Celebrate everything Pittsburgh during EQT Pittsburgh 10 Miler

From pickles and pierogies to Pittsburghese, runners will be able to celebrate their love of all things Pittsburgh Saturday during the seventh annual EQT Pittsburgh 10 Miler.

More than 4,500 runners from 34 states are expected to participate in the race, which begins at 8 a.m. at Station Square on the South Side. It will take runners over the West End Bridge, across the North Side and through the Strip District before ending in in Downtown Pittsburgh.

Each mile will have a different Pittsburgh theme, designed to celebrate the best of the Steel City.

“We just wanted to throw a really, really fun event for our runners to celebrate what we consider the greatest city in the world,” said Allison Corbett, a spokeswoman for P3R, which designed the race. “We had 10 miles to play with, and we picked 10 of the cities favorite, unique quirks and traditions and we’re going to celebrate it throughout the entire 10 miles.”

There’s the City of Bridges mile, which celebrates Pittsburgh’s iconic bridges; the Mr. Rogers mile, where volunteers wearing Mr. Rogers’ trademark red cardigan will hand out water; the Pittsburghese mile, where local celebrity Curt Wootton, also known as “Pittsburgh Dad,” will cheer runners on; and the Parking Chair mile, where runners can, you guessed it, stop for a photo opportunity with 8 foot tall parking chairs.

There’s also a Pickle mile, a Cookie Table mile, and a Pierogi mile because, really, what would a Pittsburgh-themed race be without iconic Pittsburgh foods?

“We think everybody’s going to have a really great time along the course. It’s something that we’ve never done before,” Corbett said. “They’re going to have a completely unforgettable experience.”

Corbett said volunteers will be handing out thousands of cookies along the Cookie Table mile, and those volunteers have been invited to dress up in bridal gowns and tuxedos.

“I hope they are able to wear their gowns. That would be really fun,” Corbett said.

The Pickle mile will take runners across the Roberto Clemente Bridge into Downtown Pittsburgh, where they can get their fill of pickles and shots of pickle juice. They will run back across the bridge to continue the course.

There also will be a parking chair display with normal-sized chairs, Corbett said.

Streets along the race route will close from 6:30 a.m. to noon with a staggered reopening as runners pass. Parking on the streets will be prohibited starting at midnight, Saturday.

For more information on the event, to see the course map or to register visit: https://raceroster.com/events/2019/20193/eqt-pittsburgh-10-miler-2019