I had seen all the photos before, so I kind of knew what to expect. But actually doing The Color Run is much different than watching it online. We are lucky here in Denver to have so much sunshine, and there was an abundance of it on race day, which made the colored powder even more vibrant. While their web site doesn’t specifically state this, it is pretty well known that this tradition of tossing chalky colors in the air is borrowed from the Hindu festival of Holi, which seems like a wonderful way to celebrate the arrival of Spring.

We had a bit of a wait to start the run, including some bizarre weaving of the crowd through parked cars, but once we got going the crowd thinned out and there was plenty of room for everyone. I loved how organized The Color Run was with their Race Guide, but my only suggestion (for the whole thing, really) would be to stage the starts. 8am for runners, 9am for walkers and families with strollers. Otherwise, everything was incredibly fun and a breeze!

PINK

YELLOW

BLUE

PURPLE

FINISH

As you can see, if you are in the middle of the chalk, if can get all over you, in your throat and in your eyes. But, please note, the Color Run volunteers were aiming for everyone’s mid sections and I *told* them to shoot straight into my (waterproof) camera. Yup, most of these pics were taken on my old Kodak Playsport, with a few on my Lumia – but I left my DSLR at home. I really wanted to be in the middle of it with my family (and Dex’s friend Marina).

Mission accomplished.