A good day for a run!
Carnaval parades in Cozumel run for three nights, but there is a break after the first two. That’s a good thing—the parades can be exhausting with all the waving, dancing, and tossing. The performers need a day to recover before the last grand parade.
This is where the Paint ‘N Run community event comes in. It’s a fundraiser for island charities and encourages both fitness and family bonding. The race starts at the Malecon just in front of Benito Juarez park. You can’t possibly miss the loud pumping music and crowds. I have participated in this event twice and absolutely loved it.
Pro Tip #1: You know there will be color powder everywhere. That’s the fun of it. So remove your wheelchair seat cushion and any other fabric on your chair, and wrap it in a plastic bag. Single-use plastics are restricted on Cozumel so use what you can. This will make hosing off your chair so much easier at the end and you won’t be left with a soggy seat.
Pro Tip #2: Before you start cleaning up, throw your shirt into a bag and wait until you’re home to throw it into the dryer. This will partially set the colors and you’ll be able to enjoy your color run memories even longer!
Is the race accessible?
This was such a fun experience and one that was easy to adapt for a wheelchair user like me. The course runs along the Malecon, the stone wall that runs along the shoreline, of Cozumel. So rolling along is nice and easy, and you get to enjoy a stunning view of the water the entire time. You also have the option to run half the race, as the course makes a giant figure 8. First, you head south down the island and then loop up towards the north. If halfway through you have had enough colorful fun, you can easily end your race then. But if you’re anything like me, you’ll want to keep going for even more colorful blasts of powder!
Pro Tip #3: As you can see, I actually had a broken arm when the time came for the race this past year. As you can imagine, a broken arm and pushing a wheelchair don’t mix, but I didn’t want to miss out on the fun! So we hit the local grocery store the night before the race looking for solutions. Luckily, we found a kid-sized soccer goal that was made up of plastic pipes and brackets. Those pieces, some cable ties, duct tape, and a little luck were all we needed to rig a temporary push bar so my mom could give me hand on the side with my injury when I needed it.