The Bunk House trail races feature a 50k, 30k, and 10k races, all starting at different times (50k at 7, 30k at 8, 10k at 9). All are run on the same 10k-ish looped trail and the longer races alternate direction each lap.

I signed up for the race the day of, and it was as simple as signing up and giving the race my money. I would imagine online signup is just as easy. The race is in a state park, so you'll either need a Wisconsin State Park pass or pay for parking the day of. Either way, super easy.

As with most trail races, this one is pretty low key. There's a fully stocked aid station at the start/finish area, and an unmanned one at about the 5k mark with water and snacks. With only one primary aid station, it isn't the worst idea to bring you own nutrition for on course. But you can also survive (I did) by only relying on aid stations as well.

The course is probably 70% double track with the rest being single track. Very runnable and entirely through forests. There was only one road crossing and it was a closed road. After the fact, I described the course as tough but not hard, if that makes sense. Some climbs are steep, some are long, but none are both. The trickiest part of the course was the mud after it rained.

Let's talk swag. The shirt is some kind of cotton blend; not something I'd use for running, but definitely one I would wear a lot. The medal is a small clay medal with the race and distance that you did (low key but I liked it!). The packet (along with bib and T Shirt) also included three Hammer gels and three Hammer drink tablets. Possibly the highest quality stuff I've ever gotten from a race.

Race Management is on point for this one as well. Super low key, but super organized as a trail race should be. The Race Director encouraged folks to stay as long as they wanted and asked for feedback about the race (it was awesome).

If you find yourself looking for a trail race of manageable to ultra distance, I would highly encourage you to sign up for the Bunk House!

Cinco de Miler bills itself as the only 5 mile race in Chicago. It's also a unique race distance that you don't see out there a ton.

The race, like many RAM events, has packet pickup the two days prior to the race at the Fleet Feet in Old Town. I was in Southern IL the better part of the week for work, so I had a friend pick up my packet for me. So I can't comment much on the expo.

The race starts in Montrose Harbor, which can make parking a little interesting. I parked a little under a mile away using Spot Hero, and wasn't the only runner using that lot. As with most races in the city, just plan ahead a little with parking, give yourself some extra time, and you'll be alright.

Until I arrived, I didn't even know there were corrals for this race, but there were. Everything was super close, and it was easy to head over to the bathrooms and get to the start line easily.

The course runs predominantly along the lakefront trails, with a few turnarounds in there. For a five miler, the race has a pretty small footprint. A couple spots had to be rerouted a bit because of all the rain in Chicago, but it didn't effect much of the race, if at all.

I'd also like to say that we finished under a giant inflatable pinata, which was epic.

The post race featured beer, food, and a pretty solid amount of vendors that the race had brought in. There was also a mechanical bull you could ride, if that's your thing.

For the swag, the medal was massive, and very classy looking. I'm not always a fan of getting medals in a shorter race. But if you're going to give them out, they should look cool and these did. I didn't love the shirt design, but it's been growing on me in the days since the event.

This is a great race if you want to increase your distance from a 5k, need some miles, or need a tuneup race for a late Spring marathon. This one is for you!

The Mother's Day Run is the second in the seven race Trail Assail Series in SE WI. This one is at Nashota Park, west of Milwaukee. It isn't the easiest course, but it's a welcome change from race one at Lapham Peak.

As with all Silver Circle races, packet pickup is either available at a local running store the day before, or the day of at the race. My Dad grabbed my packet, so I can't comment too much on this one, but the pickups are normally pretty simple.

There is a decently sized parking lot for the race, but it will likely fill up, so arrive early. The other lot is almost a mile away, which isn't terrible, but in early May in Wisconsin, that could be an unpleasant walk.

The course starts in an open field, and does a quick loop around the outside of it before descending into the wood chips and double track of the woods. Once in the woods, you'll hit some steep downhills, which can get you moving. My first mile was almost the same as a road 5k first mile, which is a bad sign for things to come on the trails.

