The Top 10 Fun Runs in America

Who said that running has to be boring, lonely or other unentertaining? We’ve picked out the top ten running events taking place across the nation that are as equally focused on FUN as they are in FIT. Which is how it should be, right?

Nationwide Events

The Spartan Race & Tough Mudder – There are now literally hundreds of companies that put on these grueling, muddy events. We’ve found the Spartan Races and Tough Mudders to be the best organized and most well attended. Nothing is more entertaining than seeing a tough guy get knocked down a notch.

Run for Your Lives – What makes you run faster than competing against others? Running from ZOMBIES. Half the entrants come dressed as zombies and chase you down. It’s as thrilling as it sounds.

Color Run– Equal parts house music festival and jog, entrants run a gauntlet of environmentally friendly paint-throwing. The end result is thousands of happy people colored the rainbow.

Turkey Trot – We’re going to say that this one is national, as most big towns have a turkey trot on Thanksgiving morning. The biggest and most well-known is in Dallas and raises a tremendous amount of money for the YMCA.

Events Worth Traveling For

Bay to Breakers – You’ve seen pictures of this one – your rowdy friends dressed in costume, pushing a keg in a shopping cart past the Full House residence in San Francisco. It’s crazy, it’s fun and everyone should attend.

Peachtree 10K – It’s the biggest 10k in the country and with 60,000+ entrants it’s always going to be a good time. It takes place on July 4 and showcases the nicest parts of Atlanta.

Midnight Run – You could go out on New Years Eve, spend far too much money on mediocre food and drinks, or you could party in style for a few hours in Manhattan’s Central Park and kick off a brisk four-mile run through the park at the stroke of midnight – illuminated by fireworks!!

Asheville Beer Run – What’s a beer run, you may ask. It’s literally that – run a mile, drink a beer, repeat, repeat, repeat. Asheville’s a beer town, so it’s only natural they incorporate beer into a hearty five mile jog.

Krispy Kreme Challenge – “2400 calories, 12 doughnuts, 5 miles, 1 hour.” in Raleigh, NC. This is definitely the least healthy of the events on this list. Run extra fast.

Runyon 5k – Red Sox fans will hate this one. Run 5 miles entirely within the hallows of Yankee Stadium. Finish with an honorary lap of the field’s warning track. Babe Ruth would be proud.

That’s our top ten. Any that you participate in annually? Let us know in the comments below!