I love the Madison Mini. This was my second year in a row running this race and for the second year in a row, it did not disappoint.

T-Shirts/SWAG: The shirts are very cool. The design is a vintage vibe on a supremely soft cotton tee that is fun to wear. You get a free beer at the finish. This year's beer was a raspberry lemonade beer that was not my favorite, but still fun to try. The medals were very sparkly and they had a fun insert that twirled. You also get free race photos at this race, which I always think is a nice perk.

Course: The course is not flat. It winds through some great areas of Madison including the UW campus, along Lake Mendota, and the Arboretum. We had to run up the hill on Observatory at the end of the course this year which was super challenging.

Race Management: The race is well managed. This was the first year that I had access to the VIP area and I really liked it for the separate gear check and bathrooms pre-race. There was a full set up of food for breakfast and lunch as well as post-race massages that I did not take advantage of because I had my kids with me.

Aid Stations: The Aid stations in this race are the best! Local groups volunteer and there is a contest for best aid station and it shows. They are loud and cheer and decorate! Every aid station made me smile.

I also enjoy that the Madison Mini has a kids' race, which my children ran in for the second year in a row and also that the charity helps moms and babies. I still think they need more porta potties at the starting area.

Disclaimer: I ran the Christie Clinic Illinois Marathon as a BibRave Pro, which means my race entry fee was covered in exchange for social media promotion and reviewing the race!

I was excited to run the Christie Clinic Illinois Marathon in 2019!

Logistics: My family and I stayed at the Homewood Suites hotel, which was a short 3 minute drive to the start/finish area. The expo was in the same place that the finish/start area were which made it easy to get to and park. I applied for elite status for the race which meant that logistics were even easier for me. I was able to warm up race morning at a hospitality suite in the i-Hotel and have access to the bathrooms. My husband commented that logistics for him to get himself and our two young kids to the finish were probably the easiest they have ever been.

Expo: The expo packet pickup was the day before, located in the campus rec center. Everything was very well marked and there were volunteers with large orange fingers EVERYWHERE helping out. The contents of the expo were fairly standard. My kids enjoyed getting some swag from all of the booths and I got my picture taken with my number in front of the race wall.

T-Shirts/SWAG: The t-shirts were long sleeve technical fabric and neon green. Probably not my favorite but the fleece blanket that we got at the finish made up for it! The race also does free race photos, which is one of my favorite amenities races can do! The medals were very colorful and detailed and featured Abe Lincoln.

Aid Stations: The aid stations were well placed and well supplied. I liked that they had several Gu stops along the course instead of the typical one. I noticed the medical aid stations along the course were also extremely well marked, which might be the first time I have noticed these along a race course (even though I thankfully did not have to use one).

Course: The course is known as flat and fast - a good course for a PR, although that wasn't the case for me. Someone told me that the course had a lot of turns but I wasn't prepared for just how many turns that was! It was pretty crowded during the first part as the half marathon and marathon ran together. My favorite part of the course was miles 8 and 9 which were through a nice park. Otherwise it was mostly a neighborhood route.

Elevation: The elevation is flat. There is a minor incline around mile 24 which honestly didn't feel too bad, even at it's placement.

Race Management: Top-notch race management! I was very impressed with the communication from the race directors leading up to the race. We received very thorough race update emails for months ahead of time. As part of the elite group, I also had some extra communication from the race directors with specific instructions for us, including an informational pre-race meeting, which I attended. They were very thorough in all of the information and genuinely wanted to make this event a top-notch event to attract a bigger field of elites in the coming years.

Another well-organized, easy to navigate race experience! Kudos to the Illinois Marathon for putting on a good event!

Disclaimer: I ran the Madison Marathon as a BibRave Pro, which means my race entry fee was covered in exchange for social media promotion and reviewing the race!

I was excited to run Madison Marathon in 2018. I knew from friends that the course would be challenging, and that the weather in November in Wisconsin would be cool. The 2018 race proved to be both!

While my time was not the greatest, I did enjoy this race.

Logistics: My family and I stayed at the Hyatt Place hotel, which was a short walk to the start/finish area. Everything was very well organized and easy to get to. I should say that I went to college at UW Madison so am very familiar with Madison. My family was able to see me in several different spots along the course and they said this was not challenging to do. I loved that the start and finish were at the same place, the capitol. This made race morning very easy to deal with.

Expo: The expo packet pickup was the day before, located in the Monona Terrace. The expo was easy to navigate and did not feel as crammed as expos usually feel. The race had a banner for all expo attendees to sign and thank a veteran. My kids and I had a great time with that.

T-Shirts/SWAG: I love the t-shirts. They are a soft cotton long sleeve black shirt with a very cool graphic design on the front. They fit beautifully. The medals also are really nice - this race is doing those puzzle medals - where if you run the race several years in a row, your medals will form a puzzle. The race also does free race photos, which is one of my favorite amenities races can do!

Aid Stations: The aid stations were well placed and well supplied, although I only used them for water cups. It was so cold that the water in cups started freezing! The finish line food was great - bananas, oranges, bottles of water, a Panera lunch, including a sandwich, cookie and bag of chips, and a Michelob Ultra beer. They did a nice job of having plenty of porta potties at the start/finish area.

Course: The course is great, and very challenging. I really liked how they did a figure-8 style course including the arboretum, bike paths, UW Madison campus, Tenney park, Warner Park, and Maple Bluff. There are a LOT of hills. This is a good course to challenge yourself with!

Elevation: The elevation is no joke. Strava showed a 1,240 foot elevation gain over the course.

