The Coimbatore Marathon does not just begin and end with you collecting your bibs the day before the big day at the expo at CODISSIA. There will be lots of other happenings in the hall, such as mini events and little treats that have been carefully curated by the organisers and sponsors to engage with the participants and make it a festive and enriching occasion.
The regulars will remember the cupcakes sold at the Coimbatore Cancer Foundation’s (CCF) booth. Home bakers and professional bakers bake these goodies contribute their earnings of the day to CCF. So your indulgence will go a long way for a good cause besides fuelling you for your run the following day.
Aarti Shroff of Dolcie is baking cupcakes for the second year in a row and says, “It is my contribution to the society, something for a greater cause. It feels good to use my skills for a something truly worthwhile”.
While Nirupama Rajesh, a home baker, has an emotional connect being a caregiver for a cancer survivor in her family. “It is my third year of baking for this cause and I get an immense sense of satisfaction”.
These cupcakes sell like hot cakes at the expo and in the previous years many of the visitors have been seen even boxing up these cupcakes and taking them home for their family and friends.
From the cupcakes to sweet post cards, CCF has come up with an idea. “Emotions and feelings are spontaneous and authentic. They are meant to be expressed. For many people, emotions are puzzling, confusing, and they find it difficult to express. But expressing one’s emotions are important for a healthy mind and body”, says Rema Giridhar, a volunteer at CCF.
So she and her daughter, Laya have handmade postcards with small notes of gratitide inside such as ‘Thank You’, ‘You are special’, ‘I am sorry’ and so on. Those visiting the CCF booth can pick a card or two, write their message, address the envelope and the volunteers will post it for then.
This year too there is a booth where you can get a temporary tattoo that you can display on the race day. You can mix and match tattoos to convey different messages on cancer awareness, fitness and quite simply your love for running. Runners can also buy these temporary tattoos and stick them on. There is a bunch of cool tattooes for your to choose from.
Pose at the photo booth with quirky props and message boards make the experience even more giggle-worth and just perfect for Facebook and Instagram.
For more cerebral entertainment there will be ongoing panel discussions by runners and health experts that will be a treasure trove of information for runners.
Inspirational stories by runners, tips on fitness, detecting cancers early and ways to lead a healthy lifestyle are some of the topics that will be covered during the discussions.
So, collect your running bibs and then look around and you are sure to find a corner that will inspire you.
On Saturday October 6 from 9.00 am to 5.00 pm at Hall C, Codissia
