Events
Festivus 5k: The Un-Holiday Fun Run
VIRTUAL Festivus 5k: The Un-Holiday Fun Run
Place
Waukesha, WI US 53186
Description
Get your pole out of the crawl space, Festivus is back with a new location and distance!
Air your grievances with the rest of us as you walk or run at this year's Festivus 5k: The Un-Holiday Fun Run! We promise to be tinsel-free and provide nothing but explainable miracles. Join us at Frame Park in Waukesha on Saturday, November 30 with a post-party at Raised Grain Brewing Company!
Choose from either one (1.7-ish miles) or two (3.1ish miles) laps around Fox River; walk, run, or skip - all ages and abilities are welcome!
Can't make the race? Race virtually and your packet will be mailed to you.
*Please note: This fun-run event is not officially timed, but there will be a clock at the start/finish line.
What You Get
All Festivers Receive:
- Scenic walk/run around the Fox River at Frame Park; choose 5k or 2.5k on race day.
- Festivus Beanie Hat
- Festivus Pole Patch (pin or sew it!)
- Complimentary post-race beer at Raised Grain Brewing Company
- And naturally, the famous Airing of Grievances Ceremony - join along or observe!
- Donation to Hunger Task Force + Race Day Food Drive
Registration
EARLY BIRD May 1 - May 31: $33
June 1 - July 31: $35
August 1 - October 31: $38
November 1 - November 29: $40
November 30 (Race Day): $45
This event does have a registration cap of 400. Early registration is encouraged!
Packet Pick-Up
Race Day Packet Pick-Up
When: Saturday, November 30
Time: 8-10am
Where: 1150 Baxter St, Waukesha, WI 53186
Pre-Race Packet Pick-Up Details TBA
*Someone may pick up your packet for you. There is no waiver needed.*
Transfers
You may transfer your registration to another participant, or to the Virtual 5k, from your account on Run Sign Up.
1) Log in on Runsignup.com
2) Click "Profile" on the top right-hand side of the page
3) Click "Manage Registration"
4) Transfer Event
What is Festivus?
Festivus is a secular holiday celebrated as an alternative to the pressures and commercialism of the Christmas season. The non-commercial holiday's celebration, as depicted on Seinfeld, occurs on December 23 (The Un-Holiday Fun Run kicks off the weekend of commercialism) and includes a Festivus dinner, an unadorned aluminum Festivus pole, practices such as the "Airing of Grievances" and "Feats of Strength", and the labeling of easily explainable events as "Festivus miracles". It is "a Festivus for the rest of us".
Customary practices
The holiday, as portrayed in the Seinfeld episode, includes practices such as the "Airing of Grievances", which occurs during the Festivus meal and in which each person tells everyone else all the ways they have disappointed them over the past year. After the meal, the "Feats of Strength" are performed, involving wrestling the head of the household to the floor, with the holiday ending only if the head of the household is pinned.
Festivus pole
In the episode, the tradition of Festivus begins with an aluminum pole. Frank Costanza cites its "very high strength-to-weight ratio" as appealing. During Festivus, the pole is displayed unadorned. According to Frank, "I find tinsel distracting."
Dan O'Keefe credits fellow Seinfeld writer Jeff Schaffer with introducing the concept. The aluminum pole was not part of the original O'Keefe family celebration, which centered on putting a clock in a bag and nailing it to a wall.
Festivus dinner
In "The Strike", a celebratory dinner is shown on the evening of Festivus prior to the Feats of Strength and during the Airing of Grievances. The on-air meal shows Estelle Costanza serving a sliced reddish meatloaf-shaped food on a bed of lettuce.In the episode no alcohol is served at the dinner, but George's boss, Mr. Kruger, drinks something from a hip flask.
The original holiday dinner in the O'Keefe household featured turkey or ham as described in Dan O'Keefe's The Real Festivus.
Airing of Grievances
The "Airing of Grievances" takes place immediately after the Festivus dinner has been served. In the television episode, Frank Costanza began it with the phrase, "I got a lotta problems with you people, and now you're going to hear about it!" It consists of each person lashing out at others and the world about how they have been disappointed in the past year.
Feats of Strength
The Feats of Strength are the final tradition observed in the celebration of Festivus, celebrated immediately following (or in the case of "The Strike", during) the Festivus dinner. The head of the household selects one person at the Festivus celebration and challenges them to a wrestling match. Tradition states Festivus is not over until the head of the household is pinned. In "The Strike", however, Kramer manages to circumvent the rule by creating an excuse to leave. The Feats of Strength are mentioned twice in the episode before they take place. In both instances, no detail was given as to what had happened, but in both instances, George Costanza ran out of the coffee shop in a mad panic, implying he had bad experiences with the Feats of Strength in the past. What the Feats of Strength entailed was revealed at the very end of the episode, when it took place. Failing to pin the head of the household results in Festivus continuing until such requirement is met.
Festivus miracles
Cosmo Kramer twice declares a "Festivus Miracle" during the Festivus celebration in the Costanza household. Kramer causes the occurrence of two "miracles" by inviting two off-track betting bookies to dinner with Elaine (men whom Elaine wished to avoid), and by causing Jerry's girlfriend Gwen to believe that Jerry was cheating on her.
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