This morning was the Go!St. Louis Halloween 10K in St. Louis. Any road race that inspires runners to dress in costume is inherently more fun than the average road race, so I was thrilled to run today.

While my own costume (I dressed as a bag of M&Ms) wasn’t terribly creative, there were some elaborate costumes (a guy dressed as Princess Toadstool riding Yoshi, for instance) and some really clever ones (my personal favorite were “Peace & Quiet”; a women dressed as a hippie while her male counterpart was dressed as a mime).

Three women dressed up as a chef, a chicken and an egg. The chicken and the egg chased each other throughout the race. Here’s a photo:

Which Came First?

With a course that began near Chestnut and 15th in downtown St. Louis and meandered through Soulard, the Anheuser Busch Brewery, and back downtown, the run offered nice views of St. Louis icons like the Arch, Soldier’s Memorial, Busch Stadium and Soulard’s beautiful old row houses.

great tshirt!

The weather couldn’t have been more beautiful, bringing nearly 5,000 runners to the race and drawing standers-by out of their homes with warm morning coffee in tow, cheering us on. The race was well-organized and a lot of fun. Costume contests, nice t-shirts, and medals in the shapes of ghosts made the race that much more fun to be a part of.

Ghostly Medal

Interested in running or otherwise taking better care of yourself? Have faith in yourself and stay determined. We all started somewhere, and wellness is a constant journey. Events like this one oftentimes have 1 mile walks or shorter fun runs for runners and walkers.

Running stores and local fitness facilities often have trainers and coaches who can help you figure out where to start, and I’ve found that the community of runners and walkers I’ve found in St. Louis are welcoming and encouraging. If I can do it, you can do it – I have faith.

Finishing the Race Feels Great!

]]> http://smalltowngirlsguide.com/2010/gost-louis-halloween-10k/feed/ 4 http://smalltowngirlsguide.com/2009/halloween-belated/ http://smalltowngirlsguide.com/2009/halloween-belated/#comments Wed, 11 Nov 2009 05:57:26 +0000 MilliGFunk http://smalltowngirlsguide.com/?p=1415 Yeah, yeah, yeah. I know it’s the middle of November, but I love Halloween.

There’s something about dressing up as someone else for the night that makes me feel free. By far, my favorite costume in recent years was the hand-made Wonder Woman costume I made in 2003. I wore it again in 2005. Here it is, with a little photoshopped NYC love (thank @techguerilla!)

Wonder Woman, photo by ?

In 2008, I brought back the black wig and superglued a syringe to my chest as I played the part of Mia Wallace from “Pulp Fiction”.

Mia Wallace

This year I stayed away from movie and cartoon characters and black wigs, opting instead for the traditional happy witch:

Glenda Good Witch, photo by JDP

I hope your Halloween was as fun this year as mine was, and that you aren’t afraid to try on a new character or reinvent yourself once in awhile. Happy belated Halloween!