The Dream

MLK 5K Run / Walk

Spend MLK Day on the move at the first Dream MLK 5K.

Monday
Jan 18, 2027

Mount Trashmore Park, Virginia Beach, Virginia

Race day

Date

Monday, January 18, 2027

Race starts

10:00 a.m.

Awards & celebration

11:30 a.m., including age group awards

Where

Mount Trashmore Park, Virginia Beach

Distance

5K (3.1 miles), run or walk, all paces

Time limit

1 hour 30 minutes, plenty of time to walk the whole course

Registration

$35 through November 29
$40 starting November 30

Hosted by

Harambe Inc.

Packet pickup and more race-day details are coming soon.

Why we gather
on MLK Day

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. worked for a country where equality, opportunity and justice belonged to everyone. On his holiday, we'd like Virginia Beach to spend the morning together, moving side by side at Mount Trashmore.

Harambe Inc., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, presents the race, and 2027 is its first year.

Every pace
belongs

Some people will chase a personal best or an age group award on the 3.1-mile course. Others will push a stroller, walk with grandparents, or come with their church group and talk the whole way. Kids and strollers are welcome, and walkers are as much a part of the day as the fastest runners.

Run it. Walk it. Celebrate it.

A medal for every finisher

Run the whole way or walk every step. Cross the finish line and you go home with the 2027 Dream medal.

Coming with a group?

Churches, schools, running clubs and families can register as a team. When you sign up, create your group's team or join one that already exists, and your team name will appear next to your results.

Join from
anywhere

Can't make it to Virginia Beach? Sign up for The Dream MLK 5K Virtual and run or walk 3.1 miles wherever you are, on your own route and at your own pace.

Virtual participants get the same race shirt, short or long sleeve, and the same finisher medal. The price is the same too: $35 through November 29, $40 starting November 30.

Virtual registration closes at the end of December 28, 2026.

When to complete your virtual 5K and how you'll get your shirt and medal are coming soon.

Shirt deadline
Dec 28, 2026

Register by December 28 to get a race shirt.

Race shirts are ordered three weeks before race day, so registrations received by December 28, 2026 get one. We can't promise a shirt to anyone who registers after that.

Pick short or long sleeve when you register. Front and back shown.

Don't just remember the dream.

Chase it.

Press Register to save your spot for January 18. Registration is $35 through November 29.