Bay to Breakers

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Bay to Breakers
2010 05 16 Bay 2 Breakers pink gorilla.jpg
Participants in the 2010 race
Date Third Sunday in May
Location San Francisco
Event type Road
Distance 12 km
Established 1912
Course records Men: 33:31 (2009)
Sammy Kitwara
Women: 38:07 (2010)
Lineth Chepkurui
Official site http://www.baytobreakers.com/

The Bay to Breakers is an annual footrace which takes place in San Francisco, California on the third Sunday of May. The name reflects the fact that the race starts at the northeast end of the downtown area a few blocks from The Embarcadero (adjacent to San Francisco Bay) and runs west through the city to finish at the Great Highway (adjacent to the Pacific coast, where breakers crash onto Ocean Beach). The complete course is 7.46 miles (12.01 km) long.[1] The event is well known for many participants wearing costumes, and a few engaging in varying degrees of public nudity.[2][3] The event was officially the world's largest footrace from 1986 (with 110,000 participants) until it was surpassed in 2010.[4][5]

Contents

History [edit]

Newspaper account of the first race in 1912

Robert J. Vlught, a student at St. Mary's College and newspaper copy-boy, won the first annual Cross-City Race on January 1, 1912 in a time of 44:10.[4][6][nb 1] In 1965, the name of the race was changed to Bay to Breakers by Examiner sports journalist, Walt Daley, who coined the phrase.[7][8][9]

Started as a way to lift the city's spirits after the disastrous 1906 San Francisco earthquake, it is the longest consecutively run footrace in the world (other races' courses and lengths have changed over time).[citation needed] During World War II participation sometimes slipped below 50 registrants, but the tradition carried on. With 110,000 participants, the Bay to Breakers race held on May 18, 1986 was recognized by the Guinness Book of World Records as the world's largest footrace.[4] That record number was partly the product of the running boom of the 1980s; currently the average participation is between 70,000 and 80,000. Race organizers estimated a field of 60,000 participants in 2008, 33,000 of whom were registered.[10] The San Francisco Examiner publishes a list of the first 10,000 finishers the day after the race each year.

Large numbers of participants walk the route behind the runners. Some participants dress in elaborate costumes or wear nothing at all (except footwear), thus lending a party atmosphere to the event. One festive tradition is the tortilla toss, during which crowds of runners waiting to cross the start line throw tortillas at one another to pass time (similar to balloon-batting at rock concerts).


Some come to run seriously, others to party
House parties are present along the course.

Other oddities are always on the scene, including traditional characters such as Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, and Spider-Man, as well as other unique characters spawned for the race. At least 40 pairs of Blues Brothers participated in the 1985 edition.[11] Every year, some runners dressed as salmon run "upstream" from the breakers to the Bay.[12][13]

The route is typically dotted with various local bands performing. At the end of the race is "Footstock," a gathering where participants and spectators can enjoy musical performances by various musical acts.

In February 2009, city officials and race sponsors announced major changes to the race regulations. The regulations included an official ban on floats, alcohol, drunkenness and nudity.[14] The changes were made to assuage the concerns of San Francisco residents along the parade route, who say the race has gotten out of hand in recent years.[15] The news sparked outrage amongst many Bay Area residents who said the changes would destroy everything that has made the race a national treasure for most of the last century.[14] On February 27, 2009, city officials and race organizers announced that they were lifting many of the restrictions.[16] In particular, floats will now be allowed as long as they are registered, and nudity is not mentioned anywhere in the new restrictions. Although the bans on alcohol and drunkenness technically remain in effect, all "zero tolerance" language has been removed.[17] However, the 2013 rules now prohibit floats, wagons, grocery carts, roller blades, skateboards, bicycles, unicycles and any other wheeled objects, as well as alcohol.[18]

Organization and sponsorship [edit]

The Bay to Breakers is organized by the Philip Anschutz-owned Anschutz Entertainment Group.[19]

Anschutz also owns The San Francisco Examiner, which assumed sponsorship of the race in 1966.[20] From 2003 to 2005, Albertsons was the event's main sponsor. The ING Group was the primary sponsor for the Bay to Breakers from 2006 to 2010.[19] On May 26, 2010, spokesmen for the Bay to Breakers and ING confirmed that ING chose not to renew their sponsorship for the 100th edition of the race in 2011.[19]

On March 18, 2011, race organizers announced Zazzle, a Bay Area-based e-commerce company manufacturing custom user-generated products, as the title sponsor for the event's 2011 centennial running, as well as for the 101st running in 2012.

