Inaugural Diva Dash 5K - St. Louis

On a warm and misty Saturday morning, hundreds of divas and little princesses descended upon Forest Park to run the Diva Dash 5k and Lil' Princess kids run.  The race, managed by the Kansas City Running Company, takes place in other Midwestern cities like Tulsa, Des Moines, Omaha, Wichita, Nixa, Manhattan, and Kansas City.  I heard about this race through other bloggers before I realized that the KC Running Company also manages the Rock the Parkway Half Marathon, which I ran in Kansas City earlier this year.

I had picked up my packet on Friday night at Big River Running Company, but race day packet pick-up was also available.  Parking was adjacent to the start/finish line and the porta-potties, which was very convenient, especially since this was a very family-friendly race.  In addition to packet pick-up there was also free face painting, several vendors, and a photo area with props for pre and post-race photos.  Throughout the morning, girl-power themed music played in the background.

Waiting to start

The race t-shirts were pink with silver sparkle accents and we received personalized bibs, which I always love.  I am superstitious, so I NEVER wear my race shirt on race day.  I knew a lot of women would be wearing their shirts, so I wore pink to blend in.  As you can see in the picture above, 80% or more of the women wore pink.  It was an amazing sight!

Personalized bib, t-shirt that literally sparkles, and the medal

The course took us through various sections of Forest Park, which is a beautiful park that is worth a visit if you have never been.  I had intended to take photos along the way but since it was misting, I decided to keep my phone dry.  Although the roads within Forest Park were still open to traffic, the runners had their own reserved lane which was never too congested.  

At the finish, runners received a medal, snacks, water, and they could get a print out of their results.  The vendor booths were even busier post-race and the Lil' Princesses started lining up for the start of their race at 9:00 a.m.  Again, many participants dressed up and wore pink.  The Lil' Princess race was broken into age ranges to make it more fair and allow older princesses to run longer distances.  At the finish line they received a tiara AND a medal.

Lil' Princesses waiting for their race

One of the Lil' Princess age groups

Princesses crossing the finish line

This race had a unique theme that the participants seemed to thoroughly enjoy.  There were also many groups of women, which shows that it is a great race to enter with your friends, co-workers, or family members.  At the finish line, the crowd was constantly cheering on women as they finished, even if they didn't know the runner.  It was a very inspiring and positive environment, and I was happy to be a part of it!  I ended up sending my cousin pictures of the race to encourage her and her daughter to participate with me next year.  I think I have her convinced because she was already asking for the 2015 date.  After all, what woman doesn't want to get a medal and a cute t-shirt just for being a Diva for a few hours?

On a side note, it looks like the St. Louis area will be seeing more of the KC Running Company and it looks like I will be too.  At packet pick-up, we received a flier for the Mustache Dash 5k.  I thought this race was only occurring in Kansas City, but apparently it is coming to St. Louis this fall too.  When I pulled the flier out of the envelope, my boyfriend immediately grabbed it from my hands.  When he saw the date he looked it up to make sure that it was on a Saturday (he works Sundays), and then immediately expressed interest.  Thanks KC Running Company for a memorable race, and I am looking forward to the next one!