Registration:
Registration for Rock ‘n’ Roll series races is very easier through their Competitor brand site. If you a continuous participants of these races, your registration information will be saved which makes it easy to register for additional races. The pricing for Rock ‘n’ Roll races can get very steep and may sell out (this one did a few weeks before the race), so make sure you register early to get a good price and a registration spot.

Expo:
The expo was located at the Convention Center downtown, also known as the longer name of the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center. Parking near the convention center is a whopping $15. You can’t blame Rock ‘n’ Roll for this steep price; it’s the pricing set by the convention center. Trying to find metered parking in the area can be difficult. I found a parking lot off Young St. that was only $8 and I walked two blocks to the convention center.

Packet pickup was easy. The volunteers were prepared and moved people through the lines at a good pace. If you were participating in the Remix Challenge by completing the 5k on Saturday and the half marathon on Sunday, you received two bibs, timers and shirts. For the women’s shirts, they run small so make sure you size up or get the men’s/unisex shirt.

As usual, The Rock ‘n’ Roll expo was awesome. There are vendors of every shape and size. Rock ‘n’ Roll does a great job of immediately dumping you into their branded merchandise area. They had some really cute apparel this year, and I got a long sleeved shirt and a drinking glass. A lot of the brands you would expect to be there are (CEP, Gu, Garmin, Sweatybans, Zippfizz, Powerbar and lots, lots more). I enjoyed learning about some new products and brands, such as LemonHead Apparel.

Race Day:
I was concerned about traffic and parking for the race. Fair Park is notorious for having difficult parking and really bad traffic for large races. If possible, take the DART. If you drive to Fair Park, absolutely do not try to enter from I-30! Wind your way through downtown and enter from Haskell. I find the traffic is a million time more manageable than trying to take the interstate.

Knowing this was a Rock ‘n’ Roll event, I was expecting thousands upon thousands of participants. The 5k had sold out a few weeks before the race day, so we left extra early to avoid any potential traffic and/or parking issues. I was very surprised about the ease to get in and out of the race. I was also underwhelmed by the number of participants. It seemed more like small, local race than a big Rock ‘n’ Roll series event. I don’t necessarily like the large crowds, but this was much smaller than I was expecting. The positive side of the small crowd though was the ease of parking, not being crowded in the corrals or on the course, and the ease of finding my family after the race.

Course:
The course was very flat and not scenic. It took you through the back streets and parking lots of Fair Park. Overall, it’s pretty unforgettable. If you are pushing for time, it would be a great course to get a face time on.

Post-Race:
Unlike other Rock ‘n’ Roll races I’ve competed it, there was a lack of the after party atmosphere they usually have. There was a DJ and only a handful of vendors. I didn’t stay around after the race for very long because there wasn’t much to do.

Overall:
I would participate in this race again if it remains part of the Remix Challenge (will run for bling!). If it becomes a stand along race, I probably would not participate in it.

Registration:
Registration for Rock ‘n’ Roll series races is very easier through their Competitor brand site. If you a continuous participants of these races, your registration information will be saved which makes it easy to register for additional races. The pricing for Rock ‘n’ Roll races can get very steep and may sell out (this one did a few weeks before the race), so make sure you register early to get a good price and a registration spot. Or, if you plan on doing multiple races in their series check out the Tour Pass for the best pricing.

Expo:
The expo was located at the Convention Center downtown, also known as the longer name of the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center. Parking near the convention center is a whopping $15. You can’t blame Rock ‘n’ Roll for this steep price; it’s the pricing set by the convention center. Trying to find metered parking in the area can be difficult. I found a parking lot off Young St. that was only $8 and I walked two blocks to the convention center.

Packet pickup was easy. The volunteers were prepared and moved people through the lines at a good pace. If you were participating in the Remix Challenge by completing the 5k on Saturday and the half marathon on Sunday, you received two bibs, timers and shirts. For the women’s shirts, they run small so make sure you size up or get the men’s/unisex shirt.