The May 19, 2013 race is "presented by" Craigslist, with nine "official partners" and 11 "official supporting partners and media partners."[21]

Bandits [edit]

The Bay to Breakers is known for the large number of unregistered runners, or "bandits", who participate in the race. Ross Mirkarimi, a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, reported that over half of the 60,000 participants in the 2010 Bay to Breakers were unregistered.[19] San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom was among the runners in 2010 who did not pay the registration fee to obtain a race number.[19][22]

Registered participation was 24,430 in 2010,[23] 43,954 in 2011,[24] 23,072 for 2012,[25], and approximately 20,000 for 2013.[26]

Centipedes [edit]

The LinkedIn Team who won the 2010 Centipede competitions.

While the founding of the "centipede" is commonly attributed to Dwayne "Peanut" Harms, who was an original member of the first-ever "Pede" and a member of the UC Davis men's track team, ("Aggies"),[4] in 1978, Douglas L. Peck, also an Aggie runner, founded a special division of the race in which 13 runners are connected as a unit entitled "centipedes". Peck also ran as "Head Pede," i.e., he was the leader of the centipede.[27] An additional runner, a floater, usually the team captain, is allowed to run along untethered to pace the team or substitute for a drop out runner. Despite the novelty, the centipede race is very competitive. The Men's Centipede winner's time in 2008 was faster than the Women's course record. Bay to Breakers is the official site of the World Centipede Running Championships.[4]

Course [edit]

The Bay to Breakers is held on a USA Track & Field certified point-to-point course.[28] USATF notes that the course is "wind dependent", therefore, a USA Track & Field record can only be set when it can be shown that there is no significant tailwind.[29]

The initial course started at the Ferry Building along Market Street to Golden Gate Avenue before turning onto Divisadero Street.[6] In 1968, the start was moved from Market Street to Howard Street and the ascension to Divisadero moved to Hayes Street.[30] In 1983, the course was shortened from 7.51 miles to an official 12K (7.46 miles).[4] The current course turns west along Hayes Street and up Hayes Street Hill near Alamo Square. This is the only major incline in the race. After the hill, the race runs along the panhandle and then west through Golden Gate Park, past the Conservatory of Flowers, all the way to the Great Highway and Ocean Beach. The 2013 edition of the race will feature a new end route and finish line position. When runners first see the windmills, the course heads towards Lincoln Way and then on to the Great Highway, ending more towards Fulton Street. The old finish line route was in the reversed description. The Great Highway will also host Footstock, a post race recovery and reunion area. In years past, Footstock was held at the Polo Fields in Golden Gate Park. The 2013 Footstock will feature food trucks.

The Bay to Breakers' former course

"World records" [edit]

Race organizers and media have reported that the course records set by Sammy Kitwara in 2009 and Lineth Chepkurui in 2010 are also world records at the 12 km distance;[31] however, the International Association of Athletics Federations, the international governing body for the sport of athletics/track and field, does not recognize world records or world bests in either an indoor or outdoor 12 km.[32] The Association of Road Racing Statisticians, a non-regulatory group that collects road running data, does recognize world records in the outdoor 12 km provided that the race course meets certain criteria.[33][34] In order to rule-out the possibility of wind assistance in point-to-point courses, the ARRS stipulates that the course must have "not more than 30% of the race distance separation between that start and finish", or 3.6 km for a 12 km race.[34] Given that the Bay to Breakers is run on a point-to-point course in which the start and finish of the event are approximately 10.5 linear kilometers apart, the ARRS recognizes two other marks as 12 km world records: Kenyan Simon Kigen's 33:46 in Portland, Oregon on May 19, 1985 and Chepkurui's 38:10 at the 2010 Lilac Bloomsday Run.[33][nb 2]

