TEDx and The First Ever “Paint The Town TEDxPortland 6K Night Run”

Last May, we participated in the inaugural TEDxPortland 6K Night Run and it was great fun. Led by TEDx and sponsored by OMSI, Rogue Ales, NIKE, Stumptown Coffee, KIND Bars and Red Bull, we had a blast running a 6k around the waterfront in downtown Portland.

You may have heard of TED or even watched some of their amazing videos, called TED talks. If you haven’t, I strongly suggest watching a few around the web.

What is TED?

TED is a global set of conferences run by the private non-profit Sapling Foundation, under the slogan “Ideas Worth Spreading”.

What is TEDx?

TEDx was created in the spirit of TED’s mission, “ideas worth spreading.” It supports independent organizers who want to create a TED-like event in their own community.

The TEDx Program is designed to help communities, organizations and individuals to spark conversation and connection through local TED-like experiences.

TEDxPortland

Tedx Portland is about Bringing Ideas Worth Spreading to the Rose City.

And they created the Paint The Town TEDxPortland 6K Night Run Event.

The night before the event, I came across the information online and very spontaneously bought two $20 tickets for Josh and I to participate in this night run. The ticket included a free red NIKE Tedx t-shirt, raffle tickets, and food and drink from the sponsors.

The point was to “paint the town TED” by wearing red.

Runners and walkers met at OMSI (Oregon Museum of Science and Industry). The run began at 7:30pm after a short inaugural ceremony.

It was a non-competitive run around the Portland Waterfront with a few surprises along the way.

It couldn’t be a perfect Portland event without the unicycling bagpiping Darth Vader.

The party festivities were located back at OMSI after crossing the finish line. We enjoyed delicious Food Truck Bunk Sandwiches, Rogue beer, Stumptown nitro cold brew and KIND bars. Red Bull was also distributed but we opted out.

I am not a runner, I rarely run more than a mile at a time, so it was a great accomplishment for me to run 3.7 miles. But I had to stop a few times to stretch my achilles which was acting out a bit. I like doing research for the best cushioned running shoes, and stretching the achilles regularly to improve flexibility to reduce pain.

This was my second ever organized running/walking event and I had a blast. I loved that it took place during sunset, I loved running around the waterfront, I loved the free goodies, and I loved the atmosphere. Everyone was in an incredible mood. I believe the event was a success and will keep happening annually, probably also improving.

Have you ever participated in a running event?