Last Updated on October 20, 2022 3:35 pm
BOONE, N.C. — The 12th annual Spooky Duke Race and Costume Contest will be held on Saturday, Nov. 5, on the campus of Appalachian State University in the Peacock parking lot (416 Howard Street, Boone, North Carolina). There will also be a virtual option for participants.
The event benefits Parent to Parent Family Support Network-High Country. The program, housed in App State’s Reich College of Education, provides free support, caring connections, information and hope to families who have a premature baby, a child with a disability, an emotional or behavioral challenge, a mental illness, a chronic health condition or to families who are grieving the death of a child. Parent to Parent Family Support Network-High Country serves Alleghany, Ashe, Mitchell, Watauga, Wilkes and Yancey Counties in the High Country of North Carolina.
The Spooky Duke is a USA Track & Field (USATF) certified 5K and 10K race, and includes a free costume march for children, adults and dogs. The course is relatively flat, with small hills and sidewalk terrain. Costumes are encouraged for everyone!
How to register:
- Discounted advance registration is available online through Nov. 3 at https://runsignup.com/Race/NC/Boone/TheSpookyDuke5k10kandCostumeMarch.
- Registration fees are $25 advance/$30 day-of for the 5K, and $30 advance/$35 day-of for the 10K.
- Register by Oct. 25 to guarantee a long-sleeve t-shirt.
- Student teams can register a group of 15 for $15 each.
The first Spooky Duke in 2011 was championed by Jennifer McClure, an App State social work student and Parent to Parent FSN-HC intern, who chose to create the race as her final project. Dr. Charles R. Duke, former dean of the Reich College of Education, became the event sponsor. To honor him and the Halloween theme, the name “Spooky Duke” was born.
In 2021, over 300 runners participated, 50 student and community volunteers assisted with race planning and logistics, and the event raised over $25,000 for Parent to Parent Family Support Network-High Country.
For more information, visit https://parent2parent.appstate.edu/special-events/spooky-duke-race.
