Vesta Color Run
On September 26th the Local SLT at Vesta hosted a Color Run during the secondary Physical Education periods. At 8:30 in the morning the 3 SLT members arrive at the Redwood County Historical Society Museum parking lot. They exit their vehicles with many assorted supplies. For weeks they have been planning routes, lining up volunteers and ordering supplies.
After brief greetings, they shiver and begin walking the route with an ice cream pail of assorted sidewalk chalk. They mark the route with colorful shapes, quotes and meaningful lyrics. They finally arrive at the proposed destination with scraped and chalk covered hands, only to find out that there is a preschool class walking the curbs. This poses a huge problem because now they do not have access to the select few outlets which they had planned on using to power the popcorn machine. They discuss a plan of action and then hike back up to their vehicles at the starting point.
Once they arrive, a member pulls 2 boxes out of a vehicle. They notice that a worker has begun his day repairing some brick on the museum but they do not confront him. They then open the boxes to see 8 different 5 pound bags of 4 brilliant colors. The bags are opened and they begin to feel and toss the Holi powder on the tailgate of a SLT members pickup which is known by the name of Ed. Suddenly a member shrieks in agony as powder is shoved into her mouth. Don't worry though this is not an act of malice amongst the local SLT. It is just an innocent attempt to apply the powder to her face to see if it really worked. There is then a series of photographs captured as the member with the orange face spews colorful saliva, laughs and expresses her agony. She then grabs a handful and returns the favor to the member which had previously painted her.
The feud ends there though, and the members are set at equality and peace. They then just throw the powder at clothing and not faces just to experiment with how much to throw and how to throw it. Once these minute details are worked out they experiment with the idea of a group color throw at the finish. They stand in the soybean field and toss Dixie cups of powder into the air. A conclusion is made that this is the best option. Suddenly they are confronted by the museum repair worker who asks what they are up to. They explain their case and the cause and he is satisfied. He leaves and they begin filling condiments bottles and cups with color while another member blows up multi colored balloons in the back of a member's small vehicle. There is happiness in the air as two of the three members work with the powder but the 3rd member is struggling to keep the balloons in the back of the very small trunk which also has many tables in it.
Several balloons make a dash for it and get away only to be self-destroyed. Others make their way into the soybean field only to be entangled. This problem is just put up with and he continues to shove more balloons into the trunk of the small vehicle. They soon are finished with this portion of the day. They begin to attach the balloons and string the ribbon at the start of the race. Once finished with that task they race off to the local Subway for some nourishment. They are interpreted as strange by the general public of Subway. They are only questioned briefly though, much to their relief. The prosecutors are easily subdued by explaining their cause. They then load into the small vehicle and begin to chow down on subs and a cup of meatballs. They then proceed through the park to setup tables at the four color stations along the run. Once finished they know that they must race back to the starting point because volunteers will be arriving momentarily. Once they arrive the volunteers show up soon. They are assigned tasks and given supplies such as color powder, and water bottles. The volunteers race off to their positions and the van loads of students in white t-shirts arrive within minutes. They assemble to pay their entry fee of $15 and drink water. Some question where the promised white flat brim caps are. They are subdued with an explanation from an SLT member that they did not ship in time for the event, but they will be given out after the event with unauthentic powder on them.
They then proceed to the start of the race, while the last of the volunteers speed off to their positions. The photographers get into position and housekeeping rules are gone over. The run is then started by an SLT member. The students tear off in search of color station number 1. In the haste to takeoff one twin is tripped and suffers only minor injuries to the left knee. The students arrive at the stations in a matter of seconds. They are pasted with various colors as they run. Many do not follow all of the chalk markings and entirely miss up to two stations a piece. The fittest arrive at the finish in just minutes with little powder on them. Some stations are not even ready by the time that these speedy runners go past. The volunteers then abandon tables once the runners are past. They follow the pack with their surplus of powder. Once all of the runners have arrived at the finishing point there is a monstrous flurry of powder throughout the region. Students get powder liberally applied absolutely everywhere. This flurry continues as long as they have access to the colorful powder. This is all done in good fun though.
All parents and volunteers just watch in a state of good humored shock as the students get bombarded by powder from every angle. The students then group together in a grassy area with the Dixie cups of assorted colors. Spectators gather around with cameras poised. The signal is then given and all students launch their powder into the thin air above their heads. Cameras click snap and sputter for as long as the students and powder persist. Once the color powder itinerary is met there is just a massive free for all with all of the excess powder. Many get an experience very similar to the one described earlier. They get it up noses, in ears, and down throats. This is all fine though because the website said that it was non-toxic. Finally, the stores of powder have been exhausted. The air slowly clears and the parents, volunteers and students head home looking colorful. The event is finished, although the story lives on. For days afterwards students remove various colors from the deep interiors of their ears and have various colored snot and saliva. Several days later colorful flat brims are distributed as memoirs at the local morning announcements.
In conclusion, I think that it was a very fun and colorful event enjoyed by all.