Make a Break for it at Bay to Breakers
San Francisco’s annual Bay to Breakers race, will be run on Sunday, May 19th, 2007. Starting near the Embarcadero on the bay side of the city, and ending at Ocean Beach near the breakers, this 12k race is a celebration of the enduring spirit of Bay area residents.
The race was first run in 1912, then called the Cross City Race, was started as a way to lift the spirits of the residents after the devastation of the 1906 San Francisco earthquake and fire. It was originally part of the athletic events planned in preparation for the upcoming Pacific International Exposition, and the first person to cross the finish line did so with a time of 44:10.
Tradition helped carry the race through some lean years, and in 1986, with 110,000 runner it entered the Guinness Book of World Records for the highest participation footrace. That record still holds today, although the race typically attracts runners more in the 70-80,000 range. The course itself is challenging enough to appeal to the serious runner, and beautiful and fun to appeal to everyone else.
New traditions evolved, and many participants now walk the race course behind the runners. Some of the other “new” traditions of Bay to Breakers include:
- Costumes - Some participants have taken to wearing costumes, adding to the party atmosphere. Some costumes make recurring appearances, including a “spawning salmon run,” a team dressed as salmon who run the race in the opposite direction.
- Nude runners - While not a part of the “official” race, groups of nude runners and walkers have been making race appearances for a number of years.
- Centipede Racers - A competition between teams of 13 runners, tethered together in some artistic way. The team captain runs along side the centipede (untethered) and paces the team. It’s fun and silly, but still quite competitive.
- Footstock - The Bay to Breakers variant of Woodstock, where weary runners can enjoy a performance by a nationally known act.
- Tortilla Toss - Before the race starts, tortillas are thrown into the crowd (like Frisbees).
The current course record is held by Ismael Kirui of Kenya, with a time of 33:42.
Registration is still open, so you can still sign up. Fees are $44 for adults, and $39 for children. Full details are available here.
If you’ll be in San Francisco you may want to check here for information about traffic re-routes and street closures.
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