Fashion hits the road as popular Ekiden marathon returns

Ekiden runners like to dress up. PHOTO/FILE

It's Ekiden time again tomorrow. And that means only one thing. Drive carefully because fashion chaos is about to hit the roads.

It's the 14th edition of the Ekiden and the biggest to date with about 300 teams signed up, said race director Rob Docherty.

Last year's tally was 270 teams, and the numbers had increased because "running is becoming a very social activity, with more people wanting to do it as a team," he said.

About 2000 runners and walkers are due to take part in the relay marathon, and Mr Docherty expects the unexpected whenever he runs the event.

"I run a lot of events and this is the most fun. When I see people get out of their cars at the beginning of the day, the costumes always amaze me. You never know what people are going to come dressed up as. What makes this race special is that the costumes just get crazier every year."

He said if people wanted to join in the fun, without doing any of the running, they should head down to the start of the fancy dress race at 8.45am.

"It's a fantastic atmosphere. Usually at the start of a marathon, we have thousands of runners and a few spectators, but this race is the other way around. There are about 1000 people watching it start and a few competitors."

One road closure will be in place during the event. Hamurana Rd will be closed one-way, heading towards Ngongotaha coming from State Highway 33, until 3pm.

What: Podium Rotorua Ekiden - Marathon Relay
When: Tomorrow 8am - 3pm
Where: Race Start Village Green