I had some apprehension about running at night along side a bunch of crazies with LEDs and glow sticks, but overall I’d say it was a pretty darn good time. The old statement that you can’t be something for everybody is true. Fun runs are all the craze now and the mix of a run with extras is always risky. If you are a serious runner, you should probably steer clear of any run that involves LEDs, water-parks, colored powder, or mud. You already know that your time will be impeded and there is probably going to be a bunch of ladies trying to run with double-wide strollers.
There wasn’t a bunch of pictures on the website to go by so I used my brain and read the text. Their statement is quite clear “The Electric Run is a 5k run, a show, participation art, and celebration of life. ” and “Participants will join in the show by lighting up with glow sticks”. Anyone with a brain who as ever used a glow stick should know that glow-sticks are thin disposable sticks of plastic and the put together by tiny crappy connectors. It’s not a hard stretch to the imagination that these little sticks would break loose when running and be all over the ground. It’s not hard to think that trying to run in the dark with little pieces of plastic might pose a running risk. The run was held at night, so no surprise that they weren’t able to light the entire way. The FAQ page was pretty clear that “There will be only a few sections that do not have any lighting elements and these sections will be very short.”
Nobody has control over the weather, so you really shouldn’t belly ache about a puddle or two or four or nine.
The race started late and that was a bummer. I think due to the organizers trying to get extra photo shots of Carmen Electra. May she arrived late, I don’t know, but that was dumb and could have been avoided.
The course was good but someone should have thought of a way to avoid the areas of the fairgrounds that had mud. (One area smelled like horse doodie)
The biggest disappointment was the last 500 feet which I had expected would have been bathed in colors and projections like the ones I saw on the walls of the first two or three turns. Where was the “Tunnels with dancing patterns and figures on the walls, ceilings, and floors” and “Entire buildings lit so brightly that they can be seen from space” ? The finish was a bit of a let down.
The Southern Comfort drinks at the end was a nice treat and the free goodies and dancing was fun as well.
I think the majority of the crowd was happy to be out in the night for some good fun.
Overall it gets a B. It was dubbed a “Fun Run” and it was fun.