Ri Ra Santa 5k

Ri Ra Santa 5k

Ri Ra Santa 5k

( 1 review )
100% of reviewers recommend this race
  • Burlington,
    Vermont,
    United States
  • December
  • 3 miles/5K
  • Road Race
  • Event Website

Rachel Drew

Vermont, United States
28 24
2015
"Fun Themed Race"
Overall
T-Shirts/SWAG
Aid Stations
Course Scenery
Expo Quality
Elevation Difficulty
Parking/Access
Race Management
Rachel Drew's thoughts:

This was my first year running this race; I was registered last year but couldn't run due to injury.

Pre-Race:
Registration was available online, with incremental price increases up to $55. Registration fee includes the Santa suit with pants, jacket, beard and hat, and if you have a suit from a prior year, you can get a "race only" registration for $10 less. You are "required" to wear the suit in order to race, but people definitely made modifications. Packet pickup was available the two days prior to the race as well as race morning right at Ri Ra's Irish Pub downtown. They were well organized, and in addition to my Santa suit, I got two $5 off coupons for Ri Ra's, a coupon for a free cup of tea at David's Tea, and a running magazine. Tech shirts were available for purchase for $15. I personally would rather get a nice red long sleeved shirt or half zip to wear for the run than the cheap felt Santa suit, but the event is a fundraiser, so I guess I get it.

Race Day:
Parking downtown can be tricky because of road closures, so I recommend parking South of Main Street. Since it was Sunday, parking was free at all meters, so I parked in the lot at the corner of King Street and St. Paul. Ri Ra's is less than a half mile from the lot, and I was able to get out of the downtown "core" and home with zero hassle.

It's a great party atmosphere at Ri Ra's on race morning. There was a DJ and music, lots of photo ops, news coverage, and the restaurant was open for bathrooms and to get out of the cold. There was also a coffee station, which I thought was really nice. The PA system made it really easy to know what was going on, and we started about 5 minutes late because it's tough to wrangle 1500 runners in such a small area.

The race course is somewhat hilly; within the first mile you run up Battery Street, which is sort of Burlington's own Heartbreak Hill during the Vermont City Marathon. There are some nice views of the lake as you run down Main Street, and when you run down South Willard there are some great views down the hill as well. The race ends right back at Ri Ra's, and right after finishing I got a full-sized bottle of water.

Post-Race:
The race is chip-timed, and results are available online. As part of your registration, you get a free Irish breakfast, which I didn't end up getting; breakfast was at Memorial Auditorium, which was just far enough away that I didn't feel like walking all the way over, plus I was busy that day and needed to get home, but I've heard great things about the food.

Overall, this is a fun race, but I HIGHLY recommend that you DON'T run in the flimsy felt Santa pants that come with registration. I can't even begin to count the number of folks, myself included, who were struggling with ill-fitting pants that kept sliding down--I had to stop to re-tie my drawstring twice. In the future, I'll be wearing red leggings.

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