This is a lovely race, small, but lots of people out to cheer you on. The day I ran it it was 20 degrees out and quite windy. So getting started was COLD. There is some room to hang out in the gym before, but not a ton, so I kinda just walked around outside to keep warm. The race itself is nice, nice route, some hills, but nothing crazy difficult. Plenty of water stops, but that is it, they don't have gatorade at all. The miles along the beach, while beautiful to look at, are so very windy and OMG it was like running into a wall for 3 straight miles. Overall, I liked the race, just be warned that New England in March can be brutal weather wise

So in my quest to run a race in all 50 states, I picked this to be my Alabama race, and I am really glad I did. I flew in on Friday and I stayed at one of the race hotels, The Westin, I got a discount on it and it was a really nice hotel and near many places to eat and about a 5 minute walk to where the race starts and ends.

The expo is small, but nice. Easily got my number and swag (a nice shirt) and if you wanted a bigger or smaller size, shirt swap was right near by. Went through the expo fairly quickly but still enjoyed it.

The race itself was really nice. It is self seed and I hate self seed but this isn't a big race so I understand. It is a bit hilly, nothing crazy, but be prepared for that. You get run by lots of historical stuff, which to this history nerd, is super cool. You also run through a lot of different neighborhoods and it is a really great way to see a lot of Birmingham. There wasn't a ton of crowd support, but it was rainy that day, so the weather may have had an affect on that. But people were still out cheering us on. Plenty of water stops and plenty of volunteers. The roads we ran on were closed, but not all the roads connect were, the local police did a great job of directing traffic and I even saw one cop doing some push ups with runners. The chute at the finish was smooth and the medals are so cool, it's a Benz logo, I mean, come on. The field where the food and people where was a giant mud pit (rained all weekend) so that wasn't cool but they can't help that. I didn't stay for the after party, I wasn't feeling right so went back to my hotel.

I would highly recommend this race, especially if you are not into BIG races. This is a nice mid size race and it is very well run. Birmingham is a fun city to visit and has some nice stuff to do, just know there really isn't any public transportation.

I ran the 5k. Getting bibs this morning was a mess, I waited in line for my bib for about 20 minutes and we weren't told much about what line to get in and when you got into the building, the 5k bibs were all in one little corner which was pretty crowded. I did hear that they had some wifi issues, but that was a long time to stand in line to get my bib. The team I ran with ended up getting a tent, which was great, we got free drinks and pizza with it which was nice. Both races started late, which on a cold morning, is not fun. The race itself it pretty flat and fast, and a nice route. The after party was a lot of fun, great live band. Overall, my issue was with the wait for bibs and then the races starting late, but overall not a bad race

First let me start with this, I ran this today, and it was 4 degrees with a windchill of -12 at the race start which is at 11 am, it was SOOOOO COOOOLLLDDD. So with that knowledge, I now tell you about the race.

Thankfully the race starts and ends at the Lowell Elk Lodge and it is a large building so we could all fit in it. Also, anyone who signed up for the 10k could now just run the 5k with no issues. The weather was just so bad they didn't want many volunteers standing out in it. Bib pick up was easy and we got hats, gloves and our medals right away. The race start, was a bit rough, as the chute was basically all ice, so I walked until I got to the road. Once on the road, little to no ice and a decent amount of room to run. Non of the streets are closed off, and the first part of the race this got a little rough, again, not wanting people standing around probably caused most of the issues. There was a water stop, but I wasn't drinking it and bless them for handing it out. The finish was also, all ice so, I had to slow down a bit to cross the finish line.

Afterwards you could get soup and beer and water, all in doors. I just really wanted to coffee so headed to the closest dunkins.

The race wasn't bad, I just bet with any other weather it would have been so much better. I might have to try it again next year to see and hope it is never this cold again

I quite enjoyed this race. The expo is small, but they have a good amount to check out, bib pick up was easy and they have some nice shirts you can buy, or sweatshirts or jackets, that was nice (I got a sweatshirt). There are plenty of hotels and all decently priced but it is off season, so the place is overall, fairly empty, except for Saturday night, then it is bumping.

The race itself was nice. Getting to the start area was easy and my BF had no issue dropping me off then being able to get to the finish line. I had plenty of room to warm up and they set up the corrals so you weren't squished, which is always nice. The course itself is mostly on the main road with a few forays onto side roads, you run through a golf course neighborhood which was nice. And this race is mostly flat, until you get to that bridge, and this is mile 9-10 and man, that hill is long and steep. But once you are over it, it is all flat again.

The finish area is nice and there was tons to do. I didn't stay around as I wanted some Duck Donuts (go get them if you are there SO GOOD) They had plenty of shuttles to get you back to your car, and shuttles were for runners and spectators that was really nice.

Overall I would recommend this race, if you are into crowd support, this might not be one for you, as there are some people but not a lot, still the people that are there made it fun