Ashley Outnumbered

So I've been doing a lot of running over the last year.

Mostly through my neighborhood while pushing my boys in the stroller. They enjoyed the ride, and I quickly got addicted to that so-called "Runner's High."

After finishing the Couch to 5k program, I worked myself through the 5k to 10k bridge program.

And since then I've just been in a limbo of trying to add distance while still trying to maintain a life outside of running. Seriously, those longer runs require quite the time commitment. I eventually want to run a half Marathon, but don't know if I'll actually have the time to train for one before this season of races are over.

My bestie Jenn and her sister Carolyn asked if I wanted to do the Color Run with them. I'd never heard of it, but thought, hey, why not? At least it's some race experience. It was only a 5k, but the biggest selling point is that it's all just for fun. So there was no pressure in having no clue what to do during a race. You just go, have fun, and all the money is donated to a good cause.

So now I can officially say:

And oh my gosh you guys, you should become one too.

Seriously the most fun, no-pressure, all around party experience ever.

So you show up to the race, and you are supposed to dress up in as much white as possible.

In your registration packet your are given one package of color to use during the race.

Before the race starts, there's just a big party. People line up to be sent off in waves while music is blasting and more color packets and other swag is being thrown out to the crowds. Everyone was dancing. I don't dance. Like at all. Seriously. It's hideous. I find it less awkward to be the only one not dancing in a large group of dancers than to actually join in and dance. But darn it if they didn't get me moving even just a little bit with their fun music and energy.

Once you start running the actual race, your run through four different color stations on your way around the track. These color stations have people standing on both sides throwing and squirting colored powder on you. If you run towards the sides, you get more color on you.

In case you didn't know... the more color the better.

At the end of the race, Jenn and I felt like we had a lot of color. At each color station we yelled at the people telling them to cover us. We seriously had a lot.

And then the party at the finish line started, and we realized what having a lot of color really entailed.

Our team started by throwing our color packets on each other.

I'm on the left, Jenn next to me.

That helped, but where we really got color was at the color party that lasted for hours after the race.

People would throw their color packets all over the place, and then every so often the people running the race would call for everyone to throw their color in the air.

Needless to say.... It was rad.

Not even the po-po were immune to the need for color.

Another fun part of the event was the fact that they had professional photographers to capture the color fun of your team. If you pre-bought a photo package for $5 you got unlimited downloads of your pictures. If not, pics were $20 a pop. Ummm...duh. Of course I pre-bought, and I was sooooo happy I did. The photographers were so fun and just kept telling us what poses to do. $5 well spent.