I picked up my bib packet the night before the race. Aside from my bib, the packet contained a cinch bag from Training Zone, the gym that holds the race, a small bag of Pop Corners chips, a small bag of Blue Diamond Nut-Thins, a sample of natural ranch from Hidden Valley, a box of Yorkshire Tea bags, a sample of shave oil, and a coloring book. I only gave 2 stars for T-Shirts/SWAG although this is probably mostly personal preference. First of all, aside from the nut-thins and chips, I will not use the rest of these items. Secondly, there was no t-shirt for this race. I would rather have a t-shirt than a cinch bag, even if it meant spending $5-10 more for my registration.

I gave 3 stars for Parking/Access. If you arrive early enough, parking should be fairly close. I gave a lower rating because this race is advertised as family/stroller friendly but there is a long, steep staircase you have to climb to reach the start line. I was pushing my son in a stroller for this race and had to enlist 2 friends to help me carry the stroller up the stairs. (Then the same back down after the race.)

Before the start of the race, those of us with strollers were instructed to stand in the back of the pack. If I could do it again, I would've ignored these instructions and stood in the middle of the pack like my regular pace. I struggled to get around walkers and slower runners for over half a mile. The road was narrow and only about 3 runners wide. Since I had my stroller, I was unable to run in the grass to pass. However, once I finally got through that part, it was smooth sailing for the rest of the race!

This course is 3.4 miles long so slightly over a true 5k run. Most of it is on levees and you cross a bridge, go down to a water station, turn around, and go back the same way. There were a couple of hills to go up and down the levees but it's mostly flat. The river views are beautiful and serene! I only gave 3 stars because overall, Marysville is just not that scenic aside from the river and there were parts of the course that go under bridges where there is a lot of crude graffiti.

I would still recommend this race because it benefits the YMCA and I like supporting the local community. Hopefully this race will grow with more sponsors in the future and work out the kinks to make it better. Although there were some negatives to this race, overall, I still had a fun run and I enjoyed walking around the Peach Festival after the race.

Link to this review