I was out for almost two weeks for a business trip to San Francisco. I’ve loads of experiences I’m excited to write about here on my blog. For now I’ll start with the Bay to Breakers Run which is marketed as the oldest consecutively run footrace in the world (since 1912).

My cousin booked us a one-night stay at Hilton (we haven’t seen each other in five years). He told me it’s a race where people dress up. Luckily I borrowed a Power Rangers-LOOKING suit from a colleague (thanks Shawn!).

Several firsts:

• First race in San Francisco (also: first in California, first in the USA)
• First time to race while wearing a costume
• First time to race in sub-18 degree C weather. All my races to date are in Southeast Asia with temps above 27-degrees C.

I picked out Corral C which is a more conservative time. I was thinking I wouldn’t be finishing the race at a competitive pace since I wanted to take this opportunity to use the race as a way to experience San Francisco by foot.

 

The route

The route passes by the company’s San Francisco office. This was the first time I was seeing the office so YES… i did stop right in front of it.

 

True enough people were in costumes. There were all sorts of traditions like throwing tortillas. Some people were running naked. In this weather? The route took you through neighbourhoods where people were outside their homes having picnics and watching the racers pass by. I spotted people in windows looking out. It had a strong community vibe. Some racers were doing it backwards (it’s also a tradition, apparently).

 

Oh, and I added a few more dollars to race an additional stretch for an additional medal.

It was a great first day in San Francisco. We were blessed (yes I’ll use that word) to have great weather that morning. Because the previous days were dark and stormy.

Can’t thank my cousin enough for telling me about this race and for being such an amazing host during my first weekend in SF.