Shop, run, snowboard, eat: This weekend round-up has it all

Image by Flickr user AJ Knowles Nothing screams Charleston like a little urban snowboarding!

It's one of those weekends where it seems Charleston is living by one of my favorite mottos: Go big or go home.

For all the ladies out there, Saturday morning marks a milestone in King Street shopping history with the grand opening of Forever 21. Doors officially open at 10 a.m., but expect a crowd of well over 400 lined up hours beforehand, vying for the chance to score a free gift card.

If that sounds like your idea of hell, which for many of us, it does, run far far away from the Forever 21 madness in the first ever Charleston Marathon. The race route will take runners from downtown Charleston up to North Charleston, to Park Circle area and finish in the old Navy Yard. Watch out for some road closures along the race route.

[And that race will be coming up King Street around 8:30 a.m. — just about the time one would expect the Forever 21 crowd to really get queued up on King.]

Charleston Restaurant Week 2011 is back. If you want to pretend like you haven't already planned out which dining deals you're going to take advantage of, I'll go ahead and point you to where you can do so. If you're a true foodie and have no shame in the fact you've already got reservations every night of the week, I salute you!

The Charleston Symphony Orchestra swings back into action this weekend too. On Friday night, the CSO opens their 75th season at the Gaillard Municipal Auditorium.

As if Friday wasn't already busy enough, Cary Ann Hearst will be celebrating the release of her new record, Lions and Lambs this evening at the Pour House. If you've never had the chance to see CAH perform, tonight's the night my friends.

If you're still sticking with your New Year's resolution to be healtier in 2011, then you should definitely check out the Total Health Fair. On both Saturday and Sunday at the Omar Shrine Convention Center, Charleston’s premier healthcare providers and wellness based businesses will be on site showing you how you can improve all aspects of life. Live long and prosper.

The last "go big" event I'll mention here is Fuel's High Octane Winter Block Party on Saturday. If "high octane" isn't an indication of the "go big" mentality, then I don't know what is. Expect snowboarding, a curling sheet, snow storms, drink specials, live music, snowboarding films, and duh, an ice luge.

For even more happening around town this weekend, be sure you check out our complete Weekend Calendar. For an extra-good time, supplement your weekend reading with this week's edition of the Charleston City Paper's weekend round-up.

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