Sure enough, after some flat, you'll begin the climbs. The 5k course really only has three hills, but they're all very steep, including the largest of those just after 2.5 miles. The course is really just one big loop, with a couple guided turns near the finish.

The 10k/Half does go out on a different part of the course to get the distance, but I legitimately don't know where they go.

I gave Aid Stations a lower score here, mostly because I don't remember them. I know they were on course, but I was suffering a little too much to give any attention to those.

Overall, this (and all races by Silver Circle) is very well managed and run. The trail series is a good way to step into trail racing, and the Mother's Day run offers a challenging, but doable, course to do that on.

The fourth time (and third owner) was the charm for the Milwaukee Marathon! After taking a gap year to find itself in 2018, the race came back with new ownership and a new course.

The expo was held at the Milwaukee Bucks new arena, Fiserv Forum, as the Bucks are one of the new sponsors of the race. If you’ve done Brewers Mini or the Cellcom in Green Bay, packet pickup was similar. Go through security, and the expo was in the lobby, if you will, of the stadium. There was a bit of a line to get in when I arrived, but that’s because I got there around 4pm so it was a busier time. I was pacing the race, so I just had to swing by the Performance Running area to get my packet as opposed to going through the regular line, but I heard that was super easy.

It is worth noting that unless you pay for race morning pickup, you have to pick up your packet at the expo. You can have someone else pick it up for you as well.

Fast forward to race morning. The race promoted the parking garage across from Fiserv, and you could pre-purchase that through the race. The option did sell out, but from what I heard it took a while to park, since a lot of runners did that option. There are plenty of other lots, though, in the city and around nearby MATC all for the same cost (I think) of the ramp the race used.

The start area is in the plaza of the arena (aka: outside). Gear check, the volunteer tent, and bathrooms were all out in this area; along with the stage used for the after party. I did think this space was a little cramped, but I have a feeling once the demolition of the old Bradley Center is complete, the race will have more space.

Since bathrooms are always key, I’ll talk about that quickly. I saw porta pods in three different areas in the plaza. The line in the one I went to wasn’t bad, but again congested with it being closer to the start corral.

The race did have a corral start as assigned by what was on your bib. Runners did have an opportunity to put in their projected pace before hand. I’m not a fan of corral starts, but I totally understand using them.

I’d also like to note that the 5k starts a half hour before the Half and Full. A surprising benefit of this was being able to watch the 5k finish while in the corral waiting for the race to start!

The course itself starts in downtown, and the first mile is down through Water St working your way out to Lincoln Memorial Drive. A majority of the miles in the Half are on Lincoln Memorial, which runs you right along the lake.

Past versions of the race have run up the hill on Lincoln Memorial, but this year we went up the hill by the water tower, through the upper east side, and down the steep hill on LM. I absolutely LOVED the change. While a bigger hill, I think going up Water Tower is a much easier (read: less steep) climb.

To get the distance, once the course winds back into the city, runners turn west up Wisconsin Ave. Its not a steep hill, but it’s a long hill. The Half ran up to Marquette’s campus, and then turned around to get back to the finish. The full keeps going up WI Ave.

At the finish, you get all your standard drinks, snacks, and medal. Naturally, a beer as well. Gear check was smooth both for dropping off and, more importantly, picking up. I didn’t stick around the finish for too long, because it was chilly and most of the people I knew running were done at that point.

And finally, let’s talk swag. All runners received a Finisher’s Shirt which has a simple but sleek design. My only gripe here is that you receive your Finisher shirt at packet pickup and not when, you know, you finish. Whatever. Runners in the Half and Full also received a 1/4 zip fleece. It’s comfy and has a nice design, but it’s not a life changing item, and not one you’d run in. I thought the medal was decidedly ok. Nice, but not crazy. Who am I to complain about that though?

All in all, the 2019 version of the race got just about everything correct! I’m excited to see how the race improved going forward, but I think the MKE Marathon finally figured it out and is here to stay.