Like most women of a certain age, I have a whole collection of bridesmaids dresses that I’ve only worn once, and will probably never wear again. I’m not hating on any of the dresses — they’re actually all really nice — but it’s not like I go to fancy parties on the regular. Seriously, my Halloween costumes get more use!

So, when Rip It Events announced a new race this fall, the Bridesmaids 5K, I jumped at the chance to recycle one of my dresses!

The Bridesmaids 5K was held Saturday night in Columbia, and about a hundred men and women showed up dressed in their best wedding attire. Most of the men wore tuxedo T-shirts, but a few wore actual suits. The women came in a rainbow of bridesmaids dresses, both long and short, and there were even a few women who wore their wedding dresses! (I would have dearly loved to wear mine again, but my mom paid to have it preserved, and I know she would have been sad if I trashed it during a race!)

I chose to wear the purple dress I wore in my sister’s June wedding. It’s short, and it’s sleeveless, making it relatively easy to run in. Plus, I have purple running shoes. Fortunately, the race was on a Saturday and not a Sunday — being a Steelers fan in Ravens country, I would never wear head-to-toe purple on Sunday around these parts. Ha.

Because I’m in the thick of my marathon training, I had 10 miles to knock out on Saturday, so I ran seven before the race. The weather was pretty cool during the late morning, but by the time of the race, the sun was glaring and it was toasty. Is it not autumn? I’ve had quite a few sticky runs lately and I am over it. It’s mid-October! But I digress.

The run was a “fun run,” meaning it wasn’t timed, meaning I probably didn’t need to push it as hard as I did. All runs in Columbia are usually pretty hilly, but this one didn’t feel quite as punishing as some of the other races. I finished in 21:47, with positive splits: 6:51, 7:02, 7:14. I just don’t think I’m that great at pacing myself during 5Ks. The Glow Run was a fluke. But more importantly, I had fun, which is the whole point!

To that end, the race was sponsored by AIDA Bistro and Wine Bar, so every runner not only got a wine glass for finishing, but two drink tickets! I usually run for beer, but I don’t exactly hate wine, either. Although I used one of my tickets for beer, and gave the other to my husband, who was nice enough to volunteer along the race course.

AIDA also gave all the runners a 15 percent off coupon for dinner, so that’s where Micah and I ate after the race. Check them out on Facebook — they posted a few live videos of the race!

Rip It Events has one last race this year — the Columbia Turkey Chase 10K and Relay, coming up the Sunday before Thanksgiving on Nov. 19. If you’re interested, shoot me a message and ask me for your 10 percent discount code!

As a Rip It Events ambassador, I ran this race for free. Opinions are entirely my own!