Bloomsday 2023: Theme, poster and other details of annual race announced

Emry Dinman, The Spokesman-Review, Spokane, Wash.
·2 min read

Feb. 28—Even with snowstorms bringing a late-season chill to the region, organizers of the 2023 Bloomsday race are looking ahead to a lively spring.

For the second time since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, Spokane's annual Bloomsday race will happen in person.

The Lilac Bloomsday Association board of directors on Tuesday revealed the 47th annual Bloomsday theme, "Blooming Together," as well as its sponsors and other event details. Race leaders also unveiled this year's poster: Spokane artist Jesse Harbour's lilac and tea-green depiction of runners in front of mountains and sun beams.

The 12-kilometer, 7.46-mile race will be held May 7.

The Bloomsday trade show, where runners pick up their bibs and can check out booths, will be May 5 and 6 inside the Spokane Convention Center. The Corporate Cup party will return to Riverfront Park from 9 a.m. to noon May 7.

The entry fee is $28 until April 1, when it increases to $35. In order to get a personalized running bib, applications must be submitted before April 15.

A virtual Bloomsday will still be held as well. From April 27 through May 7, runners can run the 12 kilometers, submit their time and get a Bloomsday finisher T-shirt mailed to them.

If their dog runs with them in the "Bloomsdog" race, their pet will earn a specialized finisher's bandana and treats. Those are only available to virtual racers, and dogs are not allowed on the course during race day.

Registration is also now open for Junior Bloomsday, an approximately 1.5 mile race on April 16 around the Spokane Falls Community College track for kids in grades 3-7. The fee to enter is $20, and kids who complete the run will earn a prize pack including a free Silverwood Theme Park ticket.

The Bloomsday College Cup, a pilot program similar to the Corporate Cup running this year for the first time, will include teams of up to five students and staff.

The Providence Bloomsday Training Clinics also are returning this year, running at 8:30 a.m. every Saturday from March 18 through April 29 at the Spokane Falls Community College gymnasium. The seven-week program is designed to help runners prepare for the grueling Bloomsday race, starting with a 1-mile run the first week and adding another mile every week of the program.

The Bloomsday board of directors each year chooses a charity to sponsor. The directors this year decided to donate proceeds to Teen and Kid Closet, a 16-year-old Spokane nonprofit providing free clothes and accessories for children and youth living in poverty, foster care or homelessness in Eastern Washington and North Idaho.