Airport Runway Run at San Carlos Airport
San Carlos, CA
- 10K, 5K, 2K
- Road (Paved), Trail (Unpaved)
- Official race website
Express your need for speed with a unique 5K & 10K running event that’s fun and healthy for the whole family. The start of the Hiller Aviation Museum Airport Runway Run route is the San Carlos Airport runway! Like an aircraft on takeoff, you will traverse the length of the … MORE
Local Historical Weather (Apr 12):
| 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | |
| H (°F) | 59 | 63 | 61 | 57 | 56 |
| L (°F) | 52 | 50 | 50 | 48 | 45 |
Find Nearby Lodging (hotel, rental, etc.):
Love this local race
My wife and I found this race a few years ago and loved it. The crew does a great job setting everything up and I love the option to go … MORE
My wife and I found this race a few years ago and loved it. The crew does a great job setting everything up and I love the option to go green with the swag. After running up and down the runway at Hiller, the course turns into an out and back along the edge of the SF bay. Overall a great event.
Pleasant Family Experience
Event & Course Description: The Airport Runway Run is held at and benefits the Hiller Aviation Museum in San Carlos, CA. Three distances were run, 10K (which I did), 5K, … MORE
Event & Course Description: The Airport Runway Run is held at and benefits the Hiller Aviation Museum in San Carlos, CA. Three distances were run, 10K (which I did), 5K, and 2K. The 2K was basically an elongated loop that ran the length of the airport runway and came back to the finish through the taxi area for the hangars. The 5K and 10K were out-and-back. Both courses ran the length of the airport runway and then along a frontage road to a trail that has marshland on the bay side, and US 101 on the other (but with more than 10 yards between the trail and freeway). At about the 2 mile point, the 10K turned toward and into the marshes. The 5K turn-around was at about the 2/3 point of the 10K course’s part of the trail along US101. The 10K followed a trail along a levee, basically doubling back the way runners had come, and after about a half mile turned toward the bay for a quarter of a mile to the turn-around point. On the return leg both 5K and 10K runners returned to the start by the frontage road, past the front of the museum rather than back onto the runway.
It wasn’t the most scenic of course, but there was some “cool” to doing the length of the runway, and one could always look toward the marsh rather than US101 traffic (traffic noise wasn’t too bad).The 5K course was entirely paved. The 10K course was about 2/3 paved, with the trail along the marsh levees being packed dirt and fine gravel.
Organization & Production: The race is register-and-run, with complete information in the race webpages. There were two water-only aid stations, one at about the 1 1/4 mile point, and the second (10K only) just after the 2 mile point. The 5K turn-around was well marked with a nice big sign, and there were high-fiving course monitors at the 10K turn-around. The aid station near the 2 mile point was still handing out water when the last 10K runner (me) went through on the return leg (more friendly volunteers!), but the first aid station was not (with just ~3/4 mile left to the finish). The race was professionally timed.
Bib: The bib has a white background, with a blue stripe near the top and the bib number in black numerals below that. At the center of the blue stripe is the race logo, a runner running on a lighter blue stripe with the race name along the stripe. In an arc above the runner is the museum name, There’s a very light blue cloud behind the runner, and along the bottom of the logo are the distances and a biplane silhouette in maroon. To the left of the race logo is the museum logo, and to the right was the distance.
T-Shirt: The race T-shirt is navy blue tech-type. In the front, like a pocket, is the race logo in white, and on the back are the race sponsors’ logos, also in white. There were no finisher’s medals.
Finish & Recovery Area: When I finished, the finish area was already being packed up. For recovery food I saw lots of bananas and a taco truck (not “free”). Nor was there water or anywhere to sit down. All in all, a bit of a let down.
I should add that both before and after the race, participants had free entry into the the museum, which was interesting and very nice, especially cool for younger folk.
