Flatwoods 5K
About this race
About the Flatwoods 5K. The Flatwoods 5K is touted by many local runners as Gainesville’s most beautiful, memorable 5K venue, run just after sunrise on a scenic limerock loop road around UF's Austin Cary Forest (10625 NE Waldo Rd, Gainesville, FL 32609). The sights, sounds, and smells of the Forest, shared with friends and family, are sure to create lasting memories. Race proceeds support forestry education and outreach to help sustain Florida's natural heritage.
The race is chip timed by Start2Finish Race Management. The course is accurately measured (but not USATF certified), with mile markers. There is a water station at the halfway point, and post-race refreshments. Strollers are welcome, but please note the road is unpaved. Note also that parking and the starting line will be approximately 2 miles (5-8 min. drive) from the main gate on Waldo Rd.
Start time is 8:30 AM.
Registration and race t-shirt. Registration is $20. Runners 12 years and under race for free. You can purchase a race t-shirt for an additional $15. T-shirt orders will stop two weeks before race day - October 18.
Early registration ends Wednesday, Oct. 29 at 11:59 pm. You can register on site, but given that there will be many people checking in, it's best to do it early.
Early Packet pickup will be THURSDAY October 30 from 4:30 to 7:00 at First Magitude Brewing Company. (1220 SE Veitch St, Gainesville, FL 32601). Participants can also pick up their packet 7:00 am to 8:15 am at the Austin Cary Forest on race day.
Pine cone trophies made from native longleaf, loblolly and slash pine cones go to top open and masters runners, and top 3 in all five-year age/gender groups. All runners 14 years or younger will receive an award.
Please contact Taylor Stein, Flatwoods 5K Race Director, with any questions: tstein@ufl.edu.
Pick your distance
Running
Flatwoods 5K
Typical race-day weather
Based on 5 years of Open-Meteo archive data for this event's race dates in Gainesville, plus the 3 days either side.
The sun rises at 7:42 AM and sets at 6:43 PM local time (EDT) in Gainesville on October 31, 2026 — 11h 01m of daylight.
Course
No course map published yet.
The organizer hasn't released a route for this event, and we don't publish guesses. If you're the organizer, send us a GPX file and we'll draw the profile.
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🏃 Plan Your Next Race in Gainesville
Find upcoming events by distance:
- Gainesville 5K Races 35 races
- 10K Run Events in Gainesville 19 races
- Gainesville Running Calendar 2026 44 races
Where this page comes from. Race details were last updated on . We re-check listings regularly and again in the week before race day.
- Entries, prices, waves and inclusions — the event's official registration page
- Temperature and humidity — Copernicus ERA5 reanalysis via Open-Meteo (CC BY 4.0)
- Elevation and terrain relief — Copernicus DEM GLO-90, ESA (CC BY 4.0)
- Comparisons and counts — Race Discovery calendar, 48 Gainesville events
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