Registrations for the inaugural Big Dam Bridge on September 30, 2006 are currently being accepted by Little Rock Parks & Recreation according to an announcement issued by race officials earlier today.

Race information and registration is at www.bigdambridge.com. Prospective participants are encouraged to register online or print out an entry form, which can be mailed in. The 5K entry fee is $20 before race day and $25 race day. Online registration will be available until midnight September 25. Mailed entries must be received by September 25. Registration will resume September 29 at Easy Runner, 400 N. Bowman Road in west Little Rock from 10am to 6 pm. Race packets may also be picked up at Easy Runner on September 29. Race day registration and packet pick up will be at Cooks Landing in North Little Rock from 8 - 9 am.

The Big Dam Bridge 5K is part of a weekend of activities centered on the opening of the new pedestrian bridge that connects the Little Rock and North Little Rock portions of the Arkansas River Trail. The Big Dam Bridge 5K will be the first race to utilize the bridge, which spans 3,463 ft across the Arkansas River and is 65 ft above Murray Lock and Dam.

The 5K starts at 10:30 am will begin and end at the foot of the bridge ramp at Cooks Landing.

"We have so much to be proud of if you truly think about it,” said Pulaski County Judge Buddy Villines. “We have taken the bridge concept from an idea about a decade ago to this new incredible structure that will captivate the south”.

Organizers, Gina Marchese Pharis and Bill Torrey, both of Little Rock with experience running the popular Little Rock Marathon are coordinating the Big Dam Bridge 5K which is a benefit for Little Rock Parks and Recreation.

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