I think it’s finally safe to say that I have surpassed the cold doldrums of winter. And what a long one it was (even with a 1+ week stint in the Caribbean). But now spring has arrived and everything is anew. The sun is finally shinning, trees are budding and flowers are starting to bloom… just waiting for the damn temperature to rise.
And since brighter days are here, there’s no better way to celebrate than getting out and enjoying the fresh (not frozen) air. This past weekend was the kickoff to my “fun-run season”. Fun-runs are wacky themed 5k's, 10k’s, and of course the ever exciting OCR’s (Obstacle Course Races). I am officially registered for at least one of these races each month from April through October.
First up… Color Me Rad www.colormerad.com Sunday morning I met up with some girlfriends from Sprockets Cycle Studio to run through the streets of Manchester, NH. Color runs are pretty popular these days and extremely family/kid friendly, I even saw a few dogs of a different color meandering around the park.
Color Me Rad is only a 5k, which is a plus in my book since running is my least favorite form of exercise. As you run the course, you will periodically run through a dye station. Volunteers are eagerly waiting your arrival armed with dye packs and paint guns. They take great pleasure in ambushing you as you run on by. Each station has its own color and some volunteers are a little more aggressive than others. The last station, purple, was so intense I couldn’t even see a foot in front of me, and I came out looking like Barney :)
Once the race is over, everyone gathers for the post-race party, which includes free water (no complementary brews here) and dye packs. The music is bumping and the MC coordinates a dye-toss where everyone in the audience throws their color packs in the air. Even if you didn’t want to be in the middle of the ciaos, it’s pretty cool to just step back and watch.
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| Top photo taken by Shannon Sterrett |
I came out of it a hot colored mess and I’m pretty sure I will be blowing rainbows out my nose for the next couple of days, but it’s all good. The clothes will wash clean, and to the best of my knowledge the dye isn’t toxic. And since I haven’t ran since the Boston Ugly Christmas Sweater Run last December, it felt great to finally get my legs hitting the pavement and ease myself into much more challenging races on the horizon.
