A crowd dressed in pink tutus, red high socks and coordinated bride and groom outfits lined up at the start of the 13th Annual Coronado Valentine’s Day 10K, 5K and 1 Mile Fun Run early Sunday morning.
But instead of sounding a horn to send the racers on their way, the announcer who doubled as an ordained minister, the Rev. Matt Starkey, led 50 couples through a mass wedding vow renewal.
A one-mile fun run, 5K and 10K followed the ceremony.
The race was hosted by KOZ Events, a company that specializes in triathlons, multisport events, runs, walks and bike rides. Owners Carrie and Tobias Panek organized every detail to fit the Valentine’s theme.
Activities catered both to couples and single participants, including a costume contest, award ceremony, wedding arch photo booth, live music by the band Mystique and a matchmaking venture.
At registration, racers picked a bib color that corresponded with their relationship status — red if taken, green for those available, and yellow if it was complicated.
One married couple attending the event originally met in 2015 at the same race, both then wearing a green bib. According to Panek, they got engaged at the race a year later, and married at the 2017 event and have continued to come each year.
“I think it’s the people that have fallen in love and then come back to run it year after year together; it’s so touching to me that that happened at my race,” said Panek.
There were 1,577 people registered for the run, according to Jennifer Nanista Stephens, KOZ race director and event manager, and nearly all participated.
Racers started at Tidelands Park in Coronado, looped under the bridge, onto Glorietta Boulevard and finished back in the park. Kids, families, first-timers and seasoned racers participated with appropriate Valentine’s Day spirit.
Christine and Patrick Billman, who have been together for just under 30 years, renewed their vows at the starting line and ran the 10K.
They added Coronado to their list of destination race spots and enjoyed Sunday’s theme of love.
“Every day is Valentine’s Day when you get to hang out with your best buddy,” said Christine Billman.
Running groups like the Jamul Toads also attended the event.
The Toads ran as a conjoined unit: 13 men in their 50s, 60s and 70s ran connected by a mesh cloth resembling a caterpillar.
Michael Lebold, a 65-year-old member of the Toads, said that running with the group is now the most important thing in the world to him.
Team Hoyt San Diego, a non-profit organization that assists the inclusion in sports for disabled young people, had 22 riders at the race.
“A lot of our kids have cerebral palsy, Down syndrome and slow syndromes. Some of our kids can walk. A lot of them are not mobile, so we lend our legs,” said Tania Zamora, president and executive director of Team Hoyt San Diego. “We do anything from 5K’s to full triathlons. Being fast is not necessary, as long as you have fun, do the race and do it with the kids.”
The event concluded with an award ceremony, honoring the first-, second- and third- place finishers of each age group with tiki masks and the winners of the costume contest with wine from Three Hills Winery.
