Unfortunately the 2019 race was cancelled one hour before the start, but I ran it in 2018 and it's a fantastic and quintessential Austin experience! The race is very well organized and the expo was great. I didn't love the 2018 shirts but the 2019 ones were amazing - I will still wear mine even though the race didn't happen! We were all very disappointed that the race was cancelled for lightning one hour before the start but the communication was prompt and responsible. Entry fees were not refunded but 2019 registrants will be offered a discount for 2020. I'll be back in 2020 for sure!

I had a great experience! The out-and-back course along the Bayou was a bit boring but I enjoyed the race nonetheless. The race organization was smooth and the swag was fantastic, especially the post-race hot chocolate spread. It was a typically muggy and warm Houston winter morning but still a fun day!

The Queens 10K is fun because it's part of NYRR's Five Borough series, so there are always a lot of people in attendance at these races. (This is not a small neighborhood 10K!) It's a pretty flat course but the combination of many, many turns and weather that is usually hot and humid makes it difficult to PR. I was surprised that the corrals weren’t being enforced like in most other NYRR races; in this race there were no volunteers checking bibs and you could join the starting corrals wherever you wanted. Medals were great and there is free engraving for NYRR members. If you don't live in Queens, it's a pain to get to and takes a long time since the subway is packed heading to the race and heading home afterwards. Running around the Unisphere is the highlight right at the end!

The Mini 10K is a tradition for many female runners in NYC. It's a historic race so it's always fun to participate in, but it is also always crowded and usually hot. The elevation in Central Park makes it difficult to PR. The crowd support is great because many of the NYC running teams get their male runners to come out and cheer for the women! At the finish line, you get a medal, a pink flower, and a pink bagel, which is a cute (but unnecessary) touch. The race is crowded for the whole route which might be frustrating if you are surrounded by runners going slower than you want to. It's also a fun race to spectate because elites run it for prize money.

A really fun race but difficult elevation; there are a LOT of hills! I had trained on the course for a few long runs and felt prepared for them. The last few miles are relatively flat, with a rather brutal uphill right at Mile 26. No seeded corrals, so you could start wherever you wanted - the half marathon started together with the full marathon and split off at Mile 12.5. The t-shirts were unisex so they weren't great for women; the size small was huge. The 4-hour pacer ran about 3:55, which was really bad (there was also a 3:55 pacer). The medals are also belt buckles, which is so much fun!