Max Muscle Vancouver Parade Run/Walk

Tomorrow is the day! Time goes so fast, I feel like we were just talking about doing this event. It was back in the Fall that I approached the Hazel Dell/Salmon Creek Business Association (of which we are a member) about doing a fun run/walk before the parade. Now, it is here.

Alot goes into to putting on an event like this - especially, when it is inconjunction with another event like the 3rd largest parade in the state! There in insurance, permits, route measuring, race bibs, timing, logistics, course set up, volunteers, tshirt design and printing, finishers medals, finish line food and drinks, volunteers, traffic control, goodie bag items, packet pickup, communication with participants, picking a charity, setting a price. The list goes on and on. Things become even more challenging when the start and finish line are at different spots. The first year of any event is also challenging, because you don't know what to expect.

Most of the items needed for an event like this must be ordered weeks in advance. This is where the guessing game starts! You want to have enough tshirts, finishers medals and goodies, but you don't want to have any left over because that is wasted money that could go to the charity.

I waited until the last minute to order shirts and medals, just to get as accurate a count as I could get. This lead to some stress in the last few days. Tshirts showed up a little later than I would have hoped, but we have them in time for the majority of packet pickup.

The medals were custom made and delivered to my house yesterday, only I wasn't there so the mailman didn't leave them. I saw the note on the door that there was a package to be delivered. I immediately jumped in the car and tried to find the mailman so I could get that package, I could not wait until today to have it delivered. That left too much uncertainty! I wanted those medals in my hands. I drove around and drove around and after some help from another mail person realized that I was going to need to go to the main post office to pick them up. So I rushed over there and got them. Here is what they look like - pretty neat, I think!



The weather is going to be so nice tomorrow - in the mid 70s. We should have about 30,000 people at the parade. I really have no idea how many people are going to show up for our event. We have about 50 signed up right now, but anything could happen! We are prepared for whatever happens.

I am on the parade committee and it is a joke amoung us that the parade happens in spite of us. That is how the run/walk will be - its going to happen, in spite of us! All we can do is prepare the best we know how and be flexible on the day of the event so that it can be an enjoyable experience for everyone.

It has been a blast to work with the parade committee and the Sheriff's department on this event. We are so fortunate to be a part of such a great community. This parade is a big deal for little ol' Hazel Dell! We look forward to making this an annual part of the parade.