Welcome Students Back to School with a Color Blaze® Run
After a crazy year, it is so exciting to see students and faculty back on campus with bright eyes and smiling faces. It’s time to kick off the year in a grand way and shower your school with the rainbow. We’ve put together the best step-by-step guide on how to plan and execute a Back To School Color Blaze Run! This will help you get your kids engaged, together, active as well as help your school raise money.
What is a Color Powder Run and How does it Work?
A color powder run is a fun way to raise money and get your school/community involved. A typical run will have 3 to 5 color powder stations along a course generally 1-3 miles in length. At each color station, you will have a table along with your powder and your volunteers ready to disperse the powder at the runners as they pass through. This adds a fun element to a traditional race and leaves you looking like a rainbow!
Where Do I Start?
First things first, you will need to determine your location, date and time. For a back-to-school bash, you will want to consider your school grounds, whether that is the field or setting up cones and running around the whole school or into the nearby neighborhood. Then, set a date/time for your event day. Many schools prefer a Friday to end the week with a blast, but if you have any upcoming Half-Day’s that you would like to utilize for your rainbow run, so your covered runners can simply go home afterwards. Refer to our ‘Clean Up’ section below for the best ways to send your kids home or back to class.
How Much Color Powder Do I Need?
The amount of powder that you need at your event is dependent on how many runners you are expecting and the number of color stations you are wanting to have. Most of our customer stick between 3-5 color stations and below is the minimum that we would recommend for that:
3 Color Stations
- 1/2 pound of powder per person total
- 150 runners = 75 pounds of powder
4 Color Stations
- 3/4 pound of powder per person total
- 150 runners = 100-125 pounds of powder
5 Color Stations
- 1 pound of powder per person total
- 150 runners = 150 pounds of powder
You will use this formula to determine how much powder is needed overall and split this up amongst your color stations. For example, with 150 runners and 3 color stations, you will want to estimate ½ pound of powder per person total or 75 pounds of powder. This makes it super easy because you will just order three 25 pound bags in your choice of 3 colors. If you need any help figuring this out, our color powder experts are on-call and ready to help!
Color Powder Stations
The most crucial part to your fun run is the powder! That is what makes your run technicolor, so let’s set up your color stations like a pro and have fun with it! Most schools stick with either a simple folding table or just regular buckets of powder, with several volunteers on either side waiting to paint the crowd! You can use your bulk bags of color powder right in the bags/boxes they came in or transfer them to 5 gallon buckets or other containers. If you have any sponsors, your stations are a great place to showcase them. Ask them for a banner to hang at the tables or get some signage put together for advertisement. This is where you can get creative with balloon arches, colored flags, cones, colored t-shirts for your volunteers or a fun banner. Designate a color to each grade level to create a colored masterpiece to display at each color station and keep for memories. Let your creativity show!
Race Kits
If you are looking for an all-in-one swag bag, we’ve got you covered – literally. We offer our fun race kits that come with an array of goodies. You can choose to order them with or without a t-shirt, but both will come with their very own color powder packet, pair of sunglasses, two temporary tattoos, a Color Blaze sticker and an inspirational bracelet, all packed together and ready to handout to your runners. In addition to all of this, you will also be awarded ½ pound of free bulk powder for every kit that you purchase. For example, if you order 150 race kits, you will be getting 75 pounds of free powder in your choice of colors to use towards your color stations! If you are just having 3 color stations, you will have enough free powder for your whole event. You can also use our swag items to create your own kits and throw in some other items that better suit your school.
Fundraising
Most schools are hosting a fun run to raise money as well as provide a fun and enjoyable event for the students and staff. A great way to maximize your fundraising is to offer an online tool to provide to family and friends to donate to. At Color Blaze, we have created an easy to use platform for you and your school to create, share and collect registrants and donations, called Blaze Raise. You can click here to learn more about this feature. We would love to have our dedicated staff talk with you more about this platform and how it would be beneficial to your school.
How to Throw the Color Powder
The whole objective of a color powder run is to get colorful! The easiest way to do this is with the use of squeeze bottles. Our 24 ounce bottles make it simple for your volunteers to refill and squirt the powder as your runners pass through. Each bottle will hold about 1 and a half pounds of powder and will cover approximately 20 runners. The bottles will give you the best aim and control over the powder so your volunteers do not waste as much and are reusable for future events. An alternative to the bottles would be the small bathroom size Dixie Cups. 1 cup per person will do the trick!
Water Stations
Depending on the size of your course, you may want to consider a water station half way through. All you need is a single volunteer, a folding table, small cups and a water cooler. Don’t forget a garbage can to collect your empty cups. You may also want to reach out to local businesses in search for a sponsor to donate water bottles or small snacks to your hydration station.
Clean Up Station
When your rainbow runners cross the finish line and are ready to go home, you can quickly clean them off with the use of a leaf blower! Many of our schools do this, and it is super fun for the kids. Instructing your crowd to bring a towel to sit on in the car is also suggested, so they don’t harm their interior with any excess powder. If your students are headed back to class afterwards, a change of clothes would be recommended. For hair and skin, you can simply scrub with a good shower. In our warehouse, we find that Dawn Dish Soap works the best on those stubborn colors like blue and teal.
Good Luck with Your Back to School Runs!
If you have any questions at all, we are happy to help and assist in any way. We look forward to working with you this year!
