The Pagaentry of the Manchester Road Race [PHOTOS]

MANCHESTER, CT — Battling temperatures in the low teens and wind chill factors hovering near zero, more than 10,000 runners took on the 4.748 mile course through the streets of Manchester Thursday at the 82nd annual Manchester Road Race.

Correction: more than 10,000 participants registered for the race, but many of them were just jogging, or walking, and a great number were there simply for the pagaentry and spectacle that has become synonymous with the event.

Once the world-class leaders had passed our vantage point at the turn from Highland Street onto Porter Street, with a 5-man rock band jamming "Hey Hey, What Can I Do" by Led Zeppelin, it was time for entertainment of a different sort. From bananas and Barack to Barney, Big Bird and the Blues Brothers, a cacophony of costumes passed by at varying speeds, none of whom seemed to care that a new course record was being set a good distance ahead of them.

There was a hippie who obviously doesn't realize Woodstock is over; a Craig Kimbrel clone, complete with crooked arm; and a guy running under a pinata (possibly the most original idea of the day). There were also two dudes in grass skirts, one of whom was running with no shirt on; I so wanted to give him a dollar and tell him to go buy a calendar.

This photo gallery does not encompass every strange getup, but it gives a pretty good idea of the variety you'll see when you experience the spectacle of the Manchester Road Race.

Photo credits: Tim Jensen, Chris Dehnel

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