As usual, The Rock ‘n’ Roll expo was awesome. There are vendors of every shape and size. Rock ‘n’ Roll does a great job of immediately dumping you into their branded merchandise area. They had some really cute apparel this year, and I got a long sleeved shirt and a drinking glass. A lot of the brands you would expect to be there are (CEP, Gu, Garmin, Sweatybans, Zippfizz, Powerbar and lots, lots more). I enjoyed learning about some new products and brands, such as LemonHead Apparel.

Race Day:
Take DART. Take DART. Take DART! Did I mention you should take DART!? There wasn’t any “official” parking this year, so the downtown and uptown areas were splattered with runners trying to find parking. DART is so much more hassle-free than getting road rage before the crack of dawn and before you race! But in keep in mind that several thousand other runners will be on DART, so pick a preferred train time and a backup time in case your first train is too full to get on.

As usual, Rock ‘n’ Roll races draw very large crowds. It’s best to give your support squad the course map prior to the event and plan when you will see them along the course, as well as when you can meet up with them afterwards. You can sign up for the free run tracker, which will help your supports even more!

I skipped gear check this year, but it seemed to be operating smoothly and I had friends that used it with ease.

Course:
The course started in downtown and wound through Deep Ellum, over the Margaret Hunt Hill bridge, through Oak Lawn and back down Cedar Springs. I drive around these places regularly, but didn’t realize that put together they made up a 13.1 mile course!

These races draw very large crowds, so be prepared for some bobbing and weaving no matter what corral you start in. The bands along the course are always entertaining, and don’t forget to thank the men and women in uniform as you pass by!

There were 3 sizeable “hills” – the incline over the Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge, up Oaklawn by Scottish Rite Hospital, and up Cedar Springs around mile 12. I heard others complaining about the hills this year. I had been hill practicing a lot for this season, so I was proud that I was able to tackle them. There were water stations about every 3 miles, and Gatorade and Gu stations along the course.

Post-Race:
The course ended at a different location than the start line. I find the finish lines of Rock ‘n’ Roll races to be a bit harried. You’re excited and exhausted, and there are a lot of volunteers and people crammed in a small space. I get my medal and nutrition, take the quick finisher photo, and move out of there as quickly as possible. This is also a good time to reunite with your cheer squad.

Rock ‘n’ Roll also uses this as another opportunity to sell you merchandise. They have finishers clothing that wasn’t available at the Expo, plus some of the apparel that was at the Expo. If you think you might want to make a purchase, make sure you’ve packed a credit card in your checked bag, have it on you, or convince one of your cheer squad members to purchase it for you.

Then it’s time to grab your beer and enjoy the post-race headliner. I found it a bit odd that finishers had to circle around finishing at American Airlines Center to Victory Park in order to enjoy the concert. In my tired post-race state, it was a bit difficult to wrap my head around walking the extra yardage to enjoy the concert. But once I got there, I realized it was the perfect place to hold the concert. There were more beer tents if you wanted to indulge further while enjoying the concert. Rock on!

Overall:
As long as I’m in decent enough shape, I’ll continue to run the Rock ‘n’ Roll Dallas! Since I’m a local and it’s one of the most fun racing series, I’ll continue to enjoy rocking Dallas!

And not-so-humble-brag, I PRed my half marathon time at Rock ‘n’ Roll Dallas this year. BOOM! I’ll be back next year to try to do even better!

Read even more about my experience here: http://racesandrescues.com/race-report-rock-n-roll-dallas-half-marathon-and-a-pr/

I ran the Hot Chocolate 5k in February 2015. It was my first time doing a Ram Racing event and first time running the Hot Chocolate. I had heard of the race in prior years, but the timing of it never worked out for my schedule. The expo was at Fair Park, and it is a huge BUMMER to have to pay to pick up your race packet. The expo was just okay – nothing special, but not terrible. There were a decent number of relevant vendors. The goodie bag was one item – a gender specific hoodie. I’ve seen jackets from past years, so I’m assuming they switch up the apparel some years. The packet pickup process was seamless and efficient.