Individual winners [edit]

       = Course record

Date Men's Winner Country Time Women's Winner Country Time
January 1, 1912 Bobby Vlught USA 44:10
January 1, 1913 Bobby Vlught USA 40:59
January 1, 1914 Oliver Millard USA 40:46.6
January 1, 1915 Oliver Millard USA 41:39
January 1, 1916 George Wyckoff USA 42:33
January 1, 1917 Oliver Millard USA 41:29.6
January 1, 1918 Edgar Stout USA 42:41
January 1, 1919 Harry Ludwig USA 42:45.4
January 1, 1920 William Churchill USA 40:56.6
January 1, 1921 Charles Hunter USA 40:27.6
January 1, 1922 William Churchill USA 42:56
January 1, 1923 William Churchill USA 41:56
January 1, 1924 William Churchill USA 41:52
January 1, 1925 Vincenzo Goso USA 42:59.6
January 1, 1926 Frank Eames USA 42:13
January 1, 1927 Frank Eames USA 42:55.8
January 29, 1928 Pietro Giordanengo USA 43:05
January 27, 1929 Pietro Giodanengo USA 43:05
February 2, 1930 Manuel John USA 43:10
February 1, 1931 Jack Keegan USA 44:28
February 7, 1932 Ray Cocking USA 43:19
February 5, 1933 Jack Keegan USA 43:31
January 28, 1934 John Nehi USA 42:12
March 3, 1935 Leo Karlhofer USA 43:50.6
March 1, 1936 Joe McCluskey USA 40:37.2
March 14, 1937 Norm Bright USA 39:52
March 6, 1938 Ed Preston USA 41:15
March 12, 1939 Ed Preston USA 41:14
March 10, 1940 Ed Preston USA 42:12
March 2, 1941 Frank Lawrence USA 42:39
March 15, 1942 James Haran USA 43:53
October 10, 1943 Joseph Wehrly USA 45:01
April 30, 1944 Fred Kline USA 43:15
May 6, 1945 Fred Kline USA 43:25.1
April 7, 1946 Fred Kline USA 44:28
March 23, 1947 Merle Knox USA 43:52
April 18, 1948 Fred Kline USA 44:27
May 1, 1949 Merle Knox USA 42:58
May 7, 1950 Elwyn Stribling USA 42:57
May 6, 1951 John Holden USA 46:09
May 4, 1952 Jim Shettler USA 45:34
May 3, 1953 Jesse Van Zant USA 42:05
May 9, 1954 Jesse Van Zant USA 42:15
April 24, 1955 Jesse Van Zant USA 43:32
April 29, 1956 Walt Berger USA 44:56
May 12, 1957 Jesse Van Zant USA 44:02
May 11, 1958 Wilford King USA 41:17
May 24, 1959 Wilford King USA 41:30
May 22, 1960 Don Kelley USA 41:59.8
May 21, 1961 Jack Marden USA 41:30
May 20, 1962 Jim Shettler USA 41:25.3
May 19, 1963 Herman Gene Gurule USA 40:15.7
May 17, 1964 Jeff Fishback USA 38:32
May 23, 1965 William Morgan USA 38:02
May 22, 1966 Eric Brenner USA 41:10.6 Frances Conley USA 1:00:7
May 11, 1967 Tom Laris USA 38:42
May 26, 1968 Kenny Moore USA 38:15
May 25, 1969 Kenny Moore USA 38:40 Mary Etta Boitano USA 1:01:12
May 24, 1970 Kenny Moore USA 39:29 Joyce Swannack-Gibbs USA 58:08
May 23, 1971 Kenny Moore USA 36:57 Frances Conley[nb 3] USA 50:45
May 21, 1972 Kenny Moore USA 36:39 Cheryl Flanagan USA 44:47
May 20, 1973 Kenny Moore USA 37:15 Cheryl Flanagan USA 45:20
