Bay to Breakers, an annual foot race and one of the largest in the U.S., returned to San Francisco on Sunday as thousands of runners sprinted through city streets and Golden Gate Park.
The local tradition began in 1912. Today, it kicked off at the intersection of Main and Howard streets around 8 a.m. The 12K stretched across downtown through the Western Addition and JFK Drive in Golden Gate Park, ending at Ocean Beach. The competition’s citywide scale affected Muni, with planned reroutes on 32 transit lines.
Bay to Breakers, a day known for its wacky costumes, had thousands of runners dressed for the occasion. Outfits included pop culture references like Yoshi from the Super Mario games to iconic landmarks such as the Statue of Liberty. An estimated 30,000 people participated in the race.
One troupe called the “Hoagie Run Club” sported costumes resembling each ingredient of a sandwich, including white bread, lettuce and a slice of tomato.
David, a member of the Hoagie Run Club, said the group costume originated from their weekly running club.
“We have a run club, which we run every week, and at the end we get sandwiches,” said David, who did not provide a last name. “We thought it was appropriate.”
A popular costume, or lack thereof, at this annual run is having no clothes at all. Hundreds of participants showed up with either limited clothing or completely nude.
A batch of semi-nude patrons wore nothing but a black apron and cheaply made white toques. One of these naked chefs, Patrick Goodrich, was a first-timer to the Bay to Breakers festivities.
“I’m excited to run really fast and I’m excited to be the first costumed finisher,” Goodrich said. “That’s the goal — first naked costumed finisher.”
As the crowd shifted over to Golden Gate Park, many stopped for a quick breather or refilled their water bottles from jugs provided by event staff. Medics waited on standby for possible emergencies.
Several racers walked through a homemade “human car wash” on JFK Drive designed by participants Whitner Grange and Annalise Wulf from Burlingame. The human car wash was a concoction of household items from Target and JOANN Fabrics with a bamboo frame covered in tarp and pool noodles. With their friends, Grange and Wulf sprayed water and bubbles at people as they jogged through their absurd contraption.
Grange said he was inspired by a similar gag.
“Last year at Bay to Breakers, there was a pit crew where they forced you to stop,” Grange said. “It was pretty genius. I was like ‘Alright, let’s do something like that.”
As participants swarmed the finish line at Ocean Beach, they took part in competitive sprints to the end with family and friends. Local food trucks such as Sunrise Deli and merch tents awaited tired runners.
The race attracts many people all across Northern California. One participant, Corinne Drach from Sacramento, has been attending the event for decades. Drach noted that “the fact they shut down half of San Francisco to do it” makes it a special occasion.
“It’s my mom’s favorite holiday,” Drach said. “It’s a very San Francisco holiday.”
