Run for Wildlife {Giveaway for Safari Zoo Run 2017}

Safari Zoo Run is back! Yes, come 2017, it will be happening on 18 February (Saturday) and we just can't wait for it to take place. The girls were literally jumping in the air when I told them that we would be joining next year!

As you know, we have participated in a handful of family-friendly runs over the years. The Safari Zoo Run remains our favourite because it combines two of our loves - animals and running. In fact, being the avid runners and animal lovers that the girls are, this is just the perfect run for them. While it will be a day for the family to come together, keep fit, bond and enjoy at the same time, it will also be a time when we remind ourselves on the importance of wildlife conservation.

THEME 

Did you know that the Safari Zoo Run was conceived to commemorate Singapore Zoo’s famous matriarch and one of Singapore’s most loved animal personalities — Ah Meng the Sumatran orangutan, who died of old age in February 2008?

The theme for next year's run is “Run for Wildlife" which focuses on raising awareness for wildlife conservation. There will be four animal icons featured - Ah Meng the Orangutan, Chawang the Asian Elephant, Canola the Manatee and Sunny the Hornbill and each animal icon team supports an endangered wildlife species that Wildlife Reserves Singapore (WRS) would like to raise awareness for.

Guess which team we have chosen to support? We love all four of them but Chawang gets our vote because we love seeing him at the Night Safari (We are Friends of it and love to hop on a tram ride around the park when we have nothing to do in evenings) and we were so thrilled when his baby calf was born this year - the zoo's first elephant birth in six years! Just so you know, an elephant’s gestation period usually lasts between 22-24 months, which makes it the longest pregnancy in the animal kingdom. *salute to Mummy Sri Nandong*

Oh, here we were at the Safari Zoo Run in 2015 which was the inaugural run (go here to read about our experience and our interview with Young Parents on why we love running)! It still seemed like yesterday when we were running past the animals in the zoo and enjoying every moment of that experience as a family of four. How time flies, right? We now have three in our brood and the baby is going to turn one very soon already!

RACE CATEGORIES AND AGE LIMIT

So, talking about age, what is the age limit for the run categories (10km, 5.5km and 2.5km)? Take a look below to find out.

Now, many of you may have kids below the age of 4 so not to worry, the good news is children below 3 years old (as of 18 Feb 17) enter for FREE in the non-competitive family categories (5.5km or 2.5km)! However, he/she will not receive the runner's entitlements and the parent has to be a registered participant for that category. You do not need to register the child and you can bring along your stroller so that it gets easier to handle the little one when he/she gets tired. Yes, this means Baby Asher will be going for his first run very soon, woohoo! I definitely think it's worthwhile to let the young ones try it out and be exposed to such fun-filled and meaningful runs.

DISCOUNT CODE

For all A Happy Mum readers, you can enjoy a 10% discount off prevailing rates when you register from now till 15 Jan 2017 at www.safarizoo.run using the code SZR2017BGPAHMUM10.

GIVEAWAY

Good news! A Happy Mum is now giving away TWO race slots (in any category) to a lucky reader! To participate, leave a comment in this post with your name, email address and tell me which is your favourite animal icon for Safari Zoo Run 2017 and why. Indicate in the Rafflecopter widget that you have done so and to increase your chances of winning, you can choose to carry out the rest of the options. Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway
We sure hope to see you there next year!

For more information on Safari Zoo Run 2017, visit www.safarizoo.run or their Facebook page.