Sports & Recreation picks

If you’re a Giants fan, it’s now OK to love the River Cats as well.

If you’re a Giants fan, it’s now OK to love the River Cats as well.

Illustrations by Ben Della Rosa

Are you a night owl looking for some nocturnal playtime? Nighttime sports, we mean. If you didn’t see our picks, better take a peek.

86. Burst your bubble

Could you be the next captain? Only if you know the secret password.

Bubble Run

With the ubiquity of color runs, superhero runs, ’80s runs, undie runs, etc., the cynic in all of us ought to be suspicious of Big Fitness and the pretty penny it’s making off coercing adults into exercising under the guise of “fun.” But that same inner grump has to admit that running wild through a wonderland of colored foam definitely makes running more tolerable. All the more so because this 5K is not a race, but a nod to childhood, when you used to run because it’s simply what your legs wanted to do. $50, children 4 and under are free; various times on June 4 at Cal Expo, 1600 Exposition Boulevard; www.bubblerun.com. D.D.

87. Join the Giants bandwagon

Sacramento River Cats

Now that our local minor league team feeds the Giants, maybe River Cats games will feel a little livelier. Will Giants bandwagoners go as far as getting obsessed with the River Cats, because some players may wind up at AT&T Park one day? Laying on a blanket in the grass of Raley Field is always a good time, regardless. Raley Field, 400 Ballpark Drive in West Sacramento; www.milb.com/index.jsp?sid=t105. J.B.

88. Pretend you’re European

Sacramento Republic FC

We may still not have a Major League Soccer team—and soccer may not be as popular here as in other countries—but you wouldn’t know it at a Republic home game. The fans are as rabid as they come. Score a seat near the maroon fan pit known as the Tower Bridge Battalion and you’ll quickly learn chants, songs and taunts—and why Sacramento is definitely a soccer town. Bonney Field, 1600 Exposition Boulevard; www.sacrepublicfc.com. J.B.

89. Act like a kid again

Oxford Circle Park

If you’ve ever been told you were too old to slide down the slide or too big to fit in the swing, Oxford Circle Park is for you. This green oasis of childhood nestled in Davis—lovingly called the Little Big People’s Park—is a playground for people who never want to stop playing, no matter how old they are. There’s a rope jungle-gym pyramid, a merry-go-round, a Frisbee golf course and lots of open green space. Never grow up. Life’s just more fun that way. 505 Oxford Circle in Davis. W.C.

90. Support the scrum

PRO Rugby Sacramento

For too long, Sacramento-area prep schools and colleges have exported smash-face athletes with hay bales for thighs. This year, we can finally put these bruisers to work. Sacramento is one of five cities—three in California—with a team in the new Professional Rugby Organization, and boasts several players from the region. The squad won its first match on April 17 at Bonney Field against San Francisco, before losing against first-place San Diego in the second week. With top-ranked center Mirco Bergamasco and fullback Harry Bennett on the (currently) fourth-place team, Sacramento hopes to reverse those fortunes by the end of the inaugural season, which runs through July. Bonney Field, 1600 Exposition Boulevard, www.prorugby.org/team/sacramento. RFH

91. Captain a yacht

Sacramento Yacht Club

A legacy that dates back even before its official 1929 founding. A password-protected membership. An exclusive clubhouse. FREE ICE. (OK, now we’re just quoting the website.) You don’t have to boast an important-sounding nautical title like “rear commodore” to appreciate how ritzy the Sacramento Yacht Club sounds. With sponsored membership requirements and $505 annual dues, it better be. If Sacramento has an Illuminati, it convenes aboard water mansions. 3365 South River Road in West Sacramento, (916) 371-5058, http://sacyc.com. RFH

91.6. Sleep in too late for Yoga in the Park. Again.