• Las Vegas ,
    Nevada,
    United States
  • January
  • 3 miles/5K, 6 miles/10K
  • Road Race
  • Event Website

Clarinda

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
7 6
2016
"Double Your Fun!"
Overall
T-Shirts/SWAG
Aid Stations
Course Scenery
Expo Quality
Elevation Difficulty
Parking/Access
Race Management
Clarinda 's thoughts:

Disclaimer: I received a free entry as Sin City Run Ambassador.

This was the inaugural year for this race, a part of the Sin City Shootout weekend. There was a Friday night packet pick-up at the Tropicana, and then the races were on Sunday at Sunset Park (just southeast of the airport). I didn't make it to the Friday night pick-up, so thankfully, there was pick-up available Sunday morning as well.

I'm a Las Vegas local, and have run at Sunset Park many times, so I had no problem finding the park, or the area of the park where the race was being held. I did see a lot of people taking taxis and was not at all envious of that hassle. I hear that they'll be adding shuttles in 2017.

It was a very chilly morning in Vegas - especially while waiting for the race to start. It was a pretty small race, and I got there pretty early, so the line to get my packet was still pretty short. The people manning the table were moving things along pretty well - probably trying to stay warm. :) Unfortunately, there was a shipping problem with the shirts and most of them did not arrive in time for the race. They assured us that they would mail them out individually to each participant.

I'm a runner that tends to need a potty at least once prior to a race, depending on how early I arrive. There were no port-a-potties or anything at the start - only the restrooms available throughout the park. Nothing really against the race, or its organizers, but the restrooms at this park are pretty sub par (no doors on the stalls!).

There were 3 options to choose - a 5k, 10k, or Double Your Luck and run them both. I ran the Double Your Luck challenge. This rest of this review describes the 10k.

The start line for the 10k was at the other side of the parking lot. Due some construction on the streets of Vegas, they had to make some last minute changes to the course, which included moving the start line. The separate start lines could have been a little better communicated, because it took me a second to realize I wasn't in the right spot.

As the 10k runners were lining up at the *somewhat* makeshift start line, the last 5k runner was rounding the bend to the final stretch. All the runners waiting to start the next race were loudly cheering her on! Gotta love the running community. :)

Like I've said, I've run in this park many times, so the course was no big surprise to me; however, I was still very appreciative of all the volunteers. There was never a question of which way to zig or zag through the park, and they all had such great energy cheering on all the runners. Sunset is a good-sized park, but there was still a lot of looping that needed to be done to get the course up to 6.2 miles. In addition to the volunteers, the course was very well marked, so there was never a question of which way to go.

There was only one aid station, which was plenty, with fun music playing as well as water and fuel (I'm sure, though I ran with my own stuff and never actually stopped at the aid station).

The course itself was pretty flat and runs through a sand dune preserve; you'd never really guess it was such an urban setting. There were lots of bunnies and road runners to spot along the way. Plus, the views of the mountains in the distance were a gorgeous backdrop. Unfortunately, the course did run a bit long - closer to 6.5+ miles. Lots of runners were upset by this, but I know there were some extenuating circumstances. I'm hoping that next year the construction outside of the park will be completed and the course will be more properly measured.

The finish line was nice. If you ran the 5k or the 10k, you received a pretty sweet medal after crossing. It looked like a poker chip, had a good weight to it, and didn't feel or look cheap. If you ran both, you received a 2nd medal; this one spun! Equal in quality to the first medal, both medals are definitely ones to make you proud of the race you ran.

Again, this was a pretty small race, but the post-race treats were great! There was water, a protein drink, bananas, as well as some salty treats. It was perfect!

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