This was my first year running the Seaside 10 Mile Run, and I had a great time! I drove to the race with a couple of my friends and found parking extremely close to packet pickup in the Inlet parking lot in Ocean City. I took off one star for parking just because we did have to pay to park at the Inlet even though it's the offseason, but it was very convenient.

There wasn't really an expo; it was more of just packet pickup with some OC Tri-Running items and gels for sale. That went smoothly.

For the swag, I received a blue long-sleeved tech shirt with the race artwork on the back. I really like the shirt and think it will get a good amount of use. Ten-mile finishers also received a nice finisher medal. There were also cool age group awards for 10-year age groups. (I didn't get one, but I liked them!)

The race is an out-and-back with a couple very minor differences. It starts near the Ocean City Boardwalk and runners for the 10-mile race go all the way up the Boardwalk, then onto Baltimore Avenue and then Coastal Highway before turning around and heading back to the Inlet. The course is great; for about 2.5 miles or so in the beginning and another 2.5 miles or so at the end, you're on the Boardwalk, right along the beach and Atlantic Ocean. On the way back, there were people walking and cycling on the Boardwalk, but nobody got in my way. It's an extremely flat course.

There were ample aid stations and the volunteers were helpful and friendly, giving me two cups of water when I asked.

I had a great experience at this race; the only complaint was that I ended up with 9.86 miles rather than 10 on my watch. I know that GPS watches are not always accurate, but that was the only reason I took off a star for race management. The different results I saw for friends on Strava and social media were also just under 10 miles.

I did not get a PR, but if I did, I would be left wondering if I actually ran the full 10 miles (I'm picky about this; I'd rather it be too long than too short). The mile markers also seemed off as I ran; some of them I hit right on with my watch and others were somewhat far from my watch.

I enjoyed the post-race food. We had a beer ticket (which we could redeem for Evolution, a local craft brewery where my boyfriend is a brewer - and there was also I believe Bud Light) and a food ticket (which we could redeem for soup, which was also good). There were also candy, cookies, bananas and granola bars.

It was a fun atmosphere with lots of people in costumes, a costume contest for the 5K and the 10-mile race, and lots of friends!

Read my full blog post here: https://sherunsbytheseashore.com/2017/10/29/seaside-10-mile-run-costumes-candy-and-ocean-views/