I did this race last year and chose to do it again this year in attempt to qualify for Boston by a bigger margin. I chose Sugarloaf, because it's a point to point direct course with no twists and turns. It has a little uphill and a lot of downhill. It's within driving distance. The temperatures are perfect there this time of year. And it's a pretty small playing field as far as qualifiers go.

As soon as the weather began to appear in the 15 day forecast, I was all over it, everyday, sometimes multiple times (you know you've done it) and kinda freaking out a little. Sometimes it showed thunderstorms, sometimes more rain and sometimes less, but always some sort of weather event. I've run in the rain during training and enjoyed it, but never in a race and never for more than 26 miles. I was scared. I worked way too hard to not PR because of hypothermia or wet feet and a blister.

We arrived Saturday afternoon in time to receive our bibs and shirts. The line was loooooong and probably took us 30 minutes or more, but Maple Water was passed around and I tried that for the first time, which was good. We also signed up for the pasta dinner (first time doing that) and I recommend it. Pasta dinners often cost more than going to your local Olive Garden, but for Sugarloaf, it is a particularly good idea, because there is no local Olive Garden or really much of anything close by and it's all you can eat and delicious. There was also beet salad, chick pea salad and cooked veggies to add to your pasta or side as well as yummy dessert. There's also meat sauce if you're into that sort of gross stuff. The speaker was Gary Allen and he showed us a video of his friend Michael Westpahl who qualified for Boston and raised a lot of money for the Michael J. Fox Foundation. Michael Westpahl has Parkinson's Disease and the documentary was inspiring.

We stayed in a motel about 30 minutes from the finish and parking area and I slept as well as I could considering I needed to pee every hour due to hydrating the bejesus out of myself all day Saturday. The morning car ride to the buses from the finish to the start was foggy, rainy and included flashes of lightening. We took the bus up from the finish line which follows the course up to the start. This is mentally tough, because you realize the epicness of what is about to happen. In 2015 the starting area was AMAZING, fog rolling over a small lake with the sun just coming up and filtered through the pine trees. It wasn't so beautiful this year, because it was POURING! No gorgeous photos of the starting line. We found an indoor bathroom a little up the road and hid from the rain in there until it was time to start.

It did dump on us for a bit during the race, but the temperatures were around 50 degrees Fahrenheit, so it actually felt pretty comfortable. I wore shorts, compression socks, a singlet and arm warmers and didn't feel annoyed or need to adjust anything throughout the race. I also wore a visor to keep the rain out of my eyes and this gave me something to think about with my form. I knew if I was seeing much ahead of myself, I was craning my neck, bringing my hips forward and breaking with my heels. I kept my head down and leaned into much of the race not knowing what was ahead. I told myself not to look at my watch or the hills when it got tough and nailed my pace on the downhill. Days before I began to plan what I would think about throughout the race to keep me inspired and my mind off any discomfort I might feel. I added Michael Westpahl to my list.

Crowd support is really good for a race of this size, because half of the road is open, so spectators can drive along the road and catch racers at several points. The course is really pretty. On the downside of the course is that the roads are pretty concaved so keep in mind you'll be running with one leg longer than the other for a long time if you're prone to injuries. I recommend staying on the center line or sticking to the far edge where it's flatter.

There are aid stations all over the place with water and gatorade and one or two with gels, which I don't take anyway, so I can't comment on that part.

The finish line has a truck with a big screen and finish times scrolling. There is homemade soup and granola, so the food is great and not the regular banana and cold pizza.

The bling is eh, but who cares when you get to run a fast marathon, PR and maybe qualify for Boston like I did! I won first in my age group and qualified with a very safe 11+ minute cushion. The top overall finishers get MONEY and the age group finishers get awesome handmade ceramic stuff, depending on your place.

This five mile race has been a tradition for me since its inaugural year. This race is held on New Year's Day morning every year as a fundraiser for the FOP Post #28 and so far has been sponsored by Ne England Striping. The race director, Rich Allain is very organized, involved and responsive and begins sending out emails and updates months in advance for sign up and to keep runners updated. He is responsive to suggestions about shirts etc. and makes every effort to make runners happy, as impossible as that may be.

Parking and bib pickup are at the lodge in Norton on the day of the race. Runners can wait inside until it is time to start and then we walk down the street together to reach the appropriate start. Race is not chip timed, but organizers do a good job of getting times pretty accurate.

This race goes through the neighborhood with some small inclines at times. It is well-marked and all right turns. Since this is a small race, it's easy to find yourself running alone sometimes. There is one water stop halfway through and little to no spectators.

What makes this race great is the little size and atmosphere. When runners return, they are treated to a breakfast buffet of eggs, bacon and/or sausage (I'm vegetarian, so I forget), fruit and toast and awards. There are awards for top overall runners and first 3 in age group. There is also a trophy for the last runner. Everyone is happy at this race and it's an amazing way to begin the new year with friendly runners and five miles.

The cost for past years has been $20-$25, which is a great deal for breakfast, a shirt, five miles and maybe a medal in your age group.

