The Arkansas Grand Prix
Many of our club members compete in the Arkansas RRCA Grand Prix, which is a series of races affiliated with Arkansas running clubs throughout the state. Now that the 2024 Grand Prix season has come to a close, our club is celebrating wins in both the men’s and women’s teams as well as first place overall male, overall female, male masters, among many other age group winners! We are looking forward to another successful season in 2025.
The 2025 Grand Prix Series features 22 road races of various distances, from 1 mile to the marathon. Runners compete and earn points based on placement among other Grand Prix runners at the race as well as earn points for their club’s team. The top 4 runners from each team make up the team score. You do not have to be fast to compete in this series – it’s all about consistency! The more races you can make it to, the more points you can earn. Run only the ones you want to! Each race is designated either championship or non-championship. Your top 5 championship and top 5 non-championship scores will be counted toward your score at year end. Awards are given to the top 3 overall male and female winners, top 3 overall male and female masters (age 40+), grandmasters (age 50+), and seniors (60+), as well as top 5 in each age group (5 year spans). Each winner receives a plaque and gift card to Rock City Running at the awards ceremony held after the River Trail 15K in February of each year.
Grand Prix FAQ:
Q: I’m not fast – will I hurt the team score by being slow?
A: No – you will never hurt the team by participating – you will only ever help the team! The top 4 runners from each team make up the team score. If we do not have 4 runners, we can’t score at all. The runners finishing after that serve as blockers, blocking people from other teams and potentially driving their score down.
Q: Do I have to do all the races?
A: No – only do the ones you want to – you are not committing to running any number of races by signing up. You are also not committing to running a marathon. There is only one marathon in the series. The majority of the races are 10K and less.
Q: When do I need to sign up?
A: You can sign up any time during the year. The series runs over the course of a calendar year so you have the best opportunity to run the most races by signing up at the beginning of the year. If you sign up mid-year, you will start earning points from then on.
Q: How much is it to sign up?
A: $20 each year. Please note that this does not include entry fee to any of the races – you will need to sign up for each race separately. This fee is just to participate in the Grand Prix series.
Q: Where do I sign up?
A: Go to this link: https://runsignup.com/Race/AR/LittleRock/ArkansasGrandPrix. Please note that in order to sign up for this series, you must be a member in good standing of a running club in Arkansas. We would love to have you join our club!
You can also visit the Arkansas RRCA website for more information or follow them on Instagram or Facebook for race information.
| 2025 Races | Date | Distance | Location |
|---|---|---|---|
| **One Hour Track Run | Jan 26 | Whatever you want! | Russellville, AR |
| **River Trail 15K | Feb 1 | 15K | North Little Rock, AR |
| Valentine’s Day 5K | Feb 8 | 5K | Russellville, AR |
| Run the Line Half Marathon | Feb 16 | 13.1 miles | Texarkana, AR |
| Chase Race 2 Mile | Mar 8 | 2 miles | Conway, AR |
| Spring Fling 5K | Mar 22 | 5K | Cabot, AR |
| Capital City Classic 10K | Mar 29 | 10K | Little Rock, AR |
| **Wildcat Extra Mile | Apr 5 | 1 mile | Searcy, AR |
| Hogeye Half Marathon | Apr 12 | 13.1 miles | Springdale, AR |
| Hogeye 10K | Apr 13 | 10K | Springdale, AR |
| Andy Buschmann 4 Mile Classic | Jun 6 | 4 miles | Batesville, AR |
| **Arkansas Runner 2 Mile | Jun 14 | 2 miles | Benton, AR |
| SOMA Street Mile | June 27 | 1 mile | Little Rock, AR |
| **Brent Morrison Memorial 8K | July 12 | 8K | Barling, AR |
| Peach Festival 4 Mile | July 18 | 4 miles | Clarksville, AR |
| **Hope Watermelon 5K | Aug 9 | 5K | Hope, AR |
| ARK 5K Classic | Aug 30 | 5K | North Little Rock, AR |
| **Stampede 10K Run | Sep 20 | 10K | Fort Smith, AR |
| Great 5K Pumpkin Run | Sep 27 | 5K | Lonoke, AR |
| **Arkansas 20K | Oct 25 | 20K | Benton, AR |
| Spa 10K | Nov 15 | 10K | Hot Springs, AR |
| **Jacob Wells Three Bridges Marathon | Dec 6 | 26.2 miles | Little Rock, AR |
**Denotes championship race
Other Upcoming Local Races:
April 5th, 2025 – Fostering Champions- The CALL 5k, 10k and Fun Run – Little Rock