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The Woodstock 5K started in 1981. It has not missed a year since. That makes it one of the oldest continuously run footraces in the Southeast, and in 2026 it runs for the 45th time.
The full name now is the Publix Woodstock 5K, run alongside the Kidstock 1K. It goes off Saturday, August 1, 2026, from 7:30 to 10:30 in the morning, through the neighborhoods along Woodstock Avenue near Anniston High School. The Anniston Runners Club hosts it. Volunteers own it.
The 2026 race is the RRCA Alabama State 5K Championship. Over its run, seven national championships have been decided on Woodstock Avenue, along with five regional and six state titles. More than a thousand runners are expected.
The money stays here. Proceeds go to the Arc of Calhoun and Cleburne Counties, which serves people with disabilities, and to local schools and organizations.
What It Has Outlasted
Merch
The 45th year has a mark: a canary. Bright, small, stubborn — a bird that sings underground. It goes on the shirt with the race name, the year, and the course.
The merch is a fundraiser, not a souvenir table. Every design is licensed through the club so a cut of each sale goes back to the Anniston Runners Club and, through it, to the Arc of Calhoun and Cleburne Counties. Buying a shirt is another way to run the race without lacing up.
Planned line:
- 45th Annual canary tee — canary graphic, "Woodstock 5K · Anniston · Since 1981," race-day colors.
- State Championship tee — 2026 RRCA Alabama State 5K Championship edition.
- Kidstock 1K tee — smaller canary, for the kids' race.
- Finisher print — the course map on Woodstock Avenue, numbered by year.
The People
Sources: Alabama News Center (2024); RRCA; Calhoun Journal; Anniston Runners Club (annistonrunners.com/woodstock5k); registration at runsignup.com/woodstock5k. Related: Chief Ladiga Trail, Anniston city page.
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