On race day, I left my house with more than ample time to allow for traffic and parking at Fair Park. I didn’t experience any issues with traffic because I heeded the advice of avoiding the main interstate. I had a friend who got stuck in traffic on the interstate and almost missed the race. Luckily, I was there in plenty of time and wasn’t bothered by the traffic. It was also a relief to see parking was free on race day. I consider this race a “fun run”, and consequently it was packed by drawing in a diverse crowd of participants. They announced that it was sold out, but I’m not sure what that total number of runners is.

Corrals were released every 3 minutes, which seemed to be a good amount of time and space between corrals. The course was pretty full, most likely due to the race selling out at capacity. I found it odd that the 15k started after the 5k, because usually races have the longer distances start first. There were enough volunteers along the course and signage to make the course easy to follow. For the 5k, there was one water stop that also had some chocolate themed treats.

After the race, finishers received a branded plastic carrying mug that contained a cup of hot chocolate, a banana, marshmallows, rice krispies treats, and chocolate for dipping. For a themed fun-run, I thought the post-race swag was appropriately fun.

Tip: The race fees get pretty steep if you wait too close until the race, so I recommend registering early.

2014 was the first year they offered the Remix Challenge, which involved a 5K on Saturday night and the half marathon and marathon on Sunday. If you do the Remix Challenge, you get 3 medals. I’ll admit that I’m sometimes encouraged (blinded?) by the bling, so I was swayed to do both races.

I stayed at a race hotel, but there wasn’t any transportation support for the 5k. We walked to the race start and back to the hotel at the finish. The Saturday 5k night race started and ended at SLS Las Vegas, a new hotel on the north side of the Strip. There was a fun vibe before the race started. There were about a dozen corrals, and each corral was released every 1-2 minutes. The race course wasn’t very scenic. We started at the SLS Las Vegas, ran down Paradise Road towards the Convention Center, up a side street near the Strip past the side of Circus Circus, through the SLS Las Vegas employee parking lot, and ended back in the SLS Las Vegas adjacent lot. I knew Sunday’s views would be better, but eek – this wasn’t pretty.

The post-race headliner was Chromeo. The crowd was a bit sparse after the race, but they still put on a good show. If you ran as part of the Remix Challenge, you got your bonus medal after Sunday’s race (the half marathon or marathon you were to complete the next day).

Overall, the 5k wasn’t anything special. If I wasn’t doing the half marathon the next day as part of the Remix Challenge, I wouldn’t do it as a stand-alone event. I would only recommend the 5k to someone participating in the Remix Challenge, a local fitting in a race, or someone there to support another Remix Challenger or Sunday racer.

More on my experience here: http://racesandrescues.com/race-report-rock-n-roll-las-vegas-5k/
Separate review on the half marathon here: http://www.bibrave.com/races/rock-n-roll-las-vegas/2067#.VN0Kz_nF_Vo

The Susan. G. Komen Dallas County Race for the Cure is a Dallas staple. The first race was in Dallas in 1983 with 800 participants. It remains one of the largest in the US of all the Races for the Cure. There were about 20,000 participants in 2014.

I have always walked this course with my mom and friends. It’s so darn crowded, than walking above a snail’s pace is very difficult. And I mean crowded! You will bump into and trip over other people the entire time. I view it is an opportunity to get a stroll in with friends while supporting a cause. The course will take you around Northpark, through some residential areas, and return to the Macy’s side of Northpark. There is an option to pay for a chip timer and start with runners. I’ve never done this so I’m not sure how much the crowd thins out and if you’re able to get a run in.

There isn’t a pre-race expo, but there is an expo race day in the parking lot. There are dozens of vendors and most of them give away goodies, and some have items for sale. I’ve always had polite and positive experiences with vendors and volunteers.

Parking can be a pain with such large crowds. Take the DART and get off on the Mockingbird Station stop. It’s much easier to walk. Also be warned that having cell reception at race site is very unlikely, so plan your meet-ups in advance.