I did The Color Run on Saturday and despite the rain and cold weather, still had a blast! My original plan a few months back was to train to run the whole thing, but that didn’t happen and I decided to call it Color Fun instead! I’m actually completely happy that we didn’t end up running the whole thing. There were a lot of people walking and I think it would have been hard to try to fully run the whole thing because we would have been dodging people the whole time. The environment was fun and enjoyable and not about getting to the end as fast as you can. It’s more about enjoying the experience.
Our before photo, sporting some awesome knee-high socks!
Running through the yellow zone. Did I mention it rained the whole time? It was still awesome, but I can imagine how much prettier it would be with the sun shining!
Getting ready to cross the finish line! They tell you to save your packet of color for the post-race party, but people started throwing powder before they crossed!
I think the rain made everything look a little more tie dye.
At the post-race party, they countdown a color throw every 5-10 minutes.
It’s definitely a fun experience to get in there, but it’s also pretty cool from far away.
I think that’s my favorite photo. I love the mix of colors!
A final after photo of the group! You can’t tell but I’m pretty sure our hands were numb by this point from the cold and the rain.
And my last photo before clean up! I got a pink packet of color in my bag, if you couldn’t tell!
Now, a few tips if you’re planning on doing The Color Run or any of the other color related runs:
1. Running – If you want to run, get there early. A lot of people walk, so if you want to be able to run without dodging in and out of people, you’ll want to be near the front.
2. Supplies – Bring towels for the car. You will be a mess and probably won’t want that color all over your car. Put your phone in a ziploc bag to protect it. The combination of the color and the rain would not have been good. A few of my photos turned out a little blurry, but most of them turned out okay and it was worth the compromise to not ruin my phone. I brought some wet wipes along, but due to the color already being wet from the rain, I think it set before we got to the car. They didn’t end up being much help, but without the rain, they might have been helpful. You’ll also want some kleenex, enough said!
3. What to wear – Plenty of people wear crazy socks, tutus and other wacky gear. This race is all about the fun, so dress as crazy as you want, just make sure you wear that white t-shirt to truly soak up the color. I have some tips for clean up down below, but just know you probably won’t get the color out of everything you wear, so make sure you don’t wear your favorite things (including shoes) or if you do, that you don’t mind getting them colorful!
4. Headband – Wear the headband in your bag. It was freezing, so I didn’t sweat much but it did rain and I think the headband helped keep the dripping color out of my eyes, especially after the party at the end. I’m sure it would be just as helpful if it’s hot out. I also opted not to wash this, so I have a small keepsake that didn’t get the color washed out.
5. Sunglasses – Again, I think my experience was a little different than normal with the rain. Everything I read said to make sure to wear some sort of glasses to keep the color out of your eyes, but with the rain I don’t think the powder lingered in the air as long. I ran the whole race without wearing mine, but wouldn’t recommend that if it’s a nice sunny day.
6. Keep your mouth shut – Scream and all that jazz, but if you don’t want to taste the gritty powder in your mouth, keep it shut while running through the stations. It’s hard to resist that urge to wahoo, but you’ll be happy when you don’t have a moth full of grit.
7. Embrace the color – I think you could potentially do this run and walk away with not a whole lot of color, but what’s the fun in that? The middle lane is where you get the least amount of color, but I went straight to the edges at each station to get the most color I could. It’s so much fun to act like a kid again and not care about how “dirty” you are getting! Also, don’t expect to get a ton of color during the actual race. I don’t think I had any color on my face until we got to the post-race party. That’s where you really get covered!
8. Clean up – They say the color will eventually come out of everything. I’m sitting here and still have some hints of pink on my face. I read somewhere that blue was the hardest to get out, but I’ve had more trouble with the pink and purple. Take photos, then wash your gear as soon as possible. They say you can preserve your shirt by spraying it with vinegar then ironing it, but I read multiple places that people didn’t have much luck with that, so I took some photos of my shirt front and back, then tossed it in the wash. Expect to find color on everything you’re wearing. The rain probably helped soak everything through, but there wasn’t anything I was wearing without a trace of it somewhere. My shorts and socks got completely clean, but my shirt and other apparel still had traces. My shirt sort of looks like a bad tie dye job at this point. And we won’t even talk about my shoes. They were white and pink to start, but they now have more pink that won’t come off, at least not yet.
Most of all, have fun! I’ve been wanting to do the Color Run for over a year now since the one last year sold out before I could register. It certainly lived up to its expectations and I had so much fun. Being a designer, I stare at color every day and this was such a fun way to experience it differently! It’s like inspiration in a new form! It might be one of those one time experiences so I wanted to make the most of it and truly did, even if the weather did try to dampen our spirits! It’s hard to be bummed when there’s so much color flying at you!
