This race was one of the most well-run, well-attended 5ks I've run so far in my short running career. We got there an hour or so early and had a chance to check out the tents ahead of time, and boy were we glad we did. They had all of the usual sponsors (ING with their cookies, a few physical therapy places, etc) in addition to different sports drinks (coconut water, natural electrolyte drinks), CLIF bars, Seattle Bagel Bakery, a hilarious photo booth... oh, it was fun, and did a lot to cut the pre-race jitters for my Pops.

This race was HUGE, so the starting areas were jam packed with people in awesome mustaches (both real and painted), where we waited for about 15 minutes in well-marked pacing areas. Once the race began, it was a quick shuffle to the starting line and we were set.

My only gripe about the route was several bottleneck areas where we moved off of roads and onto trails; with so many people and so many at the same pace, it's hard to make sure you're not jostling somebody when you're trying to maintain your pacing. The route was a skinny oval loop, and before too long, we were crossing... two finish lines? I ended up stopping after the first one only to realize that there was a second line I needed to cross (my dad, the newbie, was wondering what the heck I was doing stopping right before we finished)! Mustache medals were hung around our necks and we enjoyed a few chocolate treats before heading home.

There were food trucks (awesome idea) to tantalize us along our route back to the parking lot.

All in all, a well-attended and super well-run race. I'd do it again!

Glows:
- Finishers' medals - awesome for someone's first 5k (or someone who just likes medals shaped like mustaches!)
- Easy packet pick-up at Road Runner Sports Bellevue
- Nice flat course
- SUPER AMAZING race expo before and after the race!

Grows:
- Several serious bottleneck issues along the route
- Basic cotton t-shirts

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