Philadelphicon: The Running of the Santas

It’s Christmastime in the city. And for a surprising number of Philadelphians — about 6,000 — that means it’s time to down some eggnog, throw on a Santa suit, and go for a jog through Northern Liberties. This year, on December 13th at 6 p.m., they’ll all gather — with bells on, naturally — for the annual two-block run from Finnegan’s Wake to the “North Pole” (a.k.a. McFadden’s). Since it started 10 years ago, the holiday pub-crawl has snowballed: What started out as 40 dudes in Santa gear in Manayunk is now a licensed event in 25 other cities. Here, the dash consists mostly of Santas or Santa spin-offs (Elvis Santa, Superman Santa), but you can sometimes spot a few elves, reindeer and even spinning dreidels who get caught up in the holiday spirits — er, spirit. www.runningofthesantas.com