My Results & Opinion of the Race: I was pretty happy with my finish time, and it was 2 or 3 minutes longer than it might have been. I had noticed a possibly injured runner about 100-200 yards from the first aid station during the outbound leg, and I spoke to a volunteer and the person in charge.
The finish area was a bit of a let down, and my over-all rating reflects this. The Airport Runway Run is a fairly well organized race, and benefits the museum. The race Tee was tech-type, which surprised me a little, and while not spectacularly awesome, is easily nice enough that I’ll be using it for work-outs. All in all, this is not a must-do-this-again race for me, but I will definitely keep it mind for 2020.
Fun race
Fun race, well-organized. The out & back was narrow and a good portion was immediately next to the freeway, so breathing the fumes was not great. MORE
Fun race, well-organized. The out & back was narrow and a good portion was immediately next to the freeway, so breathing the fumes was not great.
Run on the tarmac!
Hiller Aviation Museum, located a few miles south of SFO in the town of San Carlos, is part of San Carlos Regional Airport. The Airport Runway Run is a fundraiser … MORE
Hiller Aviation Museum, located a few miles south of SFO in the town of San Carlos, is part of San Carlos Regional Airport. The Airport Runway Run is a fundraiser for the museum. 2017 was the first year they put the race on. Perhaps because of this, the run was smaller and simpler, and was missing some things you might expect from more established races. However everything ran smooth, and people had a chance to run right on the runway tarmac, something an airplane fan would get a big kick out of.
PRE-RACE DETAILS
Everything was set up on museum and airport grounds. There was plenty of free parking, and bib pick-up was held in the lobby of the airport/museum. They had different tables for 5K and 10K distances, and participants could pick up their race shirts at the same time they picked their bibs, which meant a lot of the participants got to wear their shirts during the fun run.
THE COURSE
The race started right next to the tarmac, then made small loop around one of the runways, before it went past one of the buildings and onto an access road. Participants then left this road and went down a paved bike path. 5K participants turned around roughly 1.5 miles out, while the 10K participants kept going until they hit Whipple Road. At that point, then turned left and crossed a pedestrian bridge and ran down an unpaved walking path for another mile and a half before turning around and heading back on the same course, in reverse.
The course did not go back onto the runway, but instead, stayed on the access road past the museum, then turned right into the back of the museum. The finish was at the entrance to this area, and you wound up right where you started.
AID STATIONS
There was only one aid station for this course, and it was before mile 1. This gave everyone a chance to hit the aid station twice, including the 5K participants. Unfortunately for the 10Kers, this was not the best position for an aid station, and there were no stations out in the far end; a second aid station would have been helpful.
GOODIES/BLING
This was a very lowkey operation. All participants got a tech tee, but it was not gender specific, and I couldn’t tell if there were any kid size shirts. This race did not give out any medals. Age group winners (in 10-year increments, not 5) got a ribbon (the kind you get on your art entry at the fair).
POST-RACE INFO
The back lot area had been converted to a big area for participants to enjoy. There were tables, and many booths from local vendors. There was also a “playground” set up for young children. Also, they had opened up the museum, and it was free for participants to visit. The museum, while small, is full of a lot of airplanes and all things plane-related.
CAVEATS
This is a very lowkey and small race, mostly because this was the very first time the museum put this race on. However registration fees were very low, and it was very family-friendly. A lot of 5K participants brought their kids and they did the fun walk with the whole family. For those who like airplanes, this really is the perfect race.
HOW WOULD YOU IMPROVE THE RACE?
If the museum decides to offer this in the future, I hope they consider adding a second water station for the 10K runners. Mile markers would also be helpful, and I would be willing to pay a higher fee if it includes shirts that are gender-specific (the shirt I got is too long for me). I don’t think not getting a medal would be a make-or-break deal for me, although it would be nice.
WOULD YOU RECOMMEND THIS RACE?
If you live somewhere closer to San Carlos or you are an airport/airplane fan, this is a nice little race I would recommend. And since this is a fundraiser for the museum, you’ll be helping the museum by signing up.