May 19, 1974 Gary Tuttle USA 37:07 Mary Etta Boitano USA 43:22
May 18, 1975 Ric Rojas USA 37:18 Mary Etta Boitano USA 46:04
May 16, 1976 Chris Wardlaw  Australia 37:28 Mary Etta Boitano USA 49:20
May 15, 1977 Paul Geis USA 37:28 Judy Leydig USA 47:28
May 14, 1978 Gerard Barrett  Australia 35:17.4 Joyce Swannack-Gibbs USA 47:02
May 20, 1979 Bob Hodge USA 36:50 Laurie Binder USA 43:07
May 18, 1980 Craig Virgin USA 35:11 Laurie Binder USA 42:20
May 17, 1981 Craig Virgin USA 35:07 Janice Oehm USA 41:47
May 16, 1982 Rod Dixon  New Zealand 35:08 Laurie Binder USA 42:28
May 15, 1983 Rod Dixon  New Zealand 35:01.3 Laurie Binder USA 41:24.7
May 20, 1984 Ibrahim Hussein  Kenya 35:11 Nancy Ditz USA 42:32
May 19, 1985 Ibrahim Hussein  Kenya 34:53 Joan Samuelson USA 39:55
May 18, 1986 Ed Eyestone USA 34:33 Grete Waitz  Norway 38:45
May 17, 1987 Arturo Barrios  Mexico 34:45 Rosa Mota  Portugal 39:16
May 15, 1988 Arturo Barrios  Mexico 34:58 Lisa Ondieki  Australia 39:17
May 21, 1989 Arturo Barrios  Mexico 34:40 Ingrid Kristiansen  Norway 39:14
May 20, 1990 Arturo Barrios  Mexico 34:42 Jill Boltz  England 39:19.5
May 19, 1991 Thomas Osano  Kenya 33:55 Susan Sirma  Kenya 38:27
May 17, 1992 Thomas Osano  Kenya 33:57 Lisa Ondieki  Australia 38:36
May 16, 1993 Ismael Kirui  Kenya 33:42 Lynn Jennings USA 39:14
May 15, 1994 Ismael Kirui  Kenya 34:03 Tegla Loroupe  Kenya 39:10
May 21, 1995 Ismael Kirui  Kenya 33:58 Delilah Asiago  Kenya 38:23
May 19, 1996 Thomas Osano  Kenya 34:35 Elana Meyer  South Africa 38:56
May 18, 1997 Joseph Kimani  Kenya 33:51 Jane Omoro  Kenya 39:56
May 17, 1998 Simon Rono  Kenya 33:58 Jane Omoro  Kenya 38:57
May 16, 1999 Lazarus Nyakeraka  Kenya 34:11 Catherine Ndereba  Kenya 38:37
May 21, 2000 Reuben Cheruiyot  Kenya 34:54 Colleen De Reuck  South Africa 38:42
May 20, 2001 James Koskei  Kenya 34:19 Jane Ngotho  Kenya 40:35
May 19, 2002 James Koskei  Kenya 34:03 Luminiţa Talpoş  Romania 39:15
May 18, 2003 James Koskei  Kenya 35:11 Lyudmila Biktasheva  Russia 39:22
May 16, 2004 Benjamin Maiyo  Kenya 34:50 Albina Ivanova  Russia 39:56
May 15, 2005 Gilbert Okari  Kenya 34:20 Asmae Leghzaoui  Morocco 38:22
May 21, 2006 Gilbert Okari  Kenya 34:20 Tatyana Hladyr  Ukraine 39:09
May 20, 2007 John Korir  Kenya 34:44 Edna Kiplagat  Kenya 38:55
May 18, 2008 John Korir  Kenya 34:24 Lineth Chepkurui  Kenya 39:22
May 17, 2009 Sammy Kitwara  Kenya 33:31 Teyba Erkesso  Ethiopia 38:29
May 16, 2010 Sammy Kitwara  Kenya 34:15 Lineth Chepkurui  Kenya 38:07
May 15, 2011 Ridouane Harroufi  Morocco 34:26 Lineth Chepkurui  Kenya 39:12
May 20, 2012 Sammy Kitwara  Kenya 34:41 Mamitu Daska  Ethiopia 39:03
May 19, 2013 Tolossa Gedefa  Ethiopia 35:01 Diane Nukuri-Johnson  Burundi 40:12

