I absolutely loved running the Solider Field 10 Miler for the first time last May! The race is held on Memorial Day weekend, and the tagline of "Finish on the 50" comes to life as you cruise through the underbelly of Soldier Field to finish at the fifty-yard line as your face flashes upon the Jumbo-trons.

But, first things first. Instead of a huge expo at an inconvenient location, I was easily able to pick up my packet at Fleet Feet in Old Town, and I loved the ease of getting in and out quickly. The course itself is pretty much an out and back south along the lakefront, and I didn't find myself getting bored by the lake path at the ten mile distance. The t-shirts were technical dry fit shirts, navy blue with an orange logo to mimic Da Bears' jerseys, and I found the start line/gear check pretty easy to get to and navigate.

All that said, there are just no words to describe how cool it feels to "Finish on the 50." The excitement builds up as you run through the concourses of Solider Field, and actually crossing the finish line is made even more exciting by seeing your face on the big screen. Thanks to the stadium's seating, it's easy for friends and family to sit in the end zone and wait for their runner(s) to finish. The race officials were also very nice about letting me hang around in the end zone to wait for my friend, who started about 20 minutes after I did.

Another really cool touch came when we got our medals- they were placed around our neck by military officers in an homage to "Soldier" Field. I loved it! The photos at the finish and with medals were also pretty high quality for race photos, and it was easy to find my results and photos online in the coming days.

This is definitely one of the most unique races Chicago has to offer, and I highly recommend it to everyone! After all, how often can you say that you ran on the grass at Soldier Field?