Event organizers are constantly looking for new ways to reinvent the wheel. The Color Run Shine Tour is one such endeavor.
Beginning at 9 a.m. Saturday in downtown Little Rock, participants will take this 5K course as if by storm … if that storm consisted of showers from multicolored clouds.
For those unfamiliar with the race, it boils down to a not very competitive 5K fun run with the addition of colored powders (made of cornstarch, baking soda and food coloring) that douse the runners along the way.
Pro-tip: While organizers state that the powder is nontoxic and perfectly safe, it tastes like chalk and is pretty awful if you manage to get it in your mouth. Bandannas make a good face mask to filter the powder out and allow you to breathe without inhaling the stuff.
The difference between this race and Color Runs of the past is the reference to this being the “Shine Tour.” Gina Marchese Pharis of Little Rock Parks and Recreation, nonprofit partner for the Little Rock Color Run, confirmed this writer’s suspicion that the “shine” involves copious amounts of glitter.
On a related note, there will be air-blown cleaning at the finish line, but experience suggests that having a towel to keep your car seats from being bedazzled on the drive home is advisable.
The website does not say when the registration deadline is, but potential runners are encouraged to sign up sooner rather than later as the event could sell out at any time. Runners can sign up as a team of four for $45 per person, and a single registration costs $49.50. There is an option for children 5 and under to run for free, but it will cost $15 if the little tyke wants a Color Run swag bag.
Swag bags include race bibs, event T-shirt, a gold foil tattoo, a woven shimmer headband, small packets of the “shine” and colored cornstarch, and a finishers medal.
Packet pickup will take place from 9:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Friday at the west Little Rock Kohl’s, 13909 Chenal Parkway. Race-day packet pickup will be available beginning at 6:30 a.m. Saturday at the River Market, 400 President Clinton Ave. For any who are interested and able, volunteering to help run the Kohl’s packet pickup station brings free race registration. Visit the website for more details about volunteering.
Although this race is untimed, the 9 a.m. wave is reserved for those who can’t turn off their competitive urges and wish to speed through the course. Those who prefer to enjoy a more leisurely pace will start the course in waves beginning at 9:15.
For registration and more information, visit thecolorrun.com/littlerock.
— Conley Byrd III
Tour duh Sunken Lands
Miles of farmland and open sky can make the rich veins of Arkansas history that run deep in the Delta hard to see. The Tour duh Sunken Lands brings some of this history to the surface in its annual bicycle ride.
The 52-mile tour will begin at 10 a.m. Saturday at the Southern Tenant Farmers Museum, 117 N. Main St. in Tyronza, and will include stops at six historic and geological sites.
The first stop comes about Mile 10, Whitton Farms on Arkansas 118. There is no tour at this stop, but owners Keith and Jill Forrester invite riders to take a look around the farm that supplies Tyboogie’s Cafe with its fresh fare. The second stop is Historic Dyess Colony in Dyess, where riders can also tour the late Johnny Cash’s boyhood home. The fourth stop is at the Rivervale Tunnel, a 1920s flood-control project in Poinsett County where a large concrete culvert channels water under the river it used to drain into. This big ditch is on the National Register of Historic Places.
The fifth stop is in Lepanto at the Painted House, a house used as a set in the Hallmark movie based on John Grisham’s novel A Painted House. It marks about the halfway point, where riders can warm up with soup that will be passed out by organizers. The sixth stop is at the Marked Tree Delta Area Museum, which houses a replica of an old hospital and 13th-century Indian pottery.
Riders will finish back at the Southern Tenant Farmers Museum.
Post-race activities include a meal at Tyboogie’s, 197 Main St., Tyronza. Registration includes a T-shirt and a meal ticket, which can be picked up when you register or after the ride at the farmers museum. Riders can drive to Tyboogie’s, but they are welcome to bike.
Registration can be placed online at sunkenlands.com for $50 or from 9 to 10 a.m. at the Farmers Museum on tour day.
For more information, visit the website or call (870) 487-2909.
— Brice G. Ward
Fayetteville Half Marathon
The Fayetteville Half Marathon kicks off at 8 a.m. Sunday, followed by the 5K at 8:20 and the 1 Mile Fun Run at 8:25.
All three courses start and end at the Softball/Marina Complex at 1153 Lake Fayetteville Road, Springdale. The half marathon consists of one loop of the Lake Fayetteville trail system and surrounding areas. The 5K and the 1 Mile Fun Run will be out-and-back style on the paved trails.
Racers will be chip-timed; the half marathon has a 3 1/2-hour time limit and awards will be given to the top three placers by age category.
The half marathon costs $80, the 5K is $25 and the fun run is $10. T-shirts are available for $10 or $15 depending on the type. Registration may be done online until 6 p.m. Friday.
Packet pickup and on-site registration (if space is available) will be 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday at the Health and Fitness Expo at The Chancellor Hotel, 70 N. East Ave., Fayetteville. Participants who cannot attend the expo may have their packet picked up by a representative with a signed copy of their confirmation.
There will be no race-day registration or packet pickup.
The Chancellor and The Baymont Inn, also in Fayetteville, are offering special rates for race participants.
For registration and more information, visit fayettevillehalfmarathon.com.
— Conley Byrd III
ActiveStyle on 11/02/2015