One of Mobile’s best-loved running traditions is back. The Azalea Trail Run returned this fall after a two-year absence brought on by the coronavirus pandemic, and runners say the community spirit that has long defined the race came back with it.
“Every year we’d have the road race that would just bring all these people out of the woodwork,” said runner Michael Sinanian. “It’s the kind of day where everyone is happy and you saw the spirit of the community come together.”
The comeback required significant changes. Race director Peggy Olive said pandemic conditions in Mobile forced organizers to rethink nearly every detail of the event.
“We had to change everything because of what’s going on in Mobile,” Olive said. The Mobile Civic Center was unavailable because of vaccine and COVID-19 testing operations tied to the pandemic response, so organizers moved the race entirely outdoors.
Downtown Broad Street construction also forced planners to redraw the route. The result, Olive said, was a new course, a new venue, and a new time of year for a race that has been a fixture of Mobile’s running calendar.
About the race
The first Azalea Trail Run was held on March 11, 1978. The race has traditionally been run in the spring, when Mobile’s azaleas bloom, and its 10K has drawn elite runners from around the world alongside local participants — which made the move to a fall date a notable change for the event.
