Start doing your crunches because The Herd’s annual Nearly Naked Mile takes place today at the Koenig Alumni Center.
The Herd's Nearly Naked Mile takes place Oct. 28. (CU Independent Illustration/Robert R. Denton)
The event begins at 7:30 p.m. with registration. Students will fill out a waiver and receive a complimentary glow stick to light their campus route.
There will be music, and food and drinks catered by Qdoba, Half Fast Subs, Starbucks and Red Bull. The Herd will be giving away prizes for trivia, best costumes and exclusive Herd member giveaways. Victoria’s Secret will also be joining in the pre-race fun by handing out prizes.
The Herd is partnering with the Volunteer Resource Center to donate gently used clothing items to A Precious Child, a charity that provides clothing to impoverished children in Colorado. For every five articles of clothing a student donates, he or she will receive a free Nearly Naked Mile t-shirt with this year’s “Animal House” theme.
Marni Spott, a 22-year-old Germanic Studies graduate student and President of The Herd, said this is a great way for students to give back to their community.
“We want to provide students with a fun way to donate their clothes,” Spott said. “[The Nearly Naked Mile] provides them with an opportunity to contribute and it allows them to celebrate being a student at CU.”
The race itself starts between 8:30 and 8:45 p.m. Students will take off from the Koenig Alumni Center, run across Norlin Quad, circle Farrand Field, and race back to Koenig. The first male and female runners to complete the mile-long course through campus will receive gift cards to the CU Book Store.
The idea for the Nearly Naked Mile began eight years ago with just 200 students in attendance. The race quickly became one of The Herd’s most popular events. Last year, over 700 students came out to bare their buns and collectively donated 2,000 articles of clothing.
Spott said that students love this event.
“It gives them a chance to be creative and have fun with the idea of running ‘nearly’ naked through a public institution,” Spott said. “There’s something liberating about it.”
The Herd and the Volunteer Resource Center are aiming to make this year’s event the biggest yet.
“We want to break our previous records,” Spott said.
Be aware that there will be police present and that they will take action against indecent exposure and/or overt intoxication. Otherwise, prepare to get nearly naked!
Contact CU Independent staff writer Natalie Proulx at Natalie.proulx@colorado.edu.
