The Bear Crawl OCR

06/20/2026

At The Bear Crawl OCR, every mile is powered by community. Join us on May 15, 2027 for a day filled with trail, teamwork, encouragement, and unforgettable memories.

Ready to take on the challenge?

Sign up today and be part of something bigger than the finish line: https://runsignup.com/bearcrawlocr

06/16/2026

We’re honored to be featured by MudGear in their latest article, “Where Everyone Belongs: The Community Behind Bear Crawl OCR.”

From the very beginning, The Bear Crawl OCR has been about more than obstacles, mud, and miles. It’s about creating a place where everyone feels welcome, supported, and empowered to challenge themselves.

What started as a hometown obstacle course race has grown into an incredible community of racers, volunteers, families, adaptive athletes, and supporters who show up year after year to encourage one another and give back.

This article tells the story of who we are and why we do what we do—and every one of you is a part of it.

THANK YOU to everyone who has run, volunteered, cheered from the sidelines, sponsored our event, or supported our mission. You are the heart of the Bear Crawl OCR. 🐻🖤💛

Read the full article here: https://mudgear.com/blogs/news/where-everyone-belongs-the-community-behind-bear-crawl-ocr

Obstacle course racing is often measured in miles, obstacles, podium finishes, and personal records. Bear Crawl delivers on all of those fronts. The course is challenging, the competition is legitimate, and every year it attracts athletes eager to test themselves against some of the toughest carries...

06/05/2026

🔅 2026 Bear Crawl Sponsor Highlight 🔅

The Bear Crawl OCR would like to say a huge THANK YOU to Get Real Stone for helping make our events possible year after year.

Based right here in Marion, North Carolina, Get Real Stone specializes in premium natural stone products that are mined and processed in the USA. Their product line includes thin stone veneer, wallstone, flagstone, boulders, and landscaping stone that can be found in projects across the country. Their commitment to quality, craftsmanship, and supporting local communities makes them an incredible sponsor for events like ours.

Community events like Bear Crawl OCR would not be possible without the support of local businesses that believe in giving back and investing in Western North Carolina. Because of sponsors like Get Real Stone, we’re able to continue creating challenging, fun, and meaningful events that bring people together while supporting our community.

Please join us in thanking the amazing team at Get Real Stone for helping make the Bear Crawl OCR possible. We are grateful for your sponsorship and proud to have your support!

💛🖤

Ready to join us for 2027?

We have already set the date for next year’s event! Register today and secure your spot:

👉🏼 https://runsignup.com/bearcrawlocr 👈🏼

The Bear Crawl OCR is on Saturday May 15, 2027. It includes the following events: Six Mile Male Elite, Six Mile Female Elite, Six Mile Open, Three Mile Open 8:45 am Start, Three Mile Open 9:00 am Start, Three Mile Open 9:15 am Start, Three Mile Open 9:30 am Start, Two Mile Cub Crawl Competitive Race...

06/02/2026

🔨🐻 And just like that... the final Bear Crawl obstacles have been removed from the course and put into storage until next year.

It’s always a bittersweet day. Months of planning, building, trail work, and race-day excitement all come to an end, but it also gives us a chance to start looking ahead to what’s next.

We want to again thank every racer, volunteer, sponsor, vendor, and supporter who helped make this year's event such a success. Because of you, the Bear Crawl continues to grow and give back to our community in meaningful ways.

The obstacles may be packed away, but our minds are already on May 15, 2027. We’re already discussing improvements, new ideas, and ways to make next year's race even better than this year's.

🏃 Registration for the 2027 Bear Crawl OCR is OPEN NOW!

👉🏼 https://runsignup.com/bearcrawlocr 👈🏼

If you haven't secured your spot yet, now is the perfect time to join us for another year of obstacles, trails, challenges, and unforgettable memories.

We'll see you back in Morganton in 2027. 🐻💛🖤

05/29/2026

🔅2026 Bear Crawl Sponsor Highlight Post🔅

The Bear Crawl OCR would like to say a huge THANK YOU to Bennick Grading & Excavation for allowing us to use their property for our events year after year.

