With less than a day before runners take to the streets of Fort Worth, many spent Friday picking up their packets, registering for races or doing some last-minute shopping.
Tom Murray and his friends upgraded up to the grueling 31-mile ultra marathon at the last minute.
"We're tired from last week's Austin [Marathon], so, no, we're not ready, but we'll be ready on Sunday because I hear that there's Miller Genuine 64 [beer] at the end of the race. That's what we're ready for," he said.
There are also hardcore runners such as Rick Johnson. This year's race will be the Garland man's eighth Cowtown. He has been an ultra marathon runner for the past three years.
"When you get to mile 25, and you see the marathoners continuing on for that one final mile they have, and you know you still have six miles when you turn off, and you see them continuing straight, it puts a little bit of a head game in your mind," he said.
Monica James is running the 5k on Saturday and the marathon on Sunday.
"When you're running, you don't want any of your friends to see you walking so, even if you think you're going to walk, you don't dare, because you never know where they're going to show up," she said.
The Scene
The runners in the 35th annual Cowtown are expected to be part of a record-breaking crowd this weekend.
"It's a record number," said Heidi Swartz, Cowtown executive director. "I know we've exceeded last year's numbers and we've set a new record, but the runners are registering so fast that I haven't been able keep up with it at this point."
NBC 5 is a Cowtown sponsor.
