There are 2 options for the Carlsbad 5000, the 5K or the all day 20K. I chose to run the all day 20K. It sounds confusing, but all it is is running 5K four different times. The 5K race is done in 4 heats, males over 40, women over 40, males & females 30-39 and males & females 29 and under. So you run each of the heats for a total of 20K (about 12.5 miles)

This was my first time ever doing a race like this. It is such a unique and fun experience, you get to cross the finish line 4 times in one day! You feel the adrenaline with each race and you can rack up the miles. The experience and swag is great too! I highly recommend!!! If you don't want to run 20K, then run the 5K. It's a beautiful course, well organized and a wonderful experience.

Parking wasn't too challenging on race day. A TON of people participate in the 5K, so arrive early as you may have to park far away. The all day 20K participants have a tent/area specifically for them. It had port-a-potties, snacks, water bottles, tables and chairs and our own gear check. You were only allowed in if you had the all day 20K bib. It was so great having our own gear check & port-a-potties! We were able to grab our bags in between the races which was great as I kept taking off layers.

Once you crossed the finish line for a race, you could head back to the 20K tent, hang around, or go directly back to the start line. The time between races varied, but I always had some chill time between races. The quickest turn around for me was between races 2 & 3. It all depended on how quickly you ran the 5K.

The race course is beautiful, you run right thru downtown Carlsbad and get a whole mile next to the beach. The views are amazing!! There was one water station on the course. At the finish line they had water, gatorade and lots of snacks. For the all day 20K, we got a 5K medal when we ran with our age group, and a 20K medal once we completed all 4 races.

My only complaint, which isn't even that big of a deal, was people running in the wrong heat. At the start line they would always announce the heat age group, yet many people ran in heats that were not theirs. It is hard to tell peoples ages obviously, but in the males over 40, technically the only females should have been the all day 20K participants. There were lots of people who ran in the wrong heats. It doesn't matter much, other than that they were handing out medals to the top 250 finishers in each age group. I felt that it made things more confusing at the start line. I don't know how to avoid this other than giving each heat their own bib color? This was the only thing that could have been done better. Everything else was amazing!

Each participant got 2 free beers post race if you wished, and the band that was performing, Betamaxx, was awesome! It was a fun post race environment, the expo was amazing, great race swag, lots of snacks post race and everything was well organized. I loved it and I would run the 20K or the 5K again! It's a great excuse to visit SoCal & get some sunshine!