Will Run For A Medal: Glow in the Park

Saturday, July 12, 2014

Glow in the Park - St. Louis Race Recap

Tonight the boyfriend and I ran the Glow in the Park 5K at Queeny Park. I purchased his entry for him as one of his birthday gifts, and we had been looking forward to the race all week! We ate dinner before going to packet pick-up, which ran from 6:30 - 8:20 p.m. At packet pick-up we received our gender-specific shirts, glow sticks, glow paint, a protein drink, and little lights that I saw most people put on their shoes. Picking up our packet was a breeze. The porta-potties were right in the parking lot and parking was literally right at the starting line.

Glow in the Park SWAG

After we applied our glow paint and had our glow sticks ready, all we had to do was wait until the sun set. Music was playing at the start line and the DJ played several songs that encouraged us to dance as a warm up. This was a very family-friendly race and I saw a good mix of families with children, groups of young adults, and couples.

Paint applied, just waiting for the sun to set

We were released in waves since the 5K was actually two laps around the park. The course was marked with glow foam sticks and it was very easy to navigate. The first "station" included a black light area where volunteers sprayed you with water guns. We passed through this station quickly, but it looked like there was something in the water to make it glow. The next station was colored powder, followed by a foam station, another colored powder station, and another station with water guns.

Start Line

After we made it around the course, we listened to music for a bit and made sure to take a picture in the black light tent. I enjoyed this race and it was apparent that the boyfriend did too! The course was paved, had multiple hills with great views (especially with the full moon tonight), was well-managed (police were on site for assistance), and the looped course made it easier for the volunteers to manage the crowd. This was my first glow run, so I didn't know what to expect, especially on the hottest day of the year so far but I definitely would recommend participating one.