GREEN COVE SPRINGS – America’s F6F Hellcat fighter pilots tallied more than 5,000 shoot-downs in World War II, and their main training base was the Navy Auxiliary Air Station at Benjamin Lee Field.

Middleburg’s Roy Geiger, who pioneered the aviation division of the Marine Corps, was one of the elite pilots to man the Hellcat. So was Joseph Kennedy Jr., brother of President John F. Kennedy, until he was killed in action during a bombing mission.

On Jan. 9, runners can help raise money for the Military Museum of North Florida by participating in the third annual Hellcat Races, which will be held at Benjamin Lee Field, in what has been dubbed “A Run Into History.”

“This will be the third year we’re holding the races, and it’s a pretty neat event,” race director Chris Rodatz said. “There’s a lot of history with this base, and it gets overlooked in Clay County. The rest of the world knows about it, but lots of people in Clay County don’t.”

There will be a 10-kilometer race, a 30K and a 50K.

“The Hellcat was the most successful fighter plane in World War II,” Rodatz said. “It was a key in our fight against Japan.”

The Hellcat was also the first plane used by the Blue Angels, the Navy’s famous flight demonstration squadron known for its aerobatics. The Blue Angels, which also includes Marine pilots, formed in 1946, the year after WWII ended.

The race course is a 6.2-mile loop around the perimeter of the old base. The 10K is once around the loop, the 30K is three times around and the 50K is five times around.

“We’re expecting between 200-400 people to come out,” Rodatz said. “It often takes a while to build up a race like this, so we’re trying to get word out early this year.”

Last year, several hundred runners participated, and 187 finished the races.

The 10K, 30K and 50K cost $30, $40 and $60, respectively, to sign up. After this month, the prices to sign up will increase slightly.

Hamburgers, hot dogs and drinks, as well as a tour of the museum, are included in the cost for the runners. Food, refreshments and museum entry will be available to spectators for purchase on race day. All proceeds from entry fees and food sales go to the museum.

One feature of the museum is wreckage of a crashed Hellcat.

People can sign up for the race at http://hellcatrace.com. Medals will be awarded.

“These are the best looking medals of any race in North Florida, I have to say,” Rodatz said. “I designed them myself. They’re really cool.”

ROTC teams and cross country teams from area high schools will be among the participants.

“The feedback has been great in the first couple years,” Rodatz said. “People who ran in the races kept saying, ‘You have to do this again next year.’ We’ll keep the race going as long as people support it.”