Going Bananas Run - Rochester
About this race
Get Ready to Go Bananas, Rochester!
This isn’t your normal 5K. Actually, it’s not even a 5K.
The Going Bananas Run Rochester is a roughly three-mile fun run where hundreds of people take over the trails of Rochester dressed head to toe as bananas. Yes, bananas.
Run it. Walk it. Bring the kids. Get a group of friends together. Try to win the whole thing. We really don’t care how you do it. The whole point is to have a ridiculously fun time while raising money for a great local cause.
🍌 Your Banana Suit Is Included
Every registration comes with your very own banana suit to wear during the run and take home afterward.
You’ll also get entry into the Gorilla Challenge and access to the post-race celebration.
We’ll have serious runners at the front, walkers in the back, families, friend groups, coworkers, and plenty of people who signed up mostly because running through Rochester dressed as a banana sounded too funny to pass up.
🦍 Can You Beat the Gorilla?
Here’s where things get interesting.
All of the bananas start first. Two minutes later, we release the Gorilla.
Then it’s a race to the finish.
Cross the finish line before the Gorilla catches you and you’ll earn the coveted “I Beat the Gorilla” finisher prize.
Get caught? No big deal. The Gorilla Challenge is completely optional and mostly exists to make the run more fun. It also helps us raise even more money for a local nonprofit, so the faster you run, the more good we can do.
🎉 Stick Around After the Run
Crossing the finish line doesn’t mean you have to head home.
Stick around for food and drinks, sponsor activities, awards, photos, and a few hundred people standing around Rochester in banana suits wondering how this became their Saturday.
So grab your friends. Bring the family. Convince your coworkers. Build a banana squad.
Try to beat the Gorilla. Help us raise some money. Have a great time.
And if you need one more reason to sign up...
When else are you going to get the chance to run through Rochester dressed as a banana? 🍌
Going Bananas Run - Rochester
Run bananas. Beat the Gorilla. Give back.
Want more fun? Join one of our other 2 locations to get the full Banana experience
Twin Cities - May 8th | Rochester - May 22nd | Duluth - June 5th
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Running
Going Bananas Run - Rochester
This event is open for all ages and raises money for the American Cancer Society.
Typical race-day weather
Based on 2 years of Open-Meteo archive data for this event's race dates in Rochester, plus the 3 days either side.
The sun rises at 5:36 AM and sets at 8:36 PM local time (CDT) in Rochester on May 22, 2027 — 14h 59m of daylight.
Course
No course map published yet.
The organizer hasn't released a route for this event, and we don't publish guesses. If you're the organizer, send us a GPX file and we'll draw the profile.
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🏃 Plan Your Next Race in Rochester
Find upcoming events by distance:
- Rochester 5K Races 20 races
- 10K Run Events in Rochester 12 races
- Rochester Half Marathons 11 races
- Rochester Running Calendar 2026 20 races
Where this page comes from. Race details were last updated on . We re-check listings regularly and again in the week before race day.
- Entries, prices, waves and inclusions — the event's official registration page
- Temperature and humidity — Copernicus ERA5 reanalysis via Open-Meteo (CC BY 4.0)
- Elevation and terrain relief — Copernicus DEM GLO-90, ESA (CC BY 4.0)
- Comparisons and counts — Race Discovery calendar, 20 Rochester events
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