May 14, 2012 – Bakersfield runners are prepping to be hit with a tsunami of color on June 30, 2012 as they take on Color Me Rad 5K. As white-clad participants wind through Kern County Fairgrounds they'll be bombarded with color throughout the course until their face, shirt and body cross the finish line looking like a silkscreened tie-dyed hippy. Finishers, coated from head to toe in blue, green, pink, purple and yellow, will then toss individual bags of color in the air every fifteen minutes—not to summon rain from heaven—but to create a final "biltzkrieg of color" in celebration of their accomplishment.

As race organizer Scott Crandall explains, "You'll start off with a shirt as pure and white as your grandpa's dentures and you'll wind up looking like a pack of Skittles." The color dust dowsing each participant is made of FDA approved colored cornstarch, and it washes off in the shower.

The Bakersfield race is the fifth stop on Color Me Rad's nation-wide tour, which was created by four friends who wanted to make colored tears of joy run down the faces of the masses. "We just want to brighten your day, your life...but probably not your teeth," Crandall said. "We also hope to get a lot of people involved in fitness who maybe otherwise wouldn't come out for your typical 5K. If you make it about fun instead of about shin splints, you're more likely to want to give running a shot."

A portion of the proceeds of the will go to the CSU Bakersfield Foundation. Waves of 1,000 people will take off every five minutes beginning at 8:00 a.m. on Saturday June, 30 2012. Participants of all ages are welcome to run or walk. Registration is available at colormerad.com. Use code CSUB10 for 10% off.

Color Me Rad™ holds races across the US and Canada in over 20 cities. For more information on this event and to see additional race locations, visit www.colormerad.comor check out what fans have to share on Facebook at www.facebook.com/colormerad.