A sea of Santas in a silly sprint. Fido, it seems, has been very good this year.
LAS VEGAS — Only in Sin City would the sight of 8,000 Santas running amok through the streets not raise an eyebrow. Even the Elvis Santas barely drew second glances in this town, where the King is as common as bad buffets and bad judgment.
But such things are par for the course when you’re running in a city where everything is just a bit more … weird, including the sports. The insanity returns this weekend with a zany fitness double feature that brings the 8th annual Great Santa Run and the Rock n’ Roll Las Vegas Marathon to town.
Part of what makes the Santa fun run so, well, fun, is everyone gets a brand-new five-piece Santa suit. I caught the action a few years back and seeing these photos still makes me smile.
As silly as that is — and it’s pretty freakin’ silly — it’s but a warmup to the Rock n’ Roll marathon. These things are held in cities around the world and they’re always lots of fun — well, fun if you’re capable of running 26.2 miles without dying — but the Vegas version is just a bit more so.
It isn’t the 40,000 people running down Las Vegas boulevard, or the live music, or even the celebrity impersonators — is that Celine Dion? — huffing and puffing down the Strip.
No, what makes this a distinctly Vegas experience is the run-through wedding service. That’s right. You and your dearly beloved can take a brief detour from the course and get hitched outside the Paris Las Vegas hotel and casino. Talk about an endurance race.
I’m still awaiting the addition of a run-through divorce court. Maybe next year.
All photos: Sol Neelman/Wired
Sol Neelman photographs the wonderful world of weird sports, from dog surfing to outhouse racing to underwater hockey. His book, "Weird Sports," is available now. If you've got a goofy game or silly sport you think he should cover, drop him a line.
Read more by Sol Neelman
Follow @solneelman on Twitter.
Only in Vegas: Sprinting Santas and Run-Through Weddings
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Only in Vegas: Sprinting Santas and Run-Through Weddings
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Only in Vegas: Sprinting Santas and Run-Through Weddings
