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The Bay to Breakers is the official site of the World
Centipede Running Championships. The official distance of the World Centipede
Running Championships was the result of a historic run of 7.46 miles in
the year 1978, when 13 heroic Aggie Running Club Centipede athletes ran
from San Francisco Bay to the Pacific Ocean in the Bay to Breakers. |
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 Fun Runner Centipede Rules
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Centipede Categories |
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Seeded Centipede Rules |
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Fun Runner Centipede Rules |
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Bay to Breakers does not require group registration for Fun Runner Centipedes. Please register each individual separately. Please read registration guidelines.
Competition guidelines were adopted by the International Centipede Congress.
1. Each adult centipede must consist of 13 runners plus one floater who runs alongside, substituting for runners who lose a shoe, drop off the pace or need to make a pit stop.
2. Each youth centipede must consist of six runners plus one floater. All runners must be from the same school or club and must be in the ninth grade or below.
3. The adult centipede body must be 60 feet long. Youth centipedes must measure exactly 32 feet. Judges will measure every centipede in order to curtail illegal modifications.
4. A centipede may be made of any material that an organization, school or club deems appropriate. However, try to keep it light, flexible and well-ventilated. Allow at least four feet between individual leg segments.
5. Twinkie feelers on the head of each segment are required.
6. The final segment of each centipede must wear a stinger of appropriate design and toxicity.
7. Each segment must be filled with a registered centipede athlete in order to be eligible for official awards.
8. During the entire competition, all required body segments must be present in the centipede body. If a segment is to be exchanged, the replacement must give the centipede's official password to exclude unauthorized participants.
9. To re-enter the centipede, a displaced runner must catch up with the body and resume his original segment, which the floater has been occupying. The official password and secret acknowledgment must be repeated each time. If the floater makes a permanent substitution, no other substitutions are allowed.
10. An adult team must finish with 13 runners including at least 12 of the original runners comprising the centipede, plus the official floater. A youth team must finish with six runners including five of the original runners plus the floater.
11. Decals or other advertisements for high performance may be displayed on any centipede body.
12. A Lenichi Turn, a 360-degree turn made famous by two Eastern European centipede runners (Oscar and Igatoo Lenichi) in the 18th century, must be executed at Lindley Meadow in Golden Gate Park just beyond the 6-mile point. The Lenichi Turn must not interfere with other runners.
13. All centipedes must start from the rear of the Fun Runners' pack with their stingers up against the remnants of Pier 16 on the Bay's edge at the foot of Howard Street. Each centipede will be checked in prior to the race to prevent questionable starts. |
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Centipede Categories |
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VELOCIPEDE: Men only.
SPEEDYPEDE: Women only.
SPLITPEDE: Coed. No more than 7 of one gender.
MINIPEDE: Youth, ninth grade or below, with three boys and three girls.
SEEDED-PEDE: Male and Female. See Seeded Centipede below for information. Awards will be given to the fastest seeded centipede. |
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Seeded Centipede Rules |
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Seeded Centipedes must register by mail,
due to the requirement for written proof of qualifying times. Registration
and written proof are due in-house by April 18. Please do not register online.
Please read registration guidelines below and download a PDF
registration form.
1. A centipede consists of 13 connected individuals and a maximum of two unconnected alternates.
2. All 15 individuals in the centipede must qualify for seeded status in order to start the race in the seeded section.
3. Men's qualifying times are 34:30 10K; 42:30 12K; 2:44 Marathon. Women's qualifying times are 37:30 10K; 48:30 12K; 3:08 Marathon.
4. Each member of the centipede must present written proof of that qualifying time. Qualifying time must be from a USAT&F-certified race within one calendar year of the Bay to Breakers and may include last year's Bay to Breakers.
5. To ensure safety, please keep costumes simple.
6. Seeded centipedes start the race at the back of the seeded section. Placement violations will result in disqualification.
7. Seeded centipedes must check in BEFORE 7 AM on race morning. The check-in
area is located at Mission and Main Streets. Any team or individual members
arriving AFTER 7 AM will not be admitted to the seeded section.
8. The first person in each centipede to cross the finish line determines the finishing time for all 13 individuals in the centipede and the official finishing time for that centipede. The 14th and 15th members of the centipedes (alternates), whether or not they finish with the other 13 members, will be treated as individual finishers with their own times.
9. There must be 13 CONNECTED FINISHERS in a centipede to win or place. All 13 members must exit the rear of the finish line chute or the centipede will be disqualified.
10. Individuals must write their own name and their centipede team name on their runner number tear-off tag.
11. The Lenichi Turn is optional for seeded competition.
12. Twinkie feelers are required only for the first person in each centipede, but the entire team is encouraged to wear them.
13. The end of each centipede is required to have a stinger at least six inches in length.
14. The centipede must be no more than 60 feet long, allowing at least four feet between leg segments. Each centipede will be measured from nose to stinger by race officials prior to the start.
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