‪#‎HF13509‬ Review:
Being from PA and having lived in Pittsburgh, I never experienced a race in Pittsburgh till this year at the Turkey Trot. Since my family and I traveled to Pittsburgh for Thanksgiving, I convinced them to join me for a 5K if I promised I would walk it.

My sister-in-law said bag check was pretty easy, so I can't comment on that, but in terms of "race swag" I liked what they provided, the long-sleeve tech shirt, the bibs, the timing chip for the shoes, headphones, free parking for those driving, and an Uber coupon for first-time Uber users (if you couldn't drive in). I would have given it 5-stars if they included a medal.

Getting to the race was pretty easy for us coming in from the west. There was a bit of congestion once you got close to the stadiums but nothing too long. We found parking pretty quickly and there was a lot of parking available when we arrived about 30 minutes out from the start of the race.

In terms of the race itself, it is very family-friendly. People were in costumes and dogs were allowed as long as they were friendly and you didn't mind starting out closer to the back. It was a bit confusing at the start since there were no corrals, but we followed the crowd to the area that seemed to be at the start. The race started on time which I really appreciate. Along the course, the race was pretty sparsely staffed, but for volunteers on Thanksgiving day, I can't complain. There were two water stations along the 5K course, however no clear mile markers (they had them for the 5 mile course), so I used my GPS watch to track where we were. I didn't see any particular aid stations along the course, so I'm giving 1-star as a benefit-of-the-doubt for the race. The course itself was really flat, and a great way to see downtown Pittsburgh. The post race amenities were really nice, including bananas, muffins, granola bars, bottled water. It was a bit crowded in terms of set up but very close to the finish line.

If anyone wants a nice family-friendly 5K, I highly recommend this one!