This is the second year I've ran this particular race in Atlanta. My ratings for each category are based on how THIS year's event went. I still whole-heartedly recommend running in the Hot Chocolate race in Atlanta, but if you do a little bit of preparation, it will be a lot better.

My wife and I traveled down to Atlanta from South Carolina the day prior to the race and stayed in a hotel.
Before we checked in, though, we drove to the Allstate Hot Chocolate's Expo located in the Georgia World Congress Center. Parking for the expo initially wasn't bad because there was a garage next to the Mercedes-Benz Stadium, but getting out of that parking garage proved a little troublesome due to the huge line of cars waiting to get out. The expo itself was relatively easy to locate at the Georgia World Congress Center. There were multiple signs inside the complex to guide you. The volunteers and staff at the expo were very friendly and extremely helpful when I had questions. The few downsides to the expo were that it felt smaller than last year and I don't remember seeing any future races in the Atlanta area being advertised there, but I am probably mistaken. Getting my bib and swag bag were no issues there. They have an area where you can exchange your sweatshirt if it doesn't fit. And speaking of the goodie bag, this year's wearable clothing is a blue or purple tech pullover which fits just right. It is definitely different than last year's zip-up hoodie sweat jacket, which I still wear quite a bit.

The organizers were on top of keeping people informed through social media. With the weather being predicted as rainy and just above freezing at the start of the race, the Ramracing team let people know that not only was the race still on, but anyone who signed up for the 15k race could do the 5k race instead and get all the after-race benefits. We, along with over two thousand others opted to continue on with the 15k; what can I say, but peer pressure?

The course itself was a little different than the one I ran last year, what with the start and end points for this year's race being north of the World Congress Center as opposed to last year's location which was practically at Centennial Olympic Park. But overall, the streets we ran on were almost the same.

There were four water/aid/sweet stations along the route, located near the one mile, three mile, five mile, and seven mile markers. The first two stations did have chocolate or marshmallows for runners to eat, but the final two did not, and I have to presume it had something to do with all the rain coming down because there were no overhead shelters for the volunteers or the refreshments, and when I got my marshmallows at mile three, the cup was half filled with rainwater. The volunteers apologized, but I told them it was okay and since it was raining, there was nothing either one of us could do... other than happily eat the marshmallows and continue on with the race. All the aid stations did have water and Nuun on hand for us to drink.

The course did have some hills, but it wasn't as bad as last year. There were plenty of police and volunteers out there directing traffic and runners on which path to use. The mood of the runners were pretty festive too, especially considering how dreary the rain was making day.

The finish line was across the bridge that leads to the Georgia World Congress Center, however, a little past the bridge, we turned right into the parking lot where the finish line awaited us. Once we crossed the finish line, we got our finisher's medal and commemorative keychain. We also turned in our voucher for our hot chocolate fondue cup filled with chocolate fondue, several treats to dip in it, and a cup of very good hot chocolate.

I do recommend that whoever participates in these races pay attention to the weather, and dress appropriately. Wear layers, and make sure you hydrate before, during, and after the race.

I also recommend that you take advantage of the Hot Chocolate's bag check-in and pack a complete set of spare clothing to change into after the race. I brought along an extra shirt and sweatshirt, but forgot to bring extra pants. This is pretty important in rainy and/or cold weather after a race due to hypothermia.

The final thing I want to add is that Ramracing and the Hot Chocolate Series does have a great website to give out information, and they even will send you a training plan to prepare for the 15k race, something I don't see a lot of races doing. Follow their training plan and you will do fine during the race.

I've ran this race for the past three years. The Carowinds Run and Ride Series hold four four races over the course of two days: Saturday is the 1 mile and 5k races, Sunday has the Quarter Marathon (formally the 10k) and the Half Marathon. I believe Carowinds moved from the 10k to quarter marathon to make it easier to direct traffic for the two races. An extra half mile after an initial 10k in distance isn't a big deal, I guess. So, in other words QUARTER marathon = ONE lap; HALF marathon = TWO laps.

The Half Marathon and Quarter Marathon runners meet up at the same starting line. You have to pay attention to the announcer to know when you are taking off. The last three years, the half marathon runners take off first with anywhere from 10 to 15 minutes later the quarter marathon (or 10k) runners take off.

For the first mile and a half, you are running outside the park, along the parking lot, so it is very flat. It's once you go through the main entrance of Carowinds where the fun begins. At the entrance, various Carowinds employees cheer you on, you might spot a Peanuts character at this particular spot, and you can hear music being pumped out by nearby thrill ride attractions. I will say running underneath the Fury 325 is really cool, especially if the crew is testing the roller coaster. The third mile has you in the dinosaur area, which is an area that you may have to pay extra to see if you ever visit Carowinds. The dinosaurs come to life, move their heads and limbs as you run by, they roar or scream at various times, and Carowinds has a variety of these animatronic "thunder lizards" on display to include the T-Rex and my favorite, the Triceratops.
Once you leave the Dinosaur area, you go past different thrill rides and get to see what Carowinds has to offer during its park hours. You also get to run on a few behind closed gates paths that aren't open to the public; behind-the-scenes stuff that always fascinates me.
Mile five and beyond take place outside the park itself but still on its property. At the gate connecting the park to the outside road is an aid station that has water AND gatorade. I don't remember gatorade at the other aid stations. You run through the Carowinds campground and cabin area, where the other hills exist (there's an uphill at the Dinosaur area, but the dinos do a good job of distracting you from that fact).
Once you hit the six mile mark, you can see the finish line off to the right, but you still have to go straight for a bit and turn around. Wasn't a big fan of that, to be honest.
At the finish line, there's volunteers handing out medals, music playing, the announcer telling everyone who you are and where you're from (or registered from) when you cross, and there's a decent spread of food and refreshing beverages. I really like how the Run and Ride Series makes the medals different for each race, but they were still on the same theme. In fact, each of the medals had a little magnet in them to connect the medals in line; they were designed to show different Peanuts characters on a roller coaster.

There are several options when buying your race ticket. You can get it with or without a park ticket included. Since I'm a season pass holder, I got my race ticket without the park ticket which saved me some money. The race shirt was a tech shirt which is always a good thing in my book, and this year's was modeled off of Charlie Brown's shirt.

Here's a video showing some of the highlights of running in this race (watch it twice if you're doing the half marathon?): https://youtu.be/nuXs7m2NpRg