Only in San Francisco: Bay to Breakers 2010

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- Sunday was a day of wild costumes and heavy drinking as tens of thousands of people turned out for the 99th Bay to Breakers.

By Sunday evening, the party had wrapped up but the trash remained. The clean-up effort that follows the race is almost as amazing as the race itself. The street cleaners head out even before the last stragglers cross the finish line.

Police are calling this year's race a peaceful event. There were 60,000 runners and a few thousand more along just for the ride. Many actually went dressed for the occasion.

As usual, some people had a little too much fun. At Alamo Park, rangers issued citations for open containers. Nearly 900 portable toilets were scattered along the route to alleviate neighbors concerns, but not everyone took advantage of them. Last year's police crackdown on kegs remained in effect, but it did not put a damper on the drinking or the party.

"It's just as fun," one man told ABC7, mentioning that "a little less urine would be great."

This year, organizers also tried to get control over the floats. They were not allowed on the entire course because too many were getting dumped along the route. There was also a $250 float registration fee.

"I will pay double that," Nick Kounalaks of San Francisco said before later rescinding his sentiment. "No, don't tell them that. Don't tell them that."

The overcast weather made for perfect running conditions, especially for those wearing the uniform Bay to Breakers is most famous for. Even some of the people wearing more clothing had a difficult time keeping it on.

"It's a party," Anthony Ang of Vallejo told ABC7 as his fake moustache fell off. "If you want to race, you come at six in the morning. If you party, it's like 7 o'clock to 8 o'clock."

The party eventually comes to an end but the clean-up goes on for hours.

"A little bit of effort, but it's worth it to see them have fun," said David Dupree, who lives along the race route. "What can you say? I mean this is San Francisco."

Police say they made less than a dozen arrests and they say most of those were alcohol-related. There were also a number of medical calls out on the race route and some of those were alcohol-related as well. One person was treated after the finish line and transported to a local hospital. Officials say those injuries were not serious.

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san francisco bay, golden gate park, bay to breakers, san francisco news, cecilia vega

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