Registration is up for the Cotton Row Run 5K on Memorial Day in Huntsville, with the 10K holding firm at average numbers from the last few years.
One of the Southeast’s iconic road races, the Cotton Row 10K regularly attracts a strong field every year. Included this year is Ryan Ford, who ran at Westminster Christian in Huntsville and now lives in North Carolina. Ford finished 10th in this year’s Boston Marathon, crossing in a sizzling 2:08. He was the third American male in the Top 10. His time was 10th-fastest in U.S. history.
Registrations for the 5K are up by about 150 from the 2024 race, while the 10K had 1,413 signed up when the online registration ended. Total registrations so far are 3,033, which includes the 10K and 1,133 in the 5K. Another 250 are signed up for the 1-mile, and 237 hearty souls are in for the 10K-5K double.
Runners may still register on May 25 during the packet pickup at Bill Penney Toyota. There is no raceday registration.
The course hasn’t changed, other than with new asphalt and curbs-gutters in some areas. Some of the event setup may look different due to ongoing work at Big Spring Park.
The 10K runners have a flat first half through neighborhoods, past Maple Hill Cemetery and onto Owens Drive before climbing Mountainwood in the third mile. After a little Toll Gate toodle, Mile Four arrives when bombing down Bankhead, which takes runners into Historic Huntsville, downtown and past the memorial of flags heading to the finish. The final turn at the Huntsville Museum of Art offers a downhill dash to the raucous finish line.
The races are put on by the Huntsville Track Club and sponsored by Bill Penney Toyota, among others.
Awards, Incentives
The 10K and 5K courses are certified with the USATF, with runners eligible for records. The Cotton Row events typically see a handful of state age group records. Cash awards are paid for four divisions in the 10K for M/F Open (7 places), M/F Masters (5 places), and M/F Alabama Resident. Race record incentives also are available for four spots:
- Open Male: Linus Kiplagat, 2018, 28:39
- Open Female: Catherine Syokau Mwan, 2019, 32.51
- Master Male: Andrew Masai, 2000, 29:38
- Master Female: Ramilia Burangulova, 2003, 33:34
Check out those Masters records, eh? The men’s record is 25 years old and women’s is 22 years old. The 2024 men’s master’s time was 34+ minutes and the women’s was 37+ minutes. Previous years were about the same range.
Will the Masters records ever fall?
Top Seeds
Ryan Ford of Boone, N.C., and Alana Scarano of Huntsville are the top seeds for the 45th Cotton Row Run 10K on Monday.
Ford, 27, tops the field heavy with local runners who should make a push for the 10K title. The previous three champions, David Bett (’24), Shadrack Keter (’23) and Gilbert Boit (’22), were not registered as of May 19. Online registration closed this week so it’s possible they could sign up on Sunday at bib pickup.
Scarano, 31, paces a strong group in the women’s division. She won the flat Ditto Landing 10K last December in 35:59. Scarano was third in the 2018 Cotton Row 10k and fifth in the 2019 race. Sarah Crouch and Emma Hardman, the 2024 Rocket City Marathon women’s champ, are among the top seeds. Crouch won the 2024 Front Half-Marathon.
Hardman was second in the 2024 Cotton Row 10K in 36:59 and Crouch was third in 37:31. Betty Siegi, the ’24 CRR champ, was not registered as of this week.
Seedings provided by Eric Fritz with the Huntsville Track Club:
