Running a half marathon in animal onesies was a new challenge for Shanna Blizzard and Lindsay Thompson.
Blizzard and Thompson were two of the 550-plus people running in the Healthy Smiles Halloween Half Marathon, the final race in the 2018 Run Red Deer Race Series, at Bower Ponds Saturday morning.
The two try to participate in at least a couple runs every year, but this was the first time they ran a race while wearing costumes.
“We haven’t practised in these (outfits), so we’ll see how it goes,” said Thompson.
“It’s a little warmer, which is nice,” Blizzard added.
Thompson said the costumes make the run more fun.
“As it’s getting colder we wanted to somewhere to train … and we thought this would be a good place because it’s kind of silly and ridiculous – in a good way,” Thompson said.
Tricia Kawahara, one of two race organizers, said the Run Red Deer Race Series, which features three races and is in its second year, is “super cheap and for anyone.”
“There are serious runners … and there are lots of families out here who are dressing up and having fun. It definitely creates a fun atmosphere when people dress up,” Kawahara said Saturday.
Kawahara, who organized the race alongside Christine Caddell, said she was happy to see so many people running in the Halloween Half Marathon, which featured 5K, 10K and half marathon runs.
“We’ve had over 350 sign up for the series, so at each race we had over 350 people. Some people did individual races as well, so it’s been a great second year for the series,” she said.
There are a lot of runners in Red Deer, she added.
“We like to work with the running community and give them opportunities to come out multiple times a year. It’s a great community,” said Kawahara.
A percentage of registration money will go towards The Mustard Seed’s school lunch program.
“They’re doing great things by delivering food to children who don’t have lunches,” Kawahara said.
Scott Tilbury, fund development officer with Mustard Seed, said fundraising events, like the half marathon, are important for The Mustard Seed.
“Having the community working together towards a common goal is the best,” Tilbury said. “We serve over 54,000 lunches every year and we need this support – we get no funding from the government for our school lunch program.”
sean.mcintosh@reddeeradvocate.com
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