Healthy Kids Running Series — NJ Dates

Healthy Kids Running Series is not one single New Jersey event. That’s the first thing to get straight. It’s a bunch of local five-week kids’ race series, and each town sets its own spring calendar. NJ Monthly’s statewide listing points families to a broad New Jersey window — Sunday, April 26 through Sunday, May 24 — but the actual dates depend on which local series you join. ### So what is this, exactly? It’s a youth running program for kids from Pre-K through 8th grade, built around short, age-based races once a week for five weeks. The distances are simple and kid-scaled — 50-yard and 75-yard dashes, then 1/4 mile, 1/2 mile, and 1 mile. There’s also a Challenger division at some sites. The whole thing is less “big meet” and more community ritual — show up each week, run, score points, collect a shirt and medal, keep moving. (njmonthly.com) ### Why are the NJ dates confusing? Because the statewide listing flattens a local program into one date range. NJ Monthly says the series runs in participating locations across New Jersey from April 26 to May 24. That’s useful as a signal that spring races are happening now. But individual towns don’t all match that exact calendar, so if a parent assumes every site starts and ends on those same Sundays, they can easily miss a week. (cinnaminson.healthykidsrunningseries.org) ### Which New Jersey dates are actually confirmed? Robbinsville is one clean example — its spring 2026 series runs on Sundays from April 26 through May 24 at Blakely Park. Haddonfield/Cherry Hill is different: that site started earlier, on April 12, and lists races on 4/12, 4/19, 4/26, 5/3, and 5/17, with a rain date of 5/24. Gloucester Township is different again, with a May 3 to June 7 window showing up on race listings. Basically, “Healthy Kids Running Series — NJ Dates” is plural for a reason. (njmonthly.com) ### What do kids actually do each week? They run one age-appropriate event and earn points based on finish order. The scoring system is straightforward — first place gets 10 points, second gets 9, and so on — which means the program rewards showing up consistently, not just winning once. By the last week, participants typically get a finisher medal, and some locations also award trophies to top finishers by division. (runsignup.com) ### Is this only for serious young runners? Not really. The structure is timed and organized, but the pitch is broad participation. The program markets itself as a fun, positive way to get kids active, and the race menu starts with very short dashes for younger children. That makes it approachable for first-timers, while older kids still get real competition through the point system and weekly results. ### Where should families check before signing up? (healthykidsrunningseries.org) The local race page matters most. NJ Monthly is useful for spotting the event and the general New Jersey window, but the town-specific page is where you’ll find the exact Sundays, location, rain dates, pricing, and race director contact. Runsignup pages and local HKRS site pages are doing the real schedule work here. ### What’s the practical takeaway? If you’re looking at Healthy Kids Running Series in New Jersey right now, don’t treat it like one statewide meet. (healthykidsrunningseries.org) Treat it like a network of local five-week Sunday series that happen on slightly different calendars. The broad season is real. But the date that matters is the one attached to your town. (njmonthly.com)