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HomeEventsRunners get their plaid on during NW Kilted Run at Ballinger Park

Runners get their plaid on during NW Kilted Run at Ballinger Park

By
David Carlos

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A total of 40 participated in the Kilted Run Saturday at Ballinger Park. (Photos by David Carlos)

The First Annual Northwest Kilted Run was held Saturday at Ballinger Park Play Field. The skies were patches of blue amongst the clouds, the temperature was in the low 60s, and the grass just as green as a Scottish glen.

Organizers said that 40 participants signed up for this 5k run, a fundraiser for the Northwest Junior Pipe Band. Many were clad in smart tartan kilts, while others opted for more conventional jogging attire. And although the event’s Facebook page said humorously, “blue face paint is optional,” I saw no one made up to look like Sir William Wallace.

The event was a fundraiser for the Northwest Junior Pipe Band.

Do you have to have a kilt to run? Organizer Tamarah pointed to her garb and said, “I have a towel kilt on. No, we’ve got people with plaid pants. You could do a kilted plaid-looking tutu. Anything works.”

Are kilts more aerodynamic to run in? Tamarah laughed and said, “I think you get a nice breeze.”

Plaid was the attire of the day.
Trying his hand at the Welly Toss.

A popular game at the event was the “Welly Toss.” Imagine doing a shot put, but with a yellow rubber boot (also called a Wellington boot). The person who hurls a boot the farthest is the winner. It doesn’t matter where the boot lands. It’s where the boot eventually rolls and stops that counts. Participants threw anywhere from 30 feet to just over 70 feet.

Event sponsors included Datdental, Celtic Arts Foundation and Cascadia Band.

Everyone looked like they were having fun. As the Scottish saying goes: “They were full of the joys.”

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