I'm a big fan of the Tennessee State Parks Running Tour series. The races take place all over the state in 20 different state parks. It combines my favorite things: visiting parks + running!

This was a great race and such a good experience! Definitely recommended!

PROS--
--> I love the small and uncomplicated feel of the Running Tour races.
--> The registration, with a shirt included, was only $22. It would have been only $20 but I registered late. Considering I frequently pay $75+ to run a race, this is the best price ever.
--> The shirts are great -- dri-fit with a nice-looking 40th anniversary logo on them. The shirts are very, very similar for every race in the series (the colors change and the back sometimes has extra graphics depending on the race) so it's nice to basically only need to buy one shirt for all the races.
--> The people who race the Running Tour events are so friendly and are often the same people year to year. It's nice to have a nice, relaxed post-run time. The organizers are often the same people, too, so it's nice to see familiar faces!
--> Though I only ate bananas, they do provide a nice spread of bananas, cookies, and pretzels at the finish line.
--> Monte, who takes the photos for a lot of races in the series, is an excellent photographer and as someone who often goes to races alone I'm grateful for on-course photographers!!

CONS--
--> Not that it was any fault of the organizer's but IT WAS SO HOT. High 80s in October! Man. We really needed an earlier start for this race.
--> No idea if this could ever be arranged, but I wonder if either of these have ever been considered: (1) closing one lane to car traffic during the race only on the main road 2 mile segment or (2) moving the course to the Trail of Tears trail that parallels the main road? I know moving the race course to a trail changes the race, but it would make it a lot less stressful for participants and for car traffic... plus that trail was SHADED and we needed shade!!

Highly recommended!!!