PRINTGet off track
Walk/run like an Egyptian
Alex Grigsby
Joe and Amy Company pose in their ’80s prom attire at a 2008 prom party sponsored by Off Track Events. This year, you can pull out your bedazzled threads for the road race and ’80s dance party at Mojo’s.
July 15, 2009 | 12:00 p.m. CST
Rocking your best ’80s style is mandatory at The ’80s Run, a righteous two- or four-mile walk or run that will bring back the days of scrunchies and side-ponytails. The event will kick off at Mojo’s on Saturday night in The District.
Mike Denehy, with the help of friends, created Off Track Events to ensure people could participate in sporting events sans competition. For example, The Pedaler’s Jamboree, a two-day bike ride along the Katy Trail, incorporated frequent stops for live music and the occasional beer (or two). The newest event, The ’80s Run, will also have a musical component, as well as a mandatory dress code. Denehy plans to create an ’80s soundtrack that will play throughout the course, which will transport walkers and runners back a couple of decades. “I picked the ’80s because it was such an awkward era,” Denehy says. “Plus, there is so much fun ’80s music out there.”
WHERE: Starts at Mojo’s, 1013 Park Ave.
WHEN: July 18, 8 p.m.
ONLINE: 80srun.com
COST: $25, $15 ages 10-16, free for 9 and younger
Triathlete Jackie Pearce likes that the event will be laid back. “It’s so nice to do a run that’s just for fun, where you don’t have to worry about winning or beating anybody,” Pearce says.
To save participants from the scorching July sun, the run begins at 8 p.m. in front of Mojo’s. The registration fee includes the event’s ’80s-style ringer T-shirt. After the run, participants and spectators can show off their ’80s dance moves and eat free Tiger Stripe ice cream at Mojo’s. There is no cover charge.
Kristy Halverson, an MU doctoral student who plans to wear turquoise legwarmers and a bright pink leopard-print leotard, says that the ’80s theme convinced her to give in to her roommate’s pestering to join her for runs. Halverson is following “The Couch-to-5K Running Plan” from coolrunning.com in preparation. “It sounds like a lot of fun, and it is worth training for,” she says.
Denehy has made sure that even those who aren’t on an exercise plan can participate. Prizes will be given out for best-dressed and best attitude. “I’m not rewarding for speed, but I’m rewarding for creativity,” he says.
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