The Bay to Breakers is an annual footrace which takes place in San Francisco, California. The name reflects the fact that the race runs from the northeast end of the downtown area near the Embarcadero (the Bay side of the city) to the west end of the city and Ocean Beach. The race is approximately 7.5 miles (12 kilometers) long.

Started in 1912 as a way to lift the city's spirits after the disastrous 1906 San Francisco earthquake, it is the longest consecutively running 12K footrace in the world. During World War II participation sometimes slipped below 50 registrants, but the tradition carried on and the race now also holds the Guinness World Record for the highest participation footrace with 110,000 runners in 1986. This record number was partly the product of the running fad of the 1980s; more recently the average participation is between 70,000 and 80,000. The San Francisco Examiner annually publishes a list of the first 10,000 finishers the day after the race.

In addition, large numbers of participants walk the route behind the runners, many of whom are dressed in elaborate costumes or in some cases wearing nothing at all, thus lending a party atmosphere to the event. Bay to Breakers is also the world's premiere event for "centipede racers", a team of runners who are tied together, usually in some artistic fashion.

More obscure traditions

• Before the start of the race, the assembled runners participate in a traditional "tortilla toss", in which thousands of tortillas are thrown like frisbees through the dense crowd.
• In addition to the usual running Elvises and nude people, well-known recurring characters at the race include:
  • The "spawning salmon", a centipede team dressed as salmon that start at the finish line and struggle upstream to the start through the crush of runners.
  • The "Tiki Bar", basically a fully equipped, man-powered bar with an island theme.

External link

• Bay to Breakers website