Lions on the Run 5K

Lions on the Run 5K takes place in Urbandale, Iowa, on October 31, 2026. One format is on the schedule, a 5K run and walk over 3.1 miles, starting at 9:00 a.m. Runners and walkers go out together, so the front of the field thins quickly while the rest of the course stays sociable.

Late October is a good moment to take a 5K seriously, because a summer of running is still in your legs and the effort is short enough that nothing else in your week suffers. Two weeks out, run a session of five or six 400-meter repeats at goal pace to remind yourself what it should feel like. On the day, treat the halfway point as the start of the race rather than the middle of it, and pass rather than settle over the final mile.