Centipede winners [edit]

       = Course record

Date Men's Centipede Winner Country Time Women's Centipede Winner Country Time
May 20, 1990 Reebok Aggies USA 37:39 Reebok Aggies USA 47:36
May 18, 2008 ASICS Aggies Men USA 38:05 ASICS Aggies Women USA 47:47
May 17, 2009 ASICS Aggies Men USA 40:27 ASICS Aggies Women USA 50:51
May 16, 2010 LinkedIn Centipede USA 37:58 ASICS Aggies Women USA 48:44
May 15, 2011 LinkedIn Centipede USA 37:00 ASICS Aggies Women USA 49:06
May 20, 2012 Team LinkedIn USA 36:44 Impala Racing Team USA 46:37
May 19, 2013 ASICS Aggies Centipede Men USA 40:03 ASICS Aggies Centipede Women USA 48:17

See also [edit]

Notes [edit]

  1. ^ Some references list his last name as "Viught"
  2. ^ Race records from the Association of Road Racing Statisticians indicate that Joseph Kimani of Kenya also ran a 33:31 at the Arts Fest River Run in Evansville, Indiana in 1997;[35] however, it was also held on a point-to-point course that USATF has noted as "wind dependent" and not "record eligible".[36][37]
  3. ^ According to race organizers, Frances Conley was the first official female runner in 1971.[38]

References [edit]

