Eric Hartmark, 2018 Pumpkin Run Overall Winner
It’s time to lace up your running shoes and register for northern Minnesota’s oldest Halloween-themed race, albeit with a new twist for 2020!
Fond du Lac Tribal and Community College is presenting the 15th annual Pumpkin Run & Walk 5K in a virtual format from October 15 through November 1. There is no in-person event on campus this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic and restrictions.
“The Pumpkin Run & Walk was headed toward being canceled during 2020 due to the current COVID-19 pandemic, but in late September people starting asking about it and sending messages that they would still enter an alternative format race so we pulled together a virtual event on short notice to keep the spirit of the Pumpkin Run alive and well,” said Tom Urbanski, director of public information at Fond du Lac Tribal and Community College, and who also serves as race director of the Pumpkin Run. “It would have been a sad day to announce no Pumpkin Run this year, so creating the virtual format was the best option. We’ll miss seeing everyone on campus and on the course as we have been doing for 14 years.”
The 2020 Pumpkin Run & Walk will be very different from previous events, with no actual race day or in-person event. All registration is being done online and participants who opt to receive a commemorative Pumpkin Run t-shirt will receive it in the mail. There will be no need to visit campus to register or to complete the usual 2020 Pumpkin Run & Walk course.
Online registration closes at midnight on Sunday, October 25. The virtual event is open to runners and walkers of all ages and abilities. Registered participants complete a five-kilometer course of their own choice between October 15 through November 1. No overall, age-group or best costume awards will be handed out this year, although participants will be encouraged to submit individual results online to be included in the official results record for 2020.
The Pumpkin Run & Walk offers two levels of registration for this year’s virtual event. The Free Registration Option is a no-cost, no-shirt, no-frills way to participate. Participants who select the Free Registration Option will receive coupons and special offers from local running goods stores in the mail or via email and will be entered into a drawing for random prizes.
Participants who select the “Buy-a-Shirt” Registration Option will receive a long-sleeve, technical fabric Pumpkin Run shirt for a $17.50 registration fee, plus a $2.43 processing fee ($19.93 total cost). Participants who register for the “Buy-a-Shirt” Option will receive their shirts in the mail. Urbanski explained the goal is to mail the shirts out around October 28-29 if everything goes as planned. Participants who select the “Buy-a-Shirt” Registration Option will also receive coupons and special offers from local running goods stores in the mail or via email and will be entered into a drawing for random prizes.
Online registration is available through Tempo Tickets by clicking here for the link.
For more information visit the Pumpkin Run & Walk page on the college web site here.