CUPID'S TRAIL RUN 5K (Owosso - 2021 - 5K)
Cupid's Trail Run 5K 2021 Photos
73.8 Mile Drive
Registration:
I registered for the Cupid’s
Trail Run 5K after my good friend Don emailed me about the run. He was registering for it with his son Evan. I had already run in Owosso at the amazing
Glow 5K in 2019. Cupid’s Run was not a
timed run and had an open start between 10am and 11am. Cupid’s Run registrants received $2.00 off
the Fortitude St. Patrick’s 5K registration.
There was plenty of parking at Fortitude. I love it when registration
pages show images of swag and course routes. The Cupid’s Run had a picture of
their shirt and a great map of each mile in different colors through the
trails. It was a very informational registration page. Packet pick-up included our shirt and magnet
and was quick, easy and cold.
Course:
The course at Fortitude Farms and Events (formally Fortitude Outdoor
Fitness and Venue) was an amazing trail running experience in Owosso. We went over an awesome large wooden bridge. I’m not sure what it was over. It didn’t look like a creek ran underneath,
but it was still cool! There was great
music playing at the mile one sign. At
one point the course had a line of pine trees on the right and a corn field on
the left. It was an awesome picture of
the contrasting landscape. In general
the course was a mixture of dense woods and trails near farmland with constant
hills and very deep snow. Running
through the thick snow on the trails was quite the challenge at times. Sinking feet are hard to pull up in snow. Don said he son was not a fan of the course
terrain. They used upside down buckets
with red X’s on the trail to signal where “not to turn.” It was very well marked and helpful. My phone died at the halfway point of the run
and I was not able to take pictures of some cool things they had out in the
woods. I walked back after I finished to
get the finishing stretch and mile three sign but it was too cold to walk back
through half the course for photos. I
plan to come back in warmer weather and run again to get my missing course
photos. Fortitude has a lot of runs
throughout the year and the course is always the same.
Swag:
We got a white Cupid Fun Run shirt
with red letting and a matching large cut out Cupid Fun Run run magnet. I prefer colored run shirts only because I
tend to get white shirts dirty quicker.
My preference holds nothing against the run. Red and white are great cupid colors.
Food:
Post-run treats included valentine
mini gummy bear packages with only white and red bears. Red and white are my favorite gummy bear
flavors. Sometimes I only eat the white
and red gummy bears. They gave me enough
gummy packs for all five of us. They
also had large bottled water for us. It
was already very cold from sitting outside.
Awards:
This was a fun run with no
awards. The run staff wanted people to come out and enjoy trails and fresh air
in nature. To quote the run, “This event
is NOT TIMED and is all for the LOVE of outdoors.” I thought it was a great motto.
City Notes:
Owosso is a very cool town with
a lot of unique shops and parks. Owosso
has a HUGE downtown! The last time we
were in Owosso we had a jam packed day of nonstop Christmas awesomeness. It was a night I will always remember with
the glow parade, lighting of the tree, horse and carriage ride and santa. We really felt like we were part of the
Owosso community after the Glow Run in 2019.
This time it was a day run in Owosso.
We went to a different part of downtown and got all three boys haircuts
by Karl Manke. His shop was awesome and
he was the nicest man. He was wonderful
with the boys. He gave them suckers
after their haircuts and cracked jokes.
I think Karl could cut hair with his eyes closed. He is an amazing barber. I was so glad to finally meet him. It felt like we were meeting a
celebrity. After we left Karl we found,
“Cupcakes and Kisses Two Chics and a Scoop.”
It was one of the best bakeries I’ve been to in the state. The staff was so friendly and welcoming. There was so much to take in and look
at. The shop was colorful and
wonderfully decorated. They had many
gluten free options for Luke. Our eyes
got the best of us at Cupcakes and Kisses and we left with A LOT! The Hershey kiss cookies were my
favorite. I could have eaten them like
potato chips. We will definitely be
visiting Cupcakes and Kisses anytime we are near Owosso. The same goes for Karl the Barber! We also got my favorite fast food, Chick-Fil-A,
on the way home from Owosso.
City Sign:
When I ran the Glow Run in
Owosso we left very late. We could not
find a city sign in the dark. We passed
the Owosso Fire Department and took a picture next to their sign in
desperation. Night made it hard to get a
good shot but at least I had something.
In returning to Owosso I was able to find a much better city sign right
off West Main Street by the Curwood Castle Park. I was really excited for the sign
upgrade.
I thought the race staff man
dressed up as a heart was AWESOME! He
was at the start and finish cheering people on and spreading “the love.” I also saw a participant dressed up as cupid
with a bow and arrow! It was an amazing
costume.
I had never been to Fortitude
before. I am really glad Don invited me
to this run. I got to see a totally
different part of Owosso. The Glow Run
was street running and Cupid’s 5K was a beautiful trail. Owosso is a great example of what I would
like to do after I complete the city challenge.
I would like to come back to cities I’ve run in and do different running
events in different areas. Cities can be
very big with a lot of ground to cover and different scenery to see. Fortitude has a lot of different things to
do. I saw a buck hanging pole and now I
know people hunt there.
I loved seeing Don and his
family. I got to meet Don’s German
Shepard Axel for the first time. Axel is
huge! He ran with Don out on the snow
sheet course.
The signage at the run was amazing, especially at the
entrance. They had tons of signs
directing us in to park. In addition to
event signs Fortitude had great trail and information signs. It was a a very well informed run that didn’t
leave many asking questions.
Comments
Post a Comment