Race Management: This year was the 24th year of the race. Volunteers were great and the course was well marked. Emails leading up to the race were clear and easy to follow and had good graphics. I thought the course map in particular was nice. I really liked the alignment with Veterans Day. The race gave us "Thank you for your service" buttons to wear and veterans who ran were easily identifiable with a USA flag on their race bib.

Overall, this is a well organized, easy to navigate race experience showcasing a great Midwestern city!

While my time was not the greatest, I did enjoy this race.

Logistics: My family and I stayed at the Madison Concourse Hotel, which was within easy walking distance to the start/finish area. The expo packet pickup was the night before, which I generally am not a fan of because I would have opted to not stay over Friday night if I could have gotten my packet on race day. Everything was very well organized and easy to get to. I should say that I went to college at UW Madison so am very familiar with Madison.

Expo: The expo was fine. Very small, but easy to get in and out of.

T-Shirts/SWAG: I love the t-shirts. They offered a women's cut and a cute vintage-looking design. The t-shirt itself is very soft. One of my favorite race shirts. The medals are pretty and can be used as a bottle opener. The race-medal-as-bottle opener feels a little gimmicky at this point. Does anyone actually use their race medal as a bottle opener? Participants also received a free beer at the finish. The finish line party is held at the Memorial Union, which is a perfect venue for an event like this. Also, free race photos!!!!!

Aid Stations: The aid stations were well placed and well supplied. Most of the volunteer groups that worked at an aid station gave their aid station a theme so that was really fun because they went all out! My favorite aid station was the swimming team around mile 9ish.

Course: The course is fantastic, especially for a UW Madison alum who loves coming back to visit! The start and finish line were close to each other making logistics and spectating easy. I liked how the course was a mix of roads/urban and trails/woods. It was very well laid out.

Elevation: There are some hills but nothing crazy. I enjoyed the elevation change.

Race Management: This year was the 10th annual Madison Mini and worked like a well-oiled machine. I have no complaints. Volunteers were spectacular and easy to spot with their coordinated yellow t-shirts and everything was well marked. Emails leading up to the race were clear and easy to follow. My kids participated in the kids run and had a blast and of course we all loved meeting Bucky Badger.

Can't wait to run this one again!

There is a reason that so many people told me "Grandma's Marathon is on my bucket list". If it's not on yours, you need to add it. I ran a PR race here this year which likely influences my thoughts on the race, but I truly think that even if my time wasn't a PR, I would have loved it.

Logistics: I had heard that lodging can be difficult so best to secure this as early as possible. We stayed at the Comfort Inn West which did a great job accommodating the runners. They had refrigerated water bottles, rain ponchos and granola bars available at all times and the staff wore green Grandma's Marathon t-shirts all weekend. The best part was that this hotel was one of the shuttle locations to take to the start. All I had to do on Saturday morning was wake up, get dressed and walk out my hotel to board a shuttle. The race also has a train that you can take to the start, which I might do in future years.

Expo: I had to take my two young kids to the expo with me and we all had a good time, except it was fairly crowded, as all Expos seem to be. You had to pay $5 to park at the expo location. Packet pickup was very efficient. There were a lot of high quality vendors at the expo.

T-Shirts/SWAG: The finisher shirt is awesome - and you have to finish to get it. They have women's cut and men's cut shirts, and the sizing was good. (Sometimes I find that the women's cut shirts don't fit me very well - not so with these.) The medals are also very nice - they are heavy and showcase the amazing pine trees that line most of the course.

Aid Stations: The aid stations were well placed and well supplied. Volunteers were amazing. I liked that they had the water and powerade clearly marked and on both sides of the course which made it easy to grab and go. I had looked what the sports drink was going to be prior to the race and am not a fan of Powerade but because I knew that was what was going to be supplied, I could make accommodations.

Course: The course is gorgeous. Very rural and tree-lined for the majority of the race, with sporadic views of Lake Superior. There are many images from this course burned in my memory but one thing that I wasn't anticipating is the smell. Around mile 7, I loudly announced, "You can smell pine trees!!!" . It was incredible. Also, even though it is rural, there are plenty of spectators cheering for you the whole way. Duluth really comes out to support their marathon! The course had to be re-routed this year due to construction so I don't know what the last few miles normally are like, but the detour seemed fine to me.

Elevation: This is a net downhill course, with some rolling throughout. Nothing really felt like a hill. There is "Lemon Drop hill" around mile 24 (I think) which didn't feel great running up, but was more of a blip than a hill. If it was placed earlier in the course, you wouldn't even feel it.

Race Management: This year was the 42nd annual Grandma's Marathon and clearly they have the race management down. I experienced no difficulties with any part of this race. The morning shuttle driver did miss our drop off, which made our bus have to walk a bit more to get to the start, but nothing crazy. The porta potty configuration was a little weird and resulted in some line confusion. I loved that I could take my gear with me to the start and gear check it at the start. They gave you a clear bag which you placed a color-coded numbered sticker on and dropped it in a trash can with your color. Could not have been easier! The miles were very clearly marked with these huge balloons, that were fun to hunt down. The tracking app worked beautifully - I had many friends and family tracking me and based on the text messages I had on my phone when I powered it on after the race, it worked just fine for them! The finish line snacks were great and I liked that you got a beverage ticket so you could choose what beverage you could get (I opted for the coffee). Bananas, fresh strawberries, Clif bars, chocolate milk, fresh OJ, water was all plentiful. Oh! And potato chips!!! I have never had potato chips after a race and I am now going to start. YUM.

Thank you Duluth and Grandma's Marathon for an incredible race. I will for sure be back!