Bennick Grading & Excavation has spent decades serving Western North Carolina with grading, excavation, site development, hauling, and specialized shoreline restoration work. Their commitment to quality, innovation, and community involvement has made them a trusted name throughout the region.

The trails, obstacles, and memories created at the Bear Crawl would not be possible without generous community partners who believe in supporting local events and giving people opportunities to challenge themselves outdoors.

From all of us at Bear Crawl OCR, thank you for your continued support, partnership, and willingness to help us bring this event to life year after year. We are grateful to have businesses like Bennick Grading & Excavation investing in our community and helping us create an unforgettable experience for our racers. 💛🖤

We have already set the date for our 2027 event. Follow this link to sign up now 👉🏼 https://runsignup.com/bearcrawlocr 👈🏼

The Bear Crawl OCR is on Saturday May 15, 2027. It includes the following events: Six Mile Male Elite, Six Mile Female Elite, Six Mile Open, Three Mile Open 8:45 am Start, Three Mile Open 9:00 am Start, Three Mile Open 9:15 am Start, Three Mile Open 9:30 am Start, Two Mile Cub Crawl Competitive Race...

05/25/2026

👕 Bear Crawl T-Shirt Update 👕

Because registration exceeded expectations, we ran out of race day T-shirts before everyone was able to receive one.

If you did NOT receive a shirt on race day and would still like one, please comment below or send us a message with:

• Your name
• Shirt size
•If you’re local for pickup or if you’d need it to be shipped

Thank you all again for helping make this one of the biggest and best Bear Crawls yet. 🐻🖤💛

05/22/2026

05/20/2026

📸 BEAR CRAWL PHOTOS ARE LIVE! 🐻🔥

PSSSSTTTT….And so is 2027 registration 🫨

Race day may be over, but the memories are just getting started.

The trail. The obstacles. The teamwork. The finish line moments. Go find your photos, tag your friends, and relive one of the biggest Bear Crawls we’ve had in years! 💛🖤

And for those already thinking about next year…

🏃 Registration for the 2027 Bear Crawl OCR is NOW OPEN!

If this year taught us anything, it’s that this community keeps getting stronger, bigger, and more incredible every single year.

👉 Secure your spot early and be part of what’s next.

Photos here….

https://jw3photos.pixieset.com/thebearcrawlocr2026/?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAc3J0YwZhcHBfaWQPNDM3NjI2MzE2OTczNzg4AAEeosUM5PihowYYziN2-lmgD36-ElR3wvmvodLpkEKc3bcK64fJjfzTPwB8j9c_aem_iiW5dN2KbLXuUdauapCHBw

Register here….

https://runsignup.com/bearcrawlocr

Photo collection by JW3Photos

05/19/2026

Hey Bear Crawlers!

We are still riding the wave from how amazing this past weekend was and we are so very grateful for your support of our small, hometown, race. We are taking this energy with us into the planning and preparations for our 2027 Bear Crawl!

We wanted to take a moment to address the results we shared from RunSignUp and address any confusion this may have created. If you have done our elite race then you know that we value obstacle completion over course time and we use bands to track obstacle completion. Our obstacles are technically difficult and our carries are HEAVY but we feel that these things help narrow the playing field between athletes of varying abilities.

The results posted from RunSignUp only factored in the final chip time. It does not reflect the number of bands that an individual had when they crossed the finish line. So, we have included the accurate results of the male and female elite races when combining both the number of bands they had and their chip time. As you can see, obstacle completion can make a difference for placement as our finishers in 7th through 15th place of the male race had a faster time than our 6th place finisher BUT our 6th place finisher kept both of his bands and therefore secured a better placement for himself in our race.

We apologize for any confusion that the RunSignUp results may have caused and will definitely do better in the future to make sure that the results shared take into consideration band placement in addition to time. Thank you for understanding that we are humans that make mistakes. We appreciate this being brought to our attention and hope that this clears things up for others.

-Your Bear Crawl Team