RED is the five30runners' colour because it gives them the speed to achieve personal bests, group founder Garry Wells jokes.
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Mr Wells, of Adamstown Heights, started the group almost three years ago to support middle and back-of-the-pack runners.
It was born out of weekly running event Newy Parkrun.
The group's objective, as its name suggests, is to help runners clock five kilometres in 30 minutes.
"There are lots of groups that look after the fast runners," Mr Wells said.
"I wanted to help those who had room to improve."
The group has about 1200 members nationwide.
They keep connected through Facebook and attend events around the country in packs.
Events frequented by Newcastle and Lake Macquarie members include the Fernleigh 15 and Sydney's City2Surf.
On August 30, an army of five30runners will take on the 2015 Lake Macquarie Running Festival.
About 30 members have already signed up for the challenge, taking advantage of early bird registrations.
Last year about 60 members from Sydney, Orange, Queensland,and the Hunter entered the 10.5-kilometre and 21.1km runs.
The festival, in its 31st year, is a flagship running event for the region and participants raise thousands of dollars for John Hunter Hospital's Neonatal Intensive Care Unit each year.
■ Early bird registrations for the 2015 Lake Macquarie Running Festival close on July 31. Go to lakemacrunning.com.