2016 will be full of excitement at Apalachee Regional Park

On Saturday morning, 10 October 2009, the first athletes raced on Leon County's Apalachee Regional Park Cross Country Course. That was less than seven years ago. Since then ARPXC has become recognized as one of the most important cross-country running venues in the South. If you need to be convinced, just look at the 2016 calendar for the course. There's a county championship, two state championships, a pair of regional championships, and three national championship events, all scheduled for the turf and trails of ARPXC. I don't think it's inappropriate to refer to it as Apalachee Regional Park Championship Cross Country Course.

2015 FHSAA class 4A boys' state championship cross country race at ARPXC

The 2016 calendar for ARPXC is full and varied. There are community events, like the Trash Dash 5K and the Tannenbaum Trail 6K. There are events older than the ARPXC like the 45th annual Florida State University Invitational Cross Country Meet. There are events that are occasional but not regular visitors to ARPXC, like the NCAA-D1 South Region Championship. And there are events new to Apalachee Regional Park, like the Big Bend Cross Country Championship and the three National Championships--the USATF Master's Championship, the AAU National Championship, and the USATF National Club Championship.


If you're a fan of distance running in general or cross country in particular, plan on spending a lot of time at Apalachee Regional Park this fall. Here's a schedule to help you plan your calendar:


3 SEPTEMBER 2016 (Saturday)

• Big Bend Cross Country Invitational. 7:30 AM ET community 5K / 8:15 AM ET high school girls 5K / 9:00 AM ET high school boys 5K / 9:40 AM ET middle school girls 3K / 10:00 AM ET middle school boys 3K.

7 SEPTEMBER 2016 (Wednesday)

• Swift Creek Middle School Invitational. 6:00 PM ET middle school girls two mile / 6:30 PM ET middle school boys two mile. 2015 story. 2012 story. 2010 story.
  

5 OCTOBER 2016 (Wednesday)

• Leon County Schools' Middle School Championship. 6:00 PM ET middle school girls two mile / 6:30 PM ET middle school boys two mile. 2015 story. 2014 story. 2013 story. 2012 story. 2011 girls story. 2011 boys story. 2010 story.
  

7 OCTOBER 2016 (Friday)

• Florida State University Cross Country Invitational (Collegiate Classic). 7:40 AM ET college men 8K / 8:20 AM ET college women 5K / 5:00 PM ET middle school girls 3K / 5:30 PM ET middle school boys 3K / 6:00 PM ET high school boys junior varsity 5K / 6:30 PM ET high school girls junior varsity 5K. Apalachee Regional Park Championship Cross Country Course, 7550 Apalachee Parkway, Tallahassee, Florida. 2010 story. 2009 story. 1981 story. 1980 story. 1978 story.
  

8 OCTOBER 2016 (Saturday)

• Florida State University Cross Country Invitational (Pre-State). 7:40 AM ET boys high school Elite / 8:05 AM ET girls high school Elite / 8:35 AM ET boys high school Select / 9:00 AM ET girls high school Select / 9:30 AM ET boys high school Varsity A / 9:55 AM ET girls high school Varsity A / 10:25 AM ET boys high school Varsity B / 10:50 AM ET girls high school Varsity B. 2010 story. 2009 story. 1981 story. 1980 story. 1978 story.
  

29 OCTOBER 2016 (Saturday)

• 6th annual Trash Dash 5K. 8:30 AM ET. 2015 story. 2014 story. 2013 story. 2012 story. 2011 story.
  

4 NOVEMBER 2016 (Friday)

• FCSAA Women's Cross Country Championship. (Schedule TBA.)
  

5 NOVEMBER 2016 (Saturday)

• FHSAA Cross Country State Finals. 7:30 AM ET. 2015 story. 2014 story. 2013 story. 2012 story. 2010 story. 2009 story.
  

6 NOVEMBER 2016 (Sunday)

• USA Track and Field Master’s 5K Cross Country National Championship. (Schedule TBA.)
  

11 NOVEMBER 2016 (Friday)

• NCAA-D1 South Region Cross Country Championships. (Schedule TBA.)
  

19 NOVEMBER 2016 (Saturday)

• Florida Athletic Coaches Association High School Senior All-Star Cross Country Meet. 8:30 AM ET all-star girls 5K / 9:00 AM ET all-star boys 5K. 2015 story. 2013 story. 2012 story. 2010 story. 2009 story.
  
• USATF Region 4 Junior Olympic Cross Country Championships. (Events to follow FACA All-Star Meet.)
  

3 DECEMBER 2016 (Saturday)

• Amateur Athletic Union Cross Country National Championships. (Schedule TBA.)
  

10 DECEMBER 2016 (Saturday)

• USATF National Club Cross Country Championships. (Schedule TBA.)
  

17 DECEMBER 2016 (Saturday)

• Gulf Wind Track Club's 6th annual Tannenbaum Trail 6K Cross Country Run. 9:00 AM ET. 2015 story. 2014 story. 2013 story. 2012 story. 2011 story.
  

Links

• Leon County's Apalachee Regional Park Championship Cross Country Course, offical web page
  https://cms.leoncountyfl.gov/Home/Departments/Office-of-Resource-Stewardship/Parks-and-Recreation/Apalachee-Regional-Park
  
  
• Apalachee Regional Park Championship Cross Country Course on Facebook
  https://www.facebook.com/ARPXC
  
  
• An old tour of Apalachee Regional Park Championship Cross Country Course
  https://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2009/06/tour-of-apalachee-regional-park-cross.html
  
  
• Races in the region, on and off ARPXC, on the Trouble Afoot! calendar
  https://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/search/label/calendar?max-results=1
  
  

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