Now that you've signed up for the Polar Bear Strut 5K or the Tame the Dragon orienteering race, here's your next sign-up:

WHOBILATION 5K RUN/WALK (posted January 15th)

The Tri-County YMCA will hold its eighth annual Whobilation 5K Run/Walk on Saturday, March 7th, at the YMCA's facility on Airport Rd. in Osage Beach.  The Dr. Suess-themed race will start at 9:00 a.m., with race-day registration opening at 7:30 a.m. 

The entry fee is $30 through the end of January, and $35 thereafter.

To be guaranteed a t-shirt on race day, you need to register by January 31st.

A mail-in registration form can be downloaded here.  Online registration, with more race details, is available here.

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POLAR BEAR STRUT 5K RUN/WALK (posted January 14th)

Registration is now open for the oldest running race in the Lake area, the Polar Bear Strut 5K.  The 25th anniversary race takes place on Saturday, February 28th at Public Beach #2 in the Lake of the Ozarks State Park.  The event is a benefit for Special Olympics Missouri and is hosted by the Osage Beach Police Department.

Strutters must raise a minimum of $50 by race day.

The race starts at 10:00 a.m., and race day registration usually opens about an hour before the start.

More information and online registration can be found here.

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TAME THE DRAGON (posted January 14th)

The St. Louis Orienteering Club is returning to the Lake of the Ozarks State Park on Saturday, February 28th for the seventh annual Tame the Dragon orienteering race. The event is open to non-members of the club. (We've had some Lake-area runners give it a try in the past.)

The race format will be an 8-hour rogaine, and will start at 8:00 a.m.   (Maps will be distributed at 7:00 a.m.)  While teams of 2-5 are encouraged for safety reasons, solo participants are allowed, but they must have prior endurance and navigation experience. 

A "rogaine" (it's name is derived from the first names of three Australians--Rod, Gall and Neil--who developed the idea decades ago) consists of solo competitors or teams navigating a large area to find as many checkpoints as possible within the allotted time.  The winner is that solo competitor or team which finds all of the checkpoints and reaches the finish line first.  If no one finds all of the checkpoints, the winner is the one that collects the most points.  (Checkpoints have different point values, so focusing on the most valuable checkpoints is a possible winning strategy.)

Prior to the race, each competitor receives a map and a list of checkpoint coordinates.  They then plot their own course route, and rely on their navigational skills and speed to collect as many points as possible, as quickly as possible. (Returning over the time limit results in significant points penalties.  You're generally better off skipping a checkpoint if it means returning late.)  Needless to say, GPS units aren't allowed.

Orienteering races are self-supporting.  Competitors should be prepared to rely only on what they (or their teammates) bring or carry with them.  

See the event's webpage for further details and registration information. 

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WEEKEND EVENTS FOR JANUARY 17 - 18

We'll be back to fighting off bitter cold this weekend, after our mild temperatures early in the week give way to near or below freezing temperatures on Saturday and Sunday.  Blame it on the organizers of The Shippey Endurance Runs. It seems that every time someone puts on a 100-mile race, the weather turns miserable.  (The same thing happened for last year's race, too.) 

Neosho:

Joplin Roadrunners Frosty4 Trail Run, Saturday

Kansas City:

Battle of the Bean 5K, Saturday
MLK Freedom Run 5K/10K/Half Marathon, Saturday

St. Louis:

Snowball Series 5M, St. Charles, Saturday
The Equalizer 12K Trail Race, Saturday

High Ridge (southwest of St. Louis):

The Shippey Endurance Runs and Relays (100M, 100M Relay, 100K, 40M, 20M), Saturday-Sunday

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Houston Chevron Marathon and Aramco Half Marathon:  The first big U.S. marathon and half marathon of the year U.S. took place on Sunday in Houston. (Normally, the Houston Marathon and Half is held on the Sunday before the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday, but this year's race was held one week earlier. In 2027, it moves back to its traditional day.)  There were about 9,000 official marathon finishers (before the 6-hour cutoff), and about 14,300 half finishers (before the 4-hour cutoff).  The race continues to remain popular.  Ten years ago, when interest in running was peaking in the U.S., this race had about 7,000 marathon and 11,600 half finishers.   

The large prize purse always brings out some fast runners.  The men's races had new course records, with the winners finishing in 2:05:45 and 59:01 in the marathon and half, respectively.  The women's race winners crossed the line in 2:24:17 and 1:04:49.

If you're interested in a mid-winter marathon, gives this race a look.  The flat course winds through the nicest, most scenic parts of the city.  Check out lots of photos taken at the 2015 race.

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RACE PARTICIPATION UP SLIGHTLY IN 2025

Interest in running grew a little last year, using the total number of half marathon, marathon and ultramarathon finishers at Missouri races as our gauge. There were 32,957 finishers at such races in 2025, in Missouri, up 3% from 2024. It still falls 8% short of the 35,731 finishers in 2019--the last year before COVID reared its ugly head.

Will we ever see participation reach the record levels of the early/mid 2010s?  That's looking less and less likely as time goes on.   

Here's a graph for the years 2012 through 2025.  (Click on it for a larger image.)

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Weekend race results (January 1 - 4):

Lots of runners across the state crossed a finish line this past holiday weekend, although I didn't see the names of any Lake-area runners among them. (Similar to those first newborn baby of the year announcements, I'm always curious as to who among our locals will be the first to race in the new year. In 2025, it wasn't until January 26th that we finally crowned our first finisher.)

There were 1,670 total finishers at the five races held this past weekend. Here's the list, ranked by size.

Snowball Series 5K (St. Louis)	770
Hangover Half Marathon & 10K (Kansas City)	312
SHiTR Trail Race (Half/10K/5K/1M) (St. Louis)	274
Time Travel Half Marathon & 5K/10K (Parkville)	255
Doomsday 5K Trail Race (St. Louis)	59
Total	1,670

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