Sat, Dec 5, 2026

Santa's Hot Chocolate Run

Lake Charles, LA

Registration openAnnual since at least 2023

Entry is $30 now and rises to $35 after Nov 14, 2026, so registering before then saves $5.

About the Santa's Hot Chocolate Run

The course starts at the Central School Arts and Humanities Center and heads out along Lakeshore Drive before looping back through downtown streets. The route is mostly flat, passing a high school and winding through a few turns before finishing near where you began. Water stations and themed photo spots are scattered along the way, and a kids' activity area keeps things going at the start after the race.

Packet pickup happens the two evenings before race day at the Central School, in one of the building's rooms, and again on race morning in the parking lot off Kirby Street before the gun. Bring a photo ID and your confirmation receipt; a family member can pick up for you if needed. There is hot chocolate at the finish.

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Finish-Time Stats

Going by the 2025 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.

5K · 2025 results

228finishers

17:24winner

36:03median

1:10:35cutoff

Top 3: Malachi Simonet (17:24) · Evan Nunez (18:02) · Joe Frazier (18:13)

The Santa's Hot Chocolate Run has been held every year since at least 2023. That is as far back as RunSignup's records for this race go, so it may well be older.

Where Would You Finish?

Enter a finish time to see where it lands against the most recent 5K results.

Median

See how your time stacks up nationally →

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 Sep 22, 2026.

Distances & Start Times

5K12/5/2026 08:00$30

Going for a Time?

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.

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Common Questions About the Santa's Hot Chocolate Run

Will I finish last at the Santa's Hot Chocolate Run?

Almost certainly not. Half the 5K field finished slower than 36:03, and the last recorded finisher came in around 1:10:35, so there is a long tail of runners behind the middle of the pack. Most fields are far slower than people expect.

Is the Santa's Hot Chocolate Run a good first 5K?

A field of 228 is big enough that you will have company at your pace without feeling lost in a crowd. There is no qualifying time, and the finish-time spread above shows how varied the field really is. If it is your first 5K, that spread matters more than the winner's time.

How competitive is the Santa's Hot Chocolate Run?

The 5K winner ran 17:24 while the median finisher took 36:03. That spread points to a broad, mostly recreational field rather than a race dominated by club runners.