This is by far the most unique race I have ever run in Philadelphia. I say that because it took place at midnight during the in24 Philly Race Weekend. Before I get into the race itself let me just explain the in24 weekend first. It is a period from 10:00 AM Saturday to 10:00 AM Sunday that consist of 4 different races. The major race of the weekend was a 24 hour ultra marathon. The goal is for each runner to see how many miles you could do in that time, the Male winner ran 133 miles and Female winner ran 118 miles.

What made the other races in that weekend so fun is that they were all taking place at the same location. So by the time I got to the starting line of the Midnight Madness 8 Miler runners had been running the course for 14 hours already! The starting line was set up like a mini camping area. Runners had tents set up with EZ up's and lawn chairs stationed by their tents. And inside the building a room was used for runners to sleep during the 24 hour period. For someone like me who only ever runs 5K's, 10K's, and Half's this was a new experience for sure.

Now on to the race....

As far as pre race activities go I did not participate in the bib pick up before the race. I picked mine up as I got to the starting line. The bib pick up was held at Philadelphia Runner the day before. I have been a part of that process many times before so it was nothing new to me. You go into the Philadelphia Runner store and usually a table is set up in the back to get your bib. Pretty straight forward and easy process. Since I had plans Friday I chose to pick up mine at the race. This was a simple process. I walked up to a desk, signed a waiver and got my bib and shirt.

The 8 Mile course was a lot of fun. It is the same course that every major Philadelphia race runs. Up Kelly Drive, cross over East Falls Bridge, run back down MLK Dr to the finish. This is called the "Philadelphia River Loop" to locals. It is called that because you are running around the Schuylkill River the whole time. So while I have run this route a million times before this time was a lot more fun because it was midnight. A beautiful area of Philadelphia is called Boathouse Row, if you have never heard of it check it out. It is essentially a row of houses where most major universities house their rowing teams and equipment. What makes it so beautiful is at night every house lights up. Google "Boathouse Row at Night" and you will see what I mean. During the final miles of the race you saw Boathouse row all lit up with the city lights behind it. Even as I type the description it brings a tingle to my arms remembering what an amazing site it was. I tried to get a picture of this but unfortunately between being really sweaty and trying to maintain running it did not work out too well. Run this race to experience it yourself.

The race management group also did a great job keeping the course safe. Since it was run at midnight it was very easy to get lost in the dark. They did warn all runners that there was a 1/4 mile area that was unlit, so to be careful, but honestly I didn't experience that much of an unlit path. There were times where it got dark, but not for too long. During stretches of the course that were not lit with street posts they had their own lights on the course. They were also handing out glow sticks and gave away free reflective armbands, so they did their part of keeping everyone safe.

The course was well prepared with water and aid along the way. Since this was the same course as the ultra marathoners they were prepared for more runners than expected. At one point I got a whole water bottle, which is something I have never gotten at an aid station. It was perfect timing because it was around that time that my hydration vest was running low. So I slowed down and poured the bottle of water into my vest and went back on. Even though it was midnight, it was somewhere around 85 degrees and very humid so my water went fast.

Overall this is a great race for those that want to break out of their comfort zone. Too many races in Philadelphia tend to run the same path at the same time of day where it becomes routine. This race was so outside of the norm that I recommend everyone race it at least once. Plus you will never get a view of the city and boathouse row like that anywhere else.