This is the time of year, when a lot of runners come out of hibernation and start to shake things out and get back on that starting line.
And for the rest of us, we, too, can toe the line and say we took part in a race — it’s up to you, how you want to get from start to finish in this one.
It’s deemed the world’s shortest race. Saturday is the 19th “running” of the St. Paddy’s Day .01k on Pearl Street in downtown La Crosse.
19th annual St. Paddy’s Day .01k
WHEN: 6 p.m. Saturday
WHERE: Pearl Street, in front of Brother’s Bar in La Crosse
SIGNUP at Around River City: $25-$28 includes t-shirt, beer
PROCEEDS go to the Hunger Task Force of La Crosse food bank
It’s a race everyone can handle, everyone gets that all important t-shirt and, of course, a free beer from Brother’s — the signup headquarters for the 6 p.m. race.
“What it amounts to is 32.8 feet to put that into normal people terms,” Bags from 95.7 the Rock said this week on La Crosse Talk PM. “Because I couldn’t tell you how long a 1k or a 5k is. I am not a runner. I have no frame of reference for how long that is, but I can tell you that a .01k is 32.8 feet. We mark it off down the street. We have that section of Pearl Street completely blocked off.”
La Crosse Talk PM airs weekdays at 5:06 p.m. Listen on the WIZM app, online here, or on 92.3 FM / 1410 AM / 106.7 FM (north of Onalaska). Find all the podcasts here or subscribe to La Crosse Talk PM wherever you get your podcasts.
On site registration for the race begins at 3 p.m. But, to guarantee you get that t-shirt that solidifies you accomplished a race in 2024 — and let’s be honest, this is the most accomplishable race in the history of mankind — pre-register at Around River City.
The race is also deemed a run/walk but, really, just about anything goes that will get you from the starting line to the finish.
“I’ve seen people handstand through it,” Bags continued. “We usually get those people towards the back because the front is just a mad dash to see who can be the first one across. I think I’ve seen someone on a skateboard, kind of belly swimming across. People will get a little bit creative.
“I’ve seen people making TikTok videos and such, as they go across because, hey, TikTok videos are short, and so is 32.8 feet. It’s not very long.”
If being able to finish a race — whether on your feet, hands, knees or on wheels — isn’t the best part of the .01k, it’s also being done for an incredible cause. Proceeds go to the Hunger Task Force of La Crosse, which provides food for 118 pantries, meal sites and youth groups in the area. It’s the only food bank between Madison and Rochester.
TOP PHOTO: FILE – Participants trek the 32.8 feet for the 18th annual St. Paddy’s Day .01k put on by 95.7 the Rock on Pearl Street in downtown La Crosse on Friday, March, 17, 2023 (PHOTO: @957therock on Facebook).