charge towards freedom. Zombies are everywhere

May 25th - Run 4 Peace at Home - McAlpine Creek Park
-Come join us for the annual Run 4 Peace Race. Proceeds from the Charlotte Run/Walk for Peace at Home support SafeAlliance (formerly United Family Services) Domestic Violence Programs. Their mission is to inspire individuals, families, and communities to find solutions that create a better future.

May 25th - Grey Matters - Reedy Creek Park
--More information on this event will be posted soon.

RESULTS                                                                                                    

Results – Get Your Rear In Gear – Independence 
-The Get Your Rear in Gear events focus on raising awareness about colon cancer in communities across the country. They are events designed to unite people, cities and states throughout the USA; to provide support and hope for those who have had their lives affected by our nation’s second leading cause of cancer deaths, and to encourage individuals of all ages to get screened.

Results – River Bound Race – Renaissance
-All proceeds from the races go to scholarships that support local youth, teachers and veterans attending North Carolina Outward Bound School's wilderness and urban courses.

Results – Charlotte Marathon Relay 26.2 – McAlpine
-Here's how Rockin' Marathon Relay works: teams of 2, 3, or 4 members alternate relay legs until the full marathon distance is completed on a loop course. One team member is out running hard on the course while the rest of the team is having a good time at the relay exchange zone.

Results – Sticks and Bones Trail Race – Renaissance 
-Sticks and Bones benefits the Casper Foundation which was founded to offer financial assistance to qualified applicants in management of their pet’s seizures who are in the Greater Charlotte Area.

Results – Joanna’s Barefoot 30 5k – Frazier Park
-All net proceeds will go to Samaritan's Feet and its team of global ambassadors who have touched the lives of men, women, and children across the United States and around the world in an effort to help the nearly 300 million people who go without shoes each day and the more than a million who die each year as a result.
 
Results – RaceFest – Southpark
-Entering its twelfth year, the Charlotte RaceFest Half Marathon and 10K will once again take place in the wonderful SouthPark area of Charlotte, NC. Thanks to the support of our participants and sponsors, the Charlotte RaceFest at SouthPark has become a main feature of the spring running circuit in the Southeast region.