Cathedral Caverns Trail Run 15K & 5K

Welcome to the 2026 Cathedral Caverns 5K & 15K Trail Run!
The race starts in a beautiful valley with picturesque mountains and fields in the background. This trail race is designed for both new and experienced trail runners alike. The last 1.2 miles of the 5k and 15k runs through the cave is an out and back 0.6mi segment that is wide enough for 2 way traffic. Runners will pick up a glow stick at the turn around point and the decorative lighting will be on at all times.
Please remember that all RunningLane Events trail races are "cupless races." You must have a hand held bottle, pack or or reusable cup as there won't be any paper cups at the aid stations to cut down on waste. If you don't have a reusable cup, there is the option to buy a RunningLane reusable cup at checkout for $5.

All registrations inside 2 weeks of the event are outside of the guaranteed t-shirt window. We should have enough but in the event that we run out of sizes, those who registered last may receive a RunningLane shirt instead.

The average temperatures for race day are a low of 44F, high of 67F. Meanwhile inside the cave the year round temperature is a cool 58F. This will truly be a race like no other.

Aid stations will be provided on the course with everything from water, gatorade, coke, pretzels, m&m's, and more. Follow the race on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RunningLaneEvents/

Check out this awesome video on Cathedral Caverns State Park to get an idea of the beautiful scenery.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1cbIBSopnDo

Overview
Where? Cathedral Caverns State Park: 637 Cave Rd, Woodville, AL 35776

Course Maps & Elevation profiles:
15K: https://www.strava.com/routes/20364591
5K: https://www.strava.com/routes/22027613
The 5K route is now updated to handle the increased number of participants in the race. The first 0.9mi will be on gravel road / paved road to give everyone time to spread out before entering the single track trail. Notice the 5K start time is 8:15AM vs the 15K start time of 8:00AM

Driving distance from:

Huntsville: 31 miles
Chattanooga: 83 miles
Birmingham: 93 miles
Florence: 103 miles
Nashville: 139 miles
Atlanta: 161 miles

Registration
The 5K race is capped at 300 runners. The 15K is capped at 300 runners.

All runners who sign up for the race will receive a t-shirt and awesome finisher medal.

Packet Pickup
Packet pickup will be on Friday, November 13th, 2026 at our new Running Lane store from 12:00pm - 5:00pm. Running Lane is located at 2407 Memorial Parkway SW Suite 1, Huntsville, AL 35801 . Also, there will be race day packet pick up at Cathedral Caverns State Park under the tent in the parking area (start line) from 6:30am - 7:45am but we encourage you to get there as early as possible!

Lodging
There are limited cabins available at Cathedral Caverns State Park which can be found here: https://www.alapark.com/parks/cathedral-caverns-state-park/cabins-caverns

Shirts & Awards
The race shirt will be a tri blend t-shirt shirt. Age groups will be: 0-19, 20-29, 30-39, 40-49, 50-59, 60-69, 70+ for the 5K and 15K. ALL runners will receive a sweet finisher medal.

Weather & Cutoffs
These are low-traffic trails, so we expect this race to go off rain or shine. In the event of severe weather (highly unlikely in November) we will delay the start as necessary to avoid lightening. If severe weather threatens the entire day and does not appear to let up, we may be forced to cancel. However this is not typical for this area during this time of year.

Average Temperatures: Low: 44F, High: 67F

The cutoff for the 5K is 1hr15min. This works out to be 24:00min /mi pace. The 15K cutoff is 2hr30min or 16:40min/ mi pace. If you cannot maintain 16min pace we ask that you please consider running the 5K. There are cave tours that will start after the race so we must adhere to these strict cutoffs.

There are no refunds, credits or friend/ family transfers on entries. We do not mail shirts or medals to participants unable to make the event as left over shirts are donated.

Want Discounts On Our Races?

Yep that's right! If you love our races and want a 15% discount on all your running shoes, running gear and our races, we have created a program just for you. Learn more about The RUNNINGLANE COLLECTIVE HERE: https://runninglane.com/rl-collective

Calling all volunteers! We always need fantastic volunteers and we have a volunteer program to help save you some dough. Volunteers who work a 5 hour shift will receive free entry into a future RunningLane Event 1/2 Marathon distance and shorter. Volunteers who work (2) 5 hour shifts or (1) 8+ hour shift will receive free entry into a future RL Event 50 Miler and down OR (2) races 1/2 marathon and down. For more details please email [email protected]
Excludes the Wild Thangs Trail Series Bundle

Results
https://runninglane.live/