The Tribune

FREEPORT – The 242 Colour Run held its first Freeport event on Sunday, December 8. The beautiful Sunday morning weather at the Garden of The Groves brought over 90 persons, including dozens of children, to participate in the three-mile course.

The weekend festivities began on Friday with participants picking up their race packets at Playtime Sports, where they also received a discount on purchases and could register if they hadn’t done so already.

Inside the race bags were a 242 Colour Run shirt, a packet of colour powder, funky sunglasses, giveaways by McVities Go-Ahead, Ensueno Fabric Softener, Biore and Jergens, temporary tattoos, and a race bib. Packet pickup continued on Saturday at the Garden of the Groves.

Sunday morning started early with a volunteers meeting, where various Rotary Clubs in Freeport were represented, including The Sunrise Club, The Lucaya Club, the Freeport Club, and the Sunset Club’s Community Corps.

Also joining them, and almost outnumbering them, was the Rotaract Club of Freeport.

The volunteers manned colour stations throughout the course, handed out water, and directed the colour runners and walkers along the way.

The Rotary Club of Sunrise was the main beneficiary of the event, with funds going towards their programme to install cats-eyes along the dark roads of Grand Bahama.

The fun race was introduced by the race director with only one rule – to smile and have fun. The three mile course was not timed, and no winners or finish places were recorded. The colour-toss started off the event, where participants doused each other in a rainbow influenced burst of colour.

The colour used is a cornstarch-based, FDA approved non-toxic colour powder, and it’s so much fun.

After the colour-toss, the racers started on their journey, immediately passing the first colour station, where Key Lime Green covered all who passed by.

The other colours on the course were Flamingo Pink, Bahamian Yellow, and Sun Burnt Orange. The final colour station as the participants finished was Flash Caribbean Breeze Blue, aptly named for the principal sponsor, Flash Multicleaner.

As the participants finished and the atmosphere grew increasingly lively, the final colour-station become inundated with help from children, Rotarians, and racers alike.

The colourful powders coated everyone as they passed through, leaving smiles and laughter echoing throughout the Garden of The Groves.

After the race, the excitement continued as presenting sponsor Senor Frogs provided two free lunch coupons for two to either their Freeport or Nassau locations.

The names were drawn at random and presented to the winners on site. The party continued as the Garden of the Groves played host with breakfast specials and Sands Beer provided post-race refreshments for the adults.

Overall, the race was deemed a success. While the number of participants were lower than expected, the overall enthusiasm going forward for the next Freeport event was great. Runners, volunteers, sponsors and participants all expressed great interest in hosting the event again in 2014.

The race was organised by Lee McCoy, of Nassau, assisted by Chrystonia Robertson and Tangerine Curry-Dinnick. This was the second event in the 242 Colour Run series, which aims to bring the family friendly event to communities throughout the Bahamas.

As a member of the Rotary Club of East Nassau, Mr McCoy designed the series to work with local Rotary Clubs on various islands.