Thousands take part in Great Bull Run
Darkroom contributors Kaitlin Newman and Gabrielle LePore take you inside America’s first ever Great Bull Run.
- Scenes from the Great Bull Run held at the Virginia Motorsports Park, outside Petersburg, Va on August 24, 2013. (Credit: Kaitlin Newman)
- Scenes from the Great Bull Run held at the Virginia Motorsports Park on August 13, 2013. (Credit: Kaitlin Newman)
- Scenes from the Great Bull Run held at the Virginia Motorsports Park on August 13, 2013. (Credit: Kaitlin Newman)
- Scenes from the Great Bull Run held at the Virginia Motorsports Park on August 13, 2013. (Credit: Kaitlin Newman)
- Scenes from the Great Bull Run held at the Virginia Motorsports Park on August 13, 2013. (Credit: Kaitlin Newman)
- Scenes from the Great Bull Run held at the Virginia Motorsports Park on August 13, 2013. (Credit: Kaitlin Newman)
- Scenes from the Great Bull Run held at the Virginia Motorsports Park on August 13, 2013. (Credit: Kaitlin Newman)
- Zach Willis, 24, of South Carolina wears a mask and cape at the Great Bull Run. (Credit: Kaitlin Newman)
- Scenes from the Great Bull Run held at the Virginia Motorsports Park on August 13, 2013. (Credit: Kaitlin Newman)
- A couple dresses as Dr. Seuss’ Thing ‘1’ and Thing ‘2’ for the Great Bull Run on August 24, 2013. (Credit: Kaitlin Newman)
- Scenes from the Great Bull Run held at the Virginia Motorsports Park on August 13, 2013. (Credit: Kaitlin Newman)
- Runners gear up for the running of the bulls at the Great Bull Run held at the Virginia Motorsports Park.(Credit: Kaitlin Newman)
- Runners at the Great Bull Run held at the Virginia Motorsports Park on August 24, 2013. (Credit: Kaitlin Newman)
- Runners at the Great Bull Run held at the Virginia Motorsports Park on August 24, 2013. (Credit: Kaitlin Newman)
- Runners at the Great Bull Run held at the Virginia Motorsports Park on August 24, 2013. (Credit: Kaitlin Newman)
- Runners at the Great Bull Run held at the Virginia Motorsports Park on August 24, 2013. (Credit: Kaitlin Newman)
- An unidentified male was taken away on a stretcher to a nearby hospital during the Great Bull Run. (Credit: Kaitlin Newman)
- Participants take part in the Tomato Royale, a tomato food fight at the Great Bull Run on August 24, 2013. (Credit: Kaitlin Newman)
- Participants take part in the Tomato Royale, a tomato food fight at the Great Bull Run on August 24, 2013. (Credit: Kaitlin Newman)
- Participants take part in the Tomato Royale, a tomato food fight at the Great Bull Run on August 24, 2013. (Credit: Kaitlin Newman)
- Participants take part in the Tomato Royale, a tomato food fight at the Great Bull Run on August 24, 2013. (Credit: Kaitlin Newman)
- Participants take part in the Tomato Royale, a tomato food fight at the Great Bull Run on August 24, 2013. (Credit: Kaitlin Newman)
- Participants take part in the Tomato Royale, a tomato food fight at the Great Bull Run on August 24, 2013. (Credit: Kaitlin Newman)
- Participants take part in the Tomato Royale, a tomato food fight at the Great Bull Run on August 24, 2013. (Credit: Kaitlin Newman)
- Participants take part in the Tomato Royale, a tomato food fight at the Great Bull Run on August 24, 2013. (Credit: Kaitlin Newman)
Thousands attended the first ever Great Bull Run that was held Saturday at the Virginia Motorsports Park, just outside Petersburg, Va.
The event is inspired by the running of the bulls at the San Fermin festival in Pamplona, Spain.
Nick Gounaris, 23, and his friends, students at James Madison University, were planning an adrenaline-seeking trip to Spain to attend the real event when they heard about the Great Bull Run in Virginia. “I’m not trying to get hurt,” Gounaris said. “But sometimes you got to grab life by the horns.”
Three runs were scheduled at 11 a.m., 1 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. They were split into a total of seven waves to reduce the number of runners to prevent the bulls from being intimidated. Each wave had about 500 runners and 12 bulls, with the exception of the final wave that had 600 to 700 runners and 24 bulls.
Participants traveled from all over the country, and many wore costumes or matching outfits to represent their teams. A couple came dressed as Dr. Seuss’ Thing ‘1’ and Thing ‘2’, while another group wore all white and red bandanas tied around their necks, similar to the outfit worn during the event in Spain.
Other activities included a tomato food fight called the Tomato Royale. Debbie Cohen, 60, from Virginia, walked out of the tomato fight, wearing remnants of broken tomatoes and a child-like grin.
“When my brother and I were little, we used to go into the garden, gather the rotten tomatoes and throw them at each other,” Cohen said. “I just wanted to do it again.”
Upcoming runs will be held in other cities including Atlanta, Houston, Florida and Chicago.
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