2025 Pre Race Update

War Eagle Nation, it's good to know that in a few months we will see you again. As always, frequent updates are posted to our Facebook page. Links to both are below. But first... thank you all for your continued support of this event, of Hobbs State Park, the Friends of Hobbs and the Rogers Lions Club.
Proceeds from this event are donated to the Friends of Hobbs State Park to support their efforts in boosting the fantastic work that park staff does. Funds are used for all sorts of activities including trail maintenance, educational programming and hospitality activities. Proceeds also go to the Rogers Lions Club Scholarship Fund through the Rogers Community Fund to support local students as they pursue college.

Race day is Saturday, June 7th in conjunction with National Trails Day. Parking is on the Sutton property Behind War Eagle Mill. The address for parking is 11037 High Sky Inn Rd in Hindsville, AR. If you can find War Eagle Mill you can find the parking area. The gates will be open at 5:00am. This is private property and we are fortunate to be able to use it. Please help us keep the grounds as clean as possible. We highly encourage you to carpool. Restrooms will be available on the back of the property but don't be those people we have to yell at every year to hustle over to the race briefing or the start line. Please wait on the far side of the entry to parking and do not congregate in front of the barn. It takes a while to get several hundred vehicles through a single gate and parked. Let's keep the drive open for vehicles entering the parking area. The property owner will allow a very limited number of participants to camp dirtbag style the night before for $10. Camping is allowed in a tent or vehicle, no electricity or water. Email us to secure a spot.

Drop bags are allowed and we will transport them to either Piney Road aid station for 25/50k runners or to the finish line (for all distances). Bring them to the start area. There will be two separate piles so choose wisely. And notice the words "drop bags"... no coolers. Be reasonable.

ALL races will start from the War Eagle Bridge including the 10k. This will be a mass start with all distances at 6:30am. We will start on time with or without you. We cannot emphasize enough to allow extra time to park, take care of a packet or drop bag and bathroom business before the race briefing. Being on time is critical for us as the Benton County Sheriff's Office closes the road for the start.
During the race 6:30am-2:30pm please note that Townsends Ridge Road will be closed from Hwy 12 to the Townsends Ridge trail head parking lot. And the main parking lot for the Visitors Center will be off limits to race traffic. Spectators can use the gravel parking lot just outside the entrance to the Visitors Center.

650 runners is a lot to put on a trail so please be considerate and careful when passing other runners. For our 10k runners having a good time in the back of the pack, be on the lookout for the leaders of the 25/50k as they will catch you before you finish. Again, we are all out here for a good time so share the trail. A note on dogs, we love our four legged friends but ask that you do not race with them. And please note that all dogs must be leashed while in the park.

All courses will be clearly marked with ribbon and signs at intersections and turns. We put a lot of effort into making sure each course is easy to follow. If this is your first trail race, you are in good hands. If you are unsure about going the right way just ask, somebody close by will know the answer. Please note that when you see the big sign that has an arrow and "Finish 1 Mile" take that with a grain of salt because it is a lie. The actual distance might be 1.4 miles but who makes a sign that reads "Finish 1.4 Miles"? And we are fortunate to have all of our usual aid station volunteers back with us again. They will take good care of you. Aid stations will be stocked with water and Gatorade to drink as well as the usual trail race snacks. This race is CUPLESS. You must bring a bottle or cup for drinks during the race and for the finish line.

Speaking of the finish line, Catfish John's will once again serve the best catfish, chicken strips and hushpuppies in NWA at no cost to our racers. Service will begin at approximately 9:00am. Remember to bring your own bottle or cup for drinks as we do not provide cups at the race to reduce the amount of trash we produce.

Shuttle service will be available to return runners to the parking area. The shuttle will begin at 9am. During peak exit times there may be more shuttle riders than seats. If that is the case we ask that car drivers please get seated on the shuttle first. If you are a passenger in a vehicle (because you were awesome and carpooled) let a vehicle driver have a seat and your driver can pick you up in the new lot just outside the main gate.

Race photos will be provided at no cost to participants. All we ask is that you give credit to the photographer when posting on social media Race results will be available on Race Wizard shortly after the race is completed. Once photos and results are ready, we will post links on FB and the website.

Race rules (not already covered) are pretty simple. Most of you know the hashtag, #dbad. That's it. For those of you wanting more detail, just wait for the race briefing. Be nice to everyone. We will not tolerate any action, behavior or words that are intolerant of others. Period.

A reminder that the deadline to guarantee your shirt is May 8th at 8:00am. If you register after that you are not guaranteed a shirt. We do this so funding isn’t wasted on shirts.

In closing, the following folks deserve our gratitude...Greg Lindley-Rogers Lions Club, Simmons Bank and the founder of the Hobbs Tail Twister that has morphed into this over the years. Mark Clippinger and all of the staff at Hobbs State Park, Mike Rush-Rush Running Company, Hannah and Trey Carter and crew-Piney Rd aid station who have served the event for 10 years. Abe Nutt and Shannon Hampton and crew-Shnutt Hutt aid station who have been with us for 8 years. Megan James and the Mustache Running Club-Townsends Ridge aid station who have also been with us for 8 years.

That's all for now. Keep running, safe travels and we will see you at Hobbs.