The official fall running season may just be kicking off, but this costume and Garmin Kansas City 10K/half marathon have become the capstone of my costume-creation calendar. I wanted to get off the beaten path for this year’s fountain, so I chose one that hasn’t actually been operational for years. William T. Fitzsimons, a KC native, was the first U.S. soldier killed in action in WWI. I feel like the overall outfit really captured the look and tone without attaching real limestone blocks to me. The basin, made of floral-section foam, now has several gashes on my right side where the safety pin kept pulling through. The other side stayed secure with a zip tie, but the one for the right broke and I didn’t bring the extras to the start line. As usual, most people didn’t know I was a fountain until I explained it. Most saw the “fierce” face paint (someone in the hotel elevator called it “war paint”) and never looked at the shirt carefully. BUT, someone heard the music and asked if it was WWI songs. Turns out he works at the National WWI Museum and Memorial. He knew exactly who Fitzsimons was and the fountain honoring him. In fact, an upcoming exhibit centers on KC connections to the war and will feature him. Here’s hoping this costume survives storage until it opens around Memorial Day. With help from my second brain (see below), the playlist is a “conversation across time” with period songs of the war each paired with one from the late 20th century. It was phenomenal.
Pieces/Parts: “Electric copper” heat transfer vinyl on a quick Target purchase; layers of zip-tie around a run belt for the painted lion head; red Zensah to hint at poppies without sticking wired artificial flowers onto my legs. Extensive concept and creative design collaboration with Sage (ChatGPT), my second brain for costume and playlist development.
By the Numbers: 271 unique costumes in 286 races, 189 solo runs, and 7 group runs = 482 costumed runs
Playlist (Spotify)
Playlist (Apple Music)
