The course is a trail loop around Bass Lake and Sugg Farm, and runners repeat it across a timed window, whether they are chasing a solo effort or running as part of a relay team. There is also a ruck division, with weight requirements based on the runner's body weight. The terrain gives you a consistent lap to settle into a rhythm and practice pacing.
Free race emails
Get races near Holly Springs in your inbox. Every Monday we send the races coming up, and every Thursday we send the ones happening that weekend.
Two helpful emails per week. No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Going by the 2026 results, this is a small, friendly field, and the spread of finish times is wide, so this is a mostly recreational race rather than one for club runners.
Top 3: Benson Karanja (11:40:56) · Ginger Casbon (11:06:02) · Ryan Epp (11:11:27)
Top 3: Amy Nelson (19:56:30) · Andrew MacIntyre (17:49:27) · Eric Gainer (14:48:01)
Top 3: 6 Guys, 1 Baton (23:56:14) · US Navy Team #5 (23:30:05) · ASU's Finest (23:30:06)
Top 3: Connor Johnsey (1:49:37) · Chad Hively (2:06:14) · Thomas Haugh (2:06:53)
Top 3: Deal Team 6 (11:47:23) · The Late Groundhogs (11:07:56) · We Got The Runs (11:24:39)
Top 3: Amanda Whitton (11:21:02) · Esteban Garcia (8:13:13) · David Spencer (8:40:50)
Top 3: Jason Estevan (5:40:52) · Jason Horn (5:54:00) · Tanner Bowers (6:11:35)
Top 3: Gavin Kinkead (27:01) · David Ruff (38:57) · Abby Soltes (53:15)
Top 3: Cherina Elfberg (19:00:31) · Delaney Konieczka (19:00:32)
The Holly Springs Race Against the Sun has been held every year since at least 2024. That is as far back as RunSignup's records for this race go, so it may well be older.
Enter a finish time to see where it lands against the most recent results.
How we calculate these stats: RunSesh calculates these figures from the most recent published results of past editions, sourced from RunSignup. We show aggregates only: field size, winning and median times, and the cutoff. We never publish individual finisher tables. Last updated Oct 25, 2026.
Set a goal and get a pace band: every mile split on a card sized for your phone lock screen, so race morning needs no math.
Traveling for this race? The map shows hotels and rentals in and around Holly Springs — pan or zoom to compare what's nearby.
The map is provided by Stay22. If you book through it, RunSesh may earn a commission at no extra cost to you — it never affects the races we list.
Almost certainly not. Half the race field finished slower than 10:13:27, and the last recorded finisher came in around 11:53:53, so there is a long tail of runners behind the middle of the pack. Most fields are far slower than people expect.
It is a small race (55 finishers), which is friendlier and less intimidating than a big-city event, though the field thins out. There is no qualifying time, and the finish-time spread above shows how varied the field really is. If it is your first race, that spread matters more than the winner's time.
The race winner ran 2:32:35 while the median finisher took 10:13:27. That spread points to a broad, mostly recreational field rather than a race dominated by club runners.
Want more races like this delivered straight to your inbox?
