by Pete Williams for www.triandrun.com
When several hundred runners gather at the starting line of the inaugural Bare Dare 5K at the Caliente Resort & Spa on October 10, they will be wearing running shoes, sunglasses, and perhaps hats. Most will be wearing nothing else.
The Bare Dare 5K, held at the upscale Caliente Resort just north of Tampa in Land O’Lakes, is an unusual event, though it’s hardly unique. There are two dozen clothing-optional races in North America, most held at nude beaches or behind the gates of nudist resorts.
Why nude running? Some just like the feel of running nude. Others do it as a bucket-list item, only to enjoy it so much they return annually. Many are surprised to find the winning times are comparable to those of non-nude events.
Though other nudist clubs have hosted clothing-optional races for years, the Bare Dare 5K will be a first for Caliente, which opened its 30,000 square-foot clubhouse and sprawling lagoon-style pool in 2004, redefining luxury nude recreation in North America.
With 125 acres, including a 2-mile walking trail that goes around two small lakes, along with the clothing-optional designation, Caliente will have perhaps the most “natural” race setting in America.
“We’re very excited about this inaugural event,” said Caliente marketing director Deb Bowen. “It’s a great way for first-timers to dip their toe in the water of nude recreation.”
Organized nude running goes back thousands of years – the original Olympics were held in the buff – but the modern incarnation of nude 5K races dates only to 1984, when the Bare Buns Fun Run began at Kaniksu Ranch, a nudist resort near Spokane, Wash., which has drawn more than 900 runners for its event.
Sabrina Vizzari was just a teenager when she attended some of the early Kaniksu races. In 1993, as the 20-year-old activities director for the Lake Como nudist resort in Lutz, Fla., she created the Dare to Go Bare 5K, attracting just 30 athletes initially to run along trails and asphalt through the 72-acre property.
The event grew each year and is still held annually the first Sunday in May. In 1998, Vizzari signed up news talk radio station 970 WFLA and drew 350 runners. Caliente, with its lavish facilities and an all-out marketing blitz, could approach that turnout in its inaugural year.
Most athletes will run nude, though it’s not required, and are encouraged to make a day of it at Caliente. In recent months, the resort has partnered with a South Tampa club promoter and attracted more 21-to-35 year-olds on Sundays for “Skinny Dip Sundae” parties. Caliente is waiving its customary daily grounds fees for registered runners.
North America is in the midst of a third running boom, which some attribute to the recession that began in 2008. As Americans have been forced to take greater responsibility for their finances and health care, they’ve naturally gravitated to an inexpensive sport that welcomes newcomers of all abilities.
Nude running also has benefited from the barefoot running trend popularized by the best-selling book Born to Run, which showed how many athletes run improperly because of thick-soled running shoes.
Barefoot runners, as well as those who train with barefoot-like shoes such as the popular Five Fingers, strike the ground with the balls of their feet, which causes the ground forces to dissipate through the body. Many runners tend to strike with their heels, causing the joints to absorb the force.
Most barefoot runners train on grass and wear some sort of footwear on concrete and asphalt. Footwear – and sunscreen – is recommended for the Bare Dare 5K.
Many runners are attracted to a nude 5K for the novelty only to become regulars. Competitor magazine recently listed running a nude 5K among its “bucket list” for endurance athletes.
Some runners have been attracted to the Caliente race because of its unique date: 10/10/10.
“That only comes around once a century,” Bowen said. “It makes sense that you’d want to do something memorable.”
Vizzari, now 37, no longer works in nudist club management but plans to participate in the Bare Dare 5K, where she’ll see plenty of “cotton tails,” first-time nudists with obvious tan lines.
“Most people want to do a nude 5K once just for the novelty of it,” Vizzari says. “But they find they have such a good time and feel such a wonderful sense of freedom that they come back year after year. I’ve heard from serious runners and triathletes that doing a nude 5K is their favorite race on the calendar.”
To register for the Caliente Bare Dare 5K, visit: www.triandrun.com