Ringing in Hope Race Recap

On Memorial Day, my husband Rick ran the Ringing in Hope 10k. Ringing in Hope traditionally holds races on Memorial Day and New Year's Eve in Ashburn, and includes a 10k, 5k and a kids' 1k. Rick and I have each run this race a couple of times and Freddy has run the kids' run once. This is the first year the race was held at One Loudoun shopping plaza:

photo taken by Freddy - he thought we might need a map

It was a nice shopping center and fun location for the race. Another change for this year, which was quite welcome, was the introduction of a technical race shirt rather than a cotton one:

The 5k course was an out-and-back (not quite as scenic as the Brambleton 5k course); while the 10k course was a single loop (definitely preferable to the double loop Brambleton 10k course).

We found the whole event to be quite family friendly and Freddy had a great time visiting with the vendors and checking out the sights. The biggest hit of the race for him was the Chick-fil-A Cows. There were five of them and they led the warm-up, ran at least part of the 5k, and danced with the crowd/offered high-fives as the runners came in to the finish line. I can only imagine how warm it was in those costumes - big kudos to those cows!

Leading the warm-up

Freddy was so thrilled to get a picture with a cow!

Dancing cows - a video would have captured it better...

During the race Freddy enjoyed having his face painted with Mike Wazowski from Monsters University, playing with bubbles, and getting a glitter octopus tattoo. He also made a macaroni necklace, won a mini Chick-fil-A cow and played a neat flashing lights/sounds game that is part of the shopping center. So much fun!

Face painting in progress...

...the finished product! 

Playing the light game

Bubbles!!

Octopus glitter tattoo

Making a macaroni necklace with "Macaroni Kid"

We barely made it to the finish line in time for Rick's finish...and even though we made it in time Freddy was so enchanted with the cows handing out high fives to the finishers that we still managed to miss seeing him. Sharon had to come retrieve us and tell us he was already done. Oops!

Freddy cheering for the runners
with his "clapping hands"

Freddy asked us to pose with his new mini cow friend and he took one parting shot of us before we headed home :

Sharon, Rick, & me (and mini cow)

This was a fun, well-organized, very family-friendly race. Kudos to the race organizers and volunteers and to the One Loudoun location!