The Shoes, Socks and Skivvies 5K Fun Run and Walk will begin at 9 a.m. Saturday at Cooper Park, 1101 Spring St. in Mountain Home.
The Salvation Army and Anytime Fitness have partnered to present this inaugural 5K with the goal of helping children in Baxter and Marion counties to have new undergarments and shoes for back to school.
Advance registration forms will be available Friday at The Salvation Army, 121 Arkansas 201 North, or Anytime Fitness, 2600 American Legion Blvd., during regular business hours. Race-day sign-in and registration begin at 8 a.m. The fee for ages 13 and up will be $25, ages 6 to 12 will pay $10, and ages 5 and under can run for free. (Only cash or checks will be accepted on race-day registrations.)
The deadline to guarantee an event shirt and finishers medal has passed, but shirts will be given out as supplies last.
A community celebration will follow the race, including food, inflatable games for kids, music and door prizes. Every runner will receive one entry for the door prizes; extra entries can be earned by donating food or a package of new socks or underwear. Prizes include gift cards to Shoe Sensation and Domino's, makeup from Stage, and free workout sessions with Anytime Fitness coaches.
There will be awards for the fastest runners by age group. There will also be a wacky award for the runner with the zaniest outfit.
For more information, call The Salvation Army at (870) 424-5708, or Anytime Fitness at (870) 580-0941, or search for Shoes, Socks, and Skivvies 5K on Facebook.
Dam Night Run 5K
The Dam Night Run 5K will begin at 8 p.m. Saturday about two miles west of DeGray Lake Dam on Skyline Drive just outside Arkadelphia.
Participants are asked to park near the finish line in the Spillway Dam Recreation Area, where buses will shuttle runners up to the starting line. For those who prefer a GPS address, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is at 543 Skyline Drive, a short distance from the Spillway Dam Recreation Area.
The race course is similar to the recent Firecracker Fast 5K in Little Rock in being primarily downhill with the exception of a short jog when it runs over the DeGray Lake Dam. Organizers say it provides excellent views of the lake and the Caddo River Valley.
Online registration is available until Friday for $25 ($15 for age 18 and under) plus a handling fee. Race-day registration will be open from 3-6:30 p.m. Saturday at the Spillway Dam area and cost an extra $5 for adults over age 18, but the fee for 18 and under remains $15. Packet pickup for everyone will be 3-7 p.m. Saturday also at the Spillway Dam area.
T-shirts are only guaranteed to the first 600 participants, but extras will be given out while supplies last.
Racers will be chip-timed. Medals will be given three deep in the overall and masters categories to either sex; one deep in the grandmaster and seniors categories; and five deep by five-year age group. Awards will also be given five deep in the walkers division, and three deep in the wheelchair division. Don't forget to return the timing chips as there's a penalty assessed for missing chips.
The awards ceremony will take be about 9:30 p.m. and will include music and refreshments for the racers.
For the particularly fleet of foot, the Arkadelphia Running Club awards prizes for record breakers: $100 for an age group record and $200 for an overall record. The mostly downhill course allows for faster than average times. The current overall male record is 14:22, the female record is 16:31.
Proceeds from the Dam Night Run 2016 will benefit Boys and Girls Club of Clark County, the CALL, CASA, and the Imagination Library.
For more information, email hdnicole@yahoo.com, or for online registration search Dam Night Run 5K at runsignup.com.
Bird Island Tours
Bird Island is Arkansas' largest purple martin roost. Located in the middle of Lake Ouachita, it hosts up to 40,000 purple martins each night during the end of July and early August as they feed and prepare for their migration to South America for the winter.
Lake Ouachita State Park, 5451 Mountain Pine Road, in Mountain Pine offers guided boat tours.
Tickets are $10 plus tax for adults, $6 plus tax for children age 6 to 12 and free for those under age 6. Reservations are required as each tour is limited to 20 people. Tours are held three to four nights a week, beginning between 7 and 7:30 p.m., and last a little less than two hours.
The last tour scheduled is Aug. 16, but tours will continue as long as the roost is active.
The purple martins are the main attraction, but many other birds nest on Bird Island, including egrets, ibises and herons.
There's nothing to stop interested parties from taking their own boats out to the island, but Lake Ouachita State Park and the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission ask that boaters not blow horns, approach closely to the island or walk on the island. Disturbing the roosting martins causes them to burn the fat they are trying to store before their long flight and could cause the birds to find another place to roost.
To make reservations, buy tickets or for more information, contact the Lake Ouachita State Park Visitor Center at (501) 767-9366 or visit arkansasstateparks.com/lakeouachita.
Trail Rides
Chief Whitehorse Riding Stable at 11621 Barrett Road in Roland near Pinnacle Mountain State Park offers guided horseback riding for $30 per person per hour, 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. seven days a week. Call (501) 327-7776 or visit horserentals.com/chiefwhitehorse.html for more details.
Please send tips for active recreation to
cbyrd@arkansasonline.com
ActiveStyle on 07/25/2016