Fri, Oct 2, 2026

Walking With The Dead 5K, 1 Mile

Columbus, OH

Registration openAnnual since at least 2023
5K1 Mile5K

About the Walking With The Dead 5K, 1 Mile

The course winds through Green Lawn Cemetery, past gargoyles, moats, and monuments marking the graves of Ohio governors, Civil War generals, and Eddie Rickenbacker. The paths are scenic and the setting is genuinely historic, so there is something worth looking at around most turns. Costumes are encouraged, and the atmosphere leans toward spooky theater rather than a straight race.

A beer garden is on site, and runners of drinking age get a ticket for one. Ghost tours run alongside the event. The race is organized through Columbus Rotary and benefits the upkeep of the cemetery grounds.

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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

220finishers
0:20winner
32:11median
1:00:00cutoff

Top 3: Nicholas Jarrell (19:02) · Tracy Najera (19:54) · Israel Najera (19:58)

1 Miles · 2025 results

1finishers
11:54winner
11:54median
11:54cutoff

Top 3: Melissa Lowry (11:54)

The Walking With The Dead 5K, 1 Mile 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 10, 2026.

Distances & Start Times

5K10/2/2026 18:30$45
1 Mile10/2/2026 18:35$40
3.1 Miles10/2/2026 18:30$10

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Common Questions About the Walking With The Dead 5K, 1 Mile

Will I finish last at the Walking With The Dead 5K, 1 Mile?

Almost certainly not. Half the 5K field finished slower than 32:11, and the last recorded finisher came in around 1:00:00, so there is a long tail of runners behind the middle of the pack. Most fields are far slower than people expect.

Is the Walking With The Dead 5K, 1 Mile a good first 5K?

A field of 220 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 Walking With The Dead 5K, 1 Mile?

The 5K winner ran 0:20 while the median finisher took 32:11. That spread points to a broad, mostly recreational field rather than a race dominated by club runners.

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