I was nervous. Even though I put in the training and ran the course for a few of my long runs, I knew a lot would come down to weather and how I was feeling for the Newport Marathon. This is a tough course with a lot of hills and twists and turns. Brutal winds and pelting rain are not out of the question this time of year in New England.

As race day approached, I have never been more excited for packet pick-up and was first in line when they opened on Saturday. In terms of race review, this was the bare bones packet pick-up: Get your number, get your shirt, get a little goodie bag (and a free beer glass thank you very much). No sales of running gear, headbands, massagers, blah blah blah.

The night before I fretted over everything: compression sleeves or no, arm sleeves or no, bib on shirt or shorts, how does my iPod feel on my arm. I decided to go minimal. No sleeves, bib on shorts for easy shirt removal if I got hot and iPod ready to rock.

We started at 7:30am for the half and the full marathon: 1680 runners for the half and 575 for the full. The plan was to run conservative for the first half. However, as per usual, I felt amazing and just booked it. I always have this overly optimistic idea that maybe I am faster than I think. The course was GORGEOUS. Although I have run it before, I haven't seen such perfect conditions as there were in 2015. Just a light breeze, decent temps and the sun over the water on Ocean Ave. Really great. I tried to pay attention to coordinates and do my best to minimize all the turns. There are a lot of turns in this race.

The biggest downer of this race is running through the finish line with the half marathoners, knowing the worst is yet to come. I don't think any runner feels a sense of yay-13.1-more-miles when they split with the half marathoners at the finish line. Also, this course is known for a tougher second half and it's pretty hilly in the first half too. The first half goes by mansions and along Ocean Ave, so it is gorgeous. The second half has less ocean view and more neighborhood. It's not quite as visually appealing, but still pretty. There really isn't a bad view to be had in Newport, RI.

I have more finisher medals than I can count and my Newport medal remains one of my favorites!

This is a tough race to get into as it sells out FAST! We were online registering the minute it opened and thankfully, both of us got in.

The organization was different from what I am used to, but great. We stopped at a table in town the day before where we met the race director, got a free shirt from last year's race and a map. They keep the entry low so packet pick-up is on the morning of the race at the start line. A bus is available to bring your hoodie and sweatpants or what have you back to the finish and everything was alphabetized and in order by the time runners got back. Finisher shirts are handed out after you finish and get your medal, which is great, because it is a FINISHER shirt for a reason people!

This race is all about the course and weather. There is a reason this race sells out within minutes. I've completed several beautiful courses in the past few years, but this is surely one of the best. Races through ski country are always gorgeous and impressive to your friends who don't know and assume you're running up and down mountains, when generally, you're often running mostly down them. This general rule is true for Covered Bridges as well with an elevation change of 200 feet. Also early summer in Northern New England is good running weather. This year the temperature as measured by my Garmin was an average of 67 degrees. I know that's not the most accurate weather gauge, but just believe me when tell you it was pretty near ideal.

The course is also a point to point, which I prefer. We parked at the finish in Quechee, VT and took the buses to Suicide Six in South Pomfret. It was a cool sunny morning at the start and the course took us past several covered bridges and through one. Shady most of the way and surprising amount of crowd support! I gave many a high five and enjoyed musicians along several spots.

While this race is said to be a fast course, there are a hill or two to get over, the largest being at mile 8. That one seriously sucked. Otherwise, the course felt relatively smooth and easy.

This race has some serious runners and while I felt fast and amazing, this was no great performance compared to my age group competitors. The people who are willing to compete to get a place at the starting line when the registration goes up are pretty speedy on the course too.

The 2015 Run Hard Columbia Half Marathon was held on March 7, 2015 in Columbia, South Carolina. The expo was the day before and had a few booths, soft colorful shirts and bibs. Pick up was super quick and smooth.

The start of this race was cold. It was 7:30am and we showed up in our Walmart clearance rack long sleeve throwaway shirts from the boys' department. The worst part of this race for me was that NOTHING was open for food in the morning and we hadn't purchased bagels the night before as we sometimes do. I was planning to pick up something at some random bakery or coffee shop before the start, but everything was closed! There was a bakery right next to the starting line that opened at 8 or 9 or something. I looked longingly in the window and questioned how much trouble I would get into for breaking in and stealing some carbs.

Run Hard has a 5k, half-marathon on full-marathon. I believe there is also a relay option and kids' run. The temperature at this time of year in Columbia on this morning was pretty great for running a race: cool and sunny. The shocker for me was the hills! I did not anticipate that happening, although I would have if I had checked the elevation chart like a smart person.

A lot of this race was through residential neighborhoods and the crowd support was low. I did the half marathon, but those who did the full ran two loops of the half. If this were a review of a full marathon, I may have more negative things to say, because that's gotta suck.

The end of the race had the usual fair. I finished the half in 01:52:03, which is not horrible, but was disappointed to discover they were out of coffee already. I downed a water and bagel and was on my way.

You should also know is that if you register early this race is super cheap. If you were to register right away the cost is $45. So, if you're considering, stop thinking about it and just sign up.