Healthy Strides 5K & 10K
Fairfax Station, VA
- 10K, 5K, Kids Run
- Road (Paved), Trail (Unpaved)
- Official race website
The Fairfax County Park Authority invites you to join your community and friends for the Healthy Strides 5K/10K. Experience the sights and sounds of this Fantasy Forest while you enjoy a scenic run, walk, or roll in the 5K (3.1 Miles), or run through the trails for a more competitive … MORE
Local Historical Weather (May 02):
| 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | |
| H (°F) | 62 | 84 | 89 | 56 | 80 |
| L (°F) | 49 | 66 | 55 | 47 | 52 |
Find Nearby Lodging (hotel, rental, etc.):
Heroes & Villains at Burke Lake
My second time running this race, with a much better result! This year's Heroes vs. Villains theme brought out creative costumes—superheroes and villains everywhere added great energy to the course. … MORE
My second time running this race, with a much better result! This year’s Heroes vs. Villains theme brought out creative costumes—superheroes and villains everywhere added great energy to the course.
The 10K course winds beautifully through wooded gravel/dirt trails around Burke Lake. Fair warning: it’s deceptively difficult. The paved downhill start tempts you to go out fast, but you’ll pay for it once you hit the trails. Patience in those first 2 miles is key!
Solid race production for a smaller event (~500 runners). A couple of well-placed water stations on course (perfect for a 10K), plus plenty of post-race snacks and water. The tech shirt fit well and the medal was a nice size—good value.
The only downside was the unseasonably cold weather, which dampened the post-race atmosphere. Fine for runners staying warm, but tough on the kids at the finish festival.
Fun atmosphere, scenic course
Burke Lake was where I did my first 5K and where I train occasionally, so I'll always love coming back here. Notably, this race was to raise funds for the … MORE
Burke Lake was where I did my first 5K and where I train occasionally, so I’ll always love coming back here. Notably, this race was to raise funds for the park itself, so I was very motivated to do it and gave a little more as a donation at registration time.
The production was good. I picked up my bib the day before, but it didn’t seem too difficult to pick it up before the race. I was familiar with the park, but I know that others appreciated that volunteers guide everyone to their parking spots and the start/finish area.
I did the 10K (the event also offered 5K and kids run options). The course was a mostly flat dirt gravel trail through the woods. It’s a small winding path with the occasional root sticking up, so it was a bit more difficult than a standard street race. The 5K and 10K courses converged about halfway, where the water stations were, and this ended up being a very congested and chaotic area.
There was plenty of cheering throughout the course and near the finish line. The startfinish festival was fun. There were plenty of snacks, but there was only a single water table, which got backed up very quickly as runners started to come in. Fortunately, some public water fountains around the area were able to be used.
The swag included a large medal, tech T-shirt, and reusable tote bag. The top finishers (overall/age group) got an additional gift bag.
Since this race is local for me and raises money for my local park, I’ll do it again. I’d highly recommend it for anyone who wants a fun, low-key, local race experience!