Yesterday morning I went out to The Domain for the Statesman to shoot the inaugural run of the Austin 10/20 race.
The race is 10 miles of running with 20 live bands playing along the route, and an after-race performance by Everclear. I had never heard of a race like this, but it seems like a fantastic idea. Runners stay motivated and entertained, bands play for thousands of people (even if it’s just for a few seconds as they run past), it’s a win-win situation. Plus, if you can’t make a combination race and music festival successful in Austin, you’re just not trying.
I got to The Domain about a half hour or so before the race so I could find a parking spot, pick up my credential and shoot a bit before the start. I always like to get to these races early because I park far away and because there’s always some confusion about credentials.
Luckily, I ran in to Brom, the reporter for this story, near the start line. He’s fairly well-known in the race community and asked me if I wanted to shoot from the crane/bucket truck thing (please help me with the correct terminology if you know it). I said sure and he got me in. I shot the start of the race from there.
As you can see from the pictures, the weather wasn’t ideal. It was windy and cloudy and a storm was on the way. The wind was so bad over night that the race director decided to remove signs that would normally cover scaffolding at the starting line. The signs were acting more like sails.
After the runners took off, I decided to try and get a couple shots of the bands. I couldn’t get them all – 20 stages is a lot to hit before getting back to the finish line for the winners. I had about half an hour before I needed to get to the finish, so I shot the bands that were on the way.
Now for the winners. Linus Chumba won for the men with a time of 48:31. Misiker Mekonnen Demissie won for the women with a time of 55:41. Demisie was the last person to register for the race, but the first woman to finish.
Of course, there was plenty to see through the race – people in costumes, people wanting their picture taken, people excited to win, you know the drill. Here are a few of my favorites.
After the race was an Everclear concert. I was finished shooting what I needed about a half hour before the concert, but I thought I’d stick around for a song or two and get a couple shots.
It was a full morning of activity and I managed to escape before the storm blew in.