This was not the race that I wanted to run. I am slowly learning that I am definitely still in recovery from my marathon back in September. HOWEVER, my 10K PR is sorely out of date. I had one from this race in 2015, but I was only 2 weeks post marathon then, so I should be able to run faster than that.
I had set a goal for myself that was probably a little fast, considering that I am still in recovery a little bit, but I had a tough workout that was a big indicator to me.

I arrived downtown VERY early on Thanksgiving morning, I parked at my husband's office, and headed out for my warm up run. I ran 2 miles and some strides, then lined up.

I have run this course several other times, and parts of the course in lots of other races, but it is always shocking to me how significant the hills are in the first half. I was able to stay on my pace for the first 5K (7:05 avg), but then I hit the bridges. At that point, My legs were having no more climbing. I did my best to keep things rolling on the uphills, and then cruise the downs as much as I could. At the end, I walked away without hitting my goals, but feeling like I raced and earning a new PB!

I came into this race this fall with one goal. Run a Boston Qualifying time. Spoiler alert: I did, by more than 7 minutes! (more than 4 minutes to get into the race!)

Everything about this race was amazing and well organized. I was not sure how I would feel about running a looped course (especially one that involved 8 loops!) and it turns out, it was awesome. The course volunteers at both the elite bottle station and the water/gatorade stop on the other side of the loop were very friendly and helpful. In addition, race management treats EVERYONE like an elite, which made the whole experience even better.

This is the final race in the Christian Moerlein Beer Series, served up by the Flying Pig Marathon, and one of my favorite local races every year. They have a 7K and 14K distance (Hudepohl makes a beer called 14K, hence the strange distance), and it is run as an event during the Zinzinnati Oktoberfest. I have run this race 5 other times (one of those was the 7K, in 2013) and really have enjoyed it.

Swag for the race includes a technical tee shirt, pint glass with the race logo, two beer tickets to use at the post race celebration, and a cheese coney for after the race. The race itself starts and finishes near the Moerlein Lagerhouse, which is located at the banks, and by participating, you have access to the VIP Uberdome for the post-race party with beer, coneys, other food (for purchase), and live music.

The course has rolling hills throughout and a few larger climbs, but is manageable. This year, I ran with a few friends who had not run the race before, and so I was just running to enjoy myself and time spent running, no other goals. I would say that was completely accomplished, and I look forward to running this (and the other beer series events) in 2017.

I have run this race several times, and 2016 was no exception. This year was going to be the year that I ran a MASSIVE PR.
With proper planning, and early arrival times, it is very easy to get a parking spot as the start and finish line is at the University of Toledo, which obviously has a ton of parking! The course profile is relatively flat and fast, especially compared to the Cincinnati running that I do most frequently.

2016 involved a few course changes, which took the half marathon course off of the bike path and out of Wildwood Preserve Metropark (which admittedly, disappointed me because that is my favorite part of the course!) Staying off of the bike trail and continuing through Ottawa Hills was actually a welcome change.

Despite University construction, which kept the finish line out of the Glass Bowl, It is an awesome race, and I highly recommend it to anyone!

This was a beautiful course and I was able to overcome some cramping in order to release my goal for this race and be able to finish (still successfully, even if not my goal). The course is beautiful and it is a fast course, that I definitely am interested in revisiting.
The volunteers at the water stations were great and helpful. When I stopped 16 miles in to stretch my glute (where I was cramping!) they were concerned and making sure that I was not having major issues that needed medical attention.