Smoke Rise Trail Run

About the Event

The Smoke Rise Trail Run is a mountain trail event scheduled for Saturday, May 9, 2026, in Huntsville, Alabama. Hosted by RunningLane Events, the race takes place at the Blevins Gap Land Trust, traversing the challenging and scenic terrain of Green Mountain. The event is designed to accommodate both novice trail runners and seasoned athletes, with a hard participant cap of 250 runners to maintain an intimate race environment.

Race Categories and Distances

The event offers three distinct distances, each utilizing the single-track trails of the North Alabama land trust system. The Half Marathon course consists of two loops of the 10K route.

Distance	Start Time	Time Limit / Cutoff
Half Marathon	8:00 AM	3 hours 40 minutes
10K	8:00 AM	2 hours 30 minutes
5K	8:30 AM	N/A

Course and Environment

The geography of Green Mountain provides significant elevation changes and technical footing characteristic of the Cumberland Plateau. Runners will navigate rocky paths and forested slopes that offer views of the surrounding Tennessee Valley. In early May, Huntsville typically experiences temperate spring weather, with average lows of 15°C (59°F) and highs of 27°C (81°F). This race is strictly cupless; participants are required to carry their own hydration packs or handheld bottles, as no paper cups are provided at aid stations to minimize waste.

Logistically, the event is centralized at the Blevins Gap trailhead on Cecil Ashburn Drive. Packet pickup is held on Friday, May 8, at the RunningLane storefront in Huntsville, with a limited race-day pickup window from 6:45 AM to 7:45 AM. All finishers receive a medal, and the event concludes with a post-race cookout for participants. For those traveling from outside the region, Monte Sano State Park is the recommended lodging partner, located approximately 10 minutes from the start line. Registration for the 2026 race closes on May 7.

Races Offered

10K

May 09, 2026

straighten

Distance — 10K

terrain

Type — Running

timer

08:00

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$65.00

Half Marathon

May 09, 2026

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Distance — 21.1K

terrain

Type — Running

timer

08:00

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$85.00

5K

May 09, 2026

straighten

Distance — 5K

terrain

Type — Running

timer

08:30

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$50.00

Weather Overview

These values represent the 3-year monthly averages for May in Huntsville.

Temp (°C)

Feels Like (°C)

thermostat 15.9° / 25.9°

wb_sunny 15.7° / 26.0°

Wind (km/h)

Humidity (%)

air 9.7 /

water_drop 76.1%

Temp (°C)

Feels Like (°C)

Wind (km/h)

Humidity (%)

thermostat 15.9° / 25.9°

wb_sunny 15.7° / 26.0°

air 9.7 km/h

water_drop 76.1%

About Huntsville

Learn more about the host city, Huntsville.

Huntsville is in northern Alabama, about 20 miles from the border with Tennessee. The city is a center for missile defense and aerospace technologies, with companies like Boeing, Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, and Northrop Grumman having major operations here. Cummings Research Park, the second largest research park in the country, is home to many of these companies.