Redlands Night Lit by Runners, Walkers and Crawlers

On Saturday, Dec. 27 the Redlands Chamber of Commerce hosted their annual Night Light 5K Run. While “5K run” may deter many residents from entering, the chamber emphasized that the goal of the event was to gather together the families, friends and community of Redlands for a night of fun, regardless of whether they decided to run, walk, skip or crawl to the finish line. No special gear or training was needed and children and residents of all ages were invited to join in on the fun and forget about their times. Children who were under the age of six were able to run free with an adult. This is the second time that the Redlands Chamber of Commerce has organized the Night Light Run. Around 400 people from the community came in their blinking, bright and lit-up costumes. “There were so many interesting outfits,” said Kathie Thurston, exective director of the Redlands Chamber of Commerce. “but it is always interesting to see the girls who come in their lit tutus; it looks like a lit up swan lake.” The race started off at Eureka Street in Downtown Redlands, filled with runners adorning their best neon, glow-in-the-dark and battery operated gear and took place alongside the Redlands on Ice skating rink. Participants who registered early for the run were given an official neon Redlands Chamber Night Light Run T-shirt. The Chamber of Commerce is planning to host the event again in 2015, although this time around they may change the date to sometime early in the year - possibly bringing the event to October and adding a handful of zombies to accompany the runners in their night of fun.