Rogue Running: Would you do it?

Here's the situation, Ben and I are trying to cut back in many ways. The little things that add up so easily, like buying coffee. I've made a no coffee buying pledge for December, and asked for Starbucks gift cards to curb this spending post holiday season as well. One of the ways I spend too much, is race entries. Sure, the big races are worth it, especially ones from Team Ortho, with the awesome swag you get. But some races, are just not worth it, and now that I'm running longer distances, 5K's especially.


So, this weekend a friend and I were speaking of running a 5K without paying for it, just showing up and running, and another runner was appalled. The thing is, I know for a fact this 5K doesn't give any of the profits to charity, it all goes to pad this company's wallet, and they make money in PLENTY of other ways, trust you me.

So, I don't really feel bad about it. In fact, I've paid for their races before, and the food lines are always atrocious, and I rarely actually stay to get the food because it's not worth the long wait and chaos to get it. The cotton shirts that come with the race entry always shrink, and end up being pathetic pajama shirts I wouldn't be seen in public in.

So, I'm not feeling bad about "rogue running" this race. I'm not stealing from the poor, and I pay for a lot of race entries during the year that do benefit great causes.

SO, what do you think? How do you manage to keep your race entry spending under control? Do you think it's OK not to pay for a race entry if the money doesn't go to charity and you don't get what you expect in return??