  1. ^ "General Information". ING Bay to Breakers. 2006. Archived from the original on August 25, 2007. Retrieved September 9, 2007. 
  2. ^ "SF Bay To Breakers Run 'Relatively Peaceful'". cbs5.com. May 17, 2009. Archived from the original on May 19 2010. Retrieved May 17, 2010. [dead link]
  3. ^ Dunlap, Scott (May 20, 2012). "The Naked Fun of the 2012 Bay to Breakers". A Trail Runner's Blog. Retrieved October 21, 2012. 
  4. ^ a b c d e f "Noteworthy Years in Race History". Zazzle Bay to Breakers. Retrieved October 21, 2012. 
  5. ^ "'Run for Pasig' certified world's largest race". abs-cbnNEWS.com. ABS-CBN Interactive. December 27, 2010. Retrieved October 21, 2012. 
  6. ^ a b Ron Filion. "San Francisco History – Cross-City Race 1912". Sfgenealogy.com. Retrieved May 17, 2010. 
  7. ^ "Race History". ING Bay To Breakers. Retrieved May 17, 2010. 
  8. ^ Post, Marty; Wallach, Len; Knight, Tom; Leydig, Jack (May 22, 2012). "Bay to Breakers 12 km". Association of Road Racing Statisticians. Retrieved October 21, 2012. 
  9. ^ Harrar, Katie. "Bay to Breakers: Out of the Ashes a Famous Race is Born". Active.com. Active Network, Inc. Retrieved October 21, 2012. "The Cross City Race was renamed Bay to Breakers in 1963" 
  10. ^ "Race Results". Archived from the original on May 30, 2009. Retrieved October 21, 2012. 
  11. ^ Wason, Tim (May 22, 1985). "Bay-to-Breakers race a time for celebrating fun aspect of sports". The Christian Science Monitor (Boston). p. 18. Retrieved February 2, 2011.  More than one of |work= and |newspaper= specified (help)
  12. ^ Friedman, Steve; Erin Strout (January 2006). "King of the Stunt Runners". Runner's World (Rodale) 41 (1): 106. ISSN 0897-1706. Retrieved January 19, 2011 
  13. ^ The San Francisco Cacophony Society. "Spawn! Home of the Breakers Bo Bay "Upstream" Salmon". San Francisco: The San Francisco Cacophony Society. Retrieved January 19, 2011 
  14. ^ a b Knight, Heather (February 12, 2009). "Beer, Nudity Banned in Bay to Breakers". SFGate. San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved October 21, 2012. 
  15. ^ Sabatini, Joshua (February 12, 2009). "SF Examiner: Bay to Breakers Jumps on Wagon". The San Francisco Examiner. Archived from the original on March 18, 2009. Retrieved October 21, 2012. 
  16. ^ "Is Bay to Breakers on the wagon? – Los Angeles Times". Los Angeles Times. March 7, 2009. Retrieved May 17, 2010. 
  17. ^ "Citizens for the Preservation of Bay2Breakers". Savebay2breakers.org. Retrieved May 17, 2010. 
  18. ^ "Bay to Breakers FAQ". baytobreakers.com. Retrieved May 19, 2013. 
  19. ^ a b c d e Matier, Phillip; Andrew Ross (May 26, 2010). "Sponsor ING drops Bay to Breakers". San Francisco Chronicle (San Francisco, California). Archived from the original on May 29 2010. Retrieved May 26, 2010. 
  20. ^ "Zazzle Bay To Breakers - Noteworthy Years". Ingbaytobreakers.com. Retrieved 2012-10-21. 
  21. ^ "Bay to Breakers Sponsors".  Retrieved 2013-05-16
  22. ^ Coté, John (May 26, 2010). "Mayor is last-minute Bay to Breakers crasher". San Francisco Chronicle (San Francisco, California). Retrieved May 26, 2010. 
  23. ^ "ING Bay to Breakers 2010 race results". BazuSports. Retrieved May 20, 2012. 
  24. ^ "Zazzle Bay to Breakers 2011 race results". BazuSports. Retrieved May 20, 2012. 
  25. ^ "Zazzle Bay to Breakers 2012 race results". BazuSports. Retrieved May 23, 2012. 
  26. ^ "Bay to Breakers 2013 race results". RaceCentral. Retrieved May 19, 2013. 
  27. ^ Supersano, Melanie (8 Aug. 1991). "Grads find success through antennae.". Record-Courier (Gardnerville, Nev.). 
  28. ^ "Certified Course Map". USATF. Retrieved 2012-10-21. 
  29. ^ "Course Number". Usatf.org. Retrieved 2012-10-21. 
  30. ^ "Timing Tag Centennial Collection". ING Bay To Breakers. Archived from the original on April 25, 2009. Retrieved October 21, 2012. 
  31. ^ Aldax, Mike (May 16, 2010). "ING Bay to Breakers: Women’s world record broken; Kitwara wins second straight for men". San Francisco Examiner. Retrieved October 21, 2012. 
  32. ^ "Records". iaaf.org. 2007-08-25. Retrieved 2012-10-21. 
  33. ^ a b "Working Group on Road Records". Association of Road Racing Statisticians. June 12, 2012. Retrieved October 21, 2012. 
  34. ^ a b "Rules for record-keeping". Association of Road Racing Statisticians. Retrieved May 17, 2010. 
  35. ^ "Arts Fest River Run 12 km". Association of Road Racing Statisticians. January, 17 2006. Retrieved October 21, 2012. 
  36. ^ "Certified Course Map". USATF. Retrieved 2012-10-21. 
  37. ^ http://www.usatf.org/events/courses/search/searchResults.asp?courseStatus=A&courseType=R&state=IN
  38. ^ "Course Records". ING Bay To Breakers. Retrieved May 17, 2010. 

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