FLINT, Mich. (WJRT) - The Crim Festival of Races is officially underway.
Festivities kicked off in Downtown Flint on Friday with the Lois Craig Invitational.
The race sees Special Olympics athletes run nearly a block along the bricks on Saginaw Street. Participants ran in waves beginning with those in wheelchairs, followed by walkers and runners.
Crim Fitness Foundation Director of External Relations Brandon Morgan calls it inspirational to start the weekend with this race every year.
"For me that's another one of my favorite parts," said Morgan. "It's a very inspirational race. We line the course with motorcycles and musicians, and those Special Olympians are coming down. They're finishing on Saginaw. The milers are coming down, [and] they're finishing on Saginaw. And it really just makes downtown feel very vibrant."
Runners also competed in the Michigan Mile this year on an all-new course. The start of the course remained the same, but race organizers moved the finish line to end on the bricks like the rest of the races.
"Part of the fun of Crim is having the uniqueness of our bricks, right?" said Morgan. "And that finishline has always felt a little bit apart from the rest of the festival. We wanted milers to have that same experience of finishing on the bricks, crossing the Elga Credit Union finish line and being welcomed that close to the festival."
The Crim Festival of Races continues Saturday morning with the 10 mile race beginning at 7 a.m..
