The Zionsville 5 and Dime is a small race that allows participants to complete a 5K course through parts of downtown Zionsville, past the golf course, and along some of the park trails. The 10K option is simply running the loop twice.
I signed up online a few weeks beforehand and picked up my shirt, bib, and timing chip the morning of the race. Race day sign up was available.
Parking was easy and free, in Lions Park. Pre and post race activities were in structure on that property. Packet pickup was easy as well.
I enjoyed running the course. Much of it was very familiar to me, but I had never run along the trails south of Lions Park, so that was fun. Volunteers along the course kept us on track. There was a water stop around the 1.5 mile area of the loop that was well stocked and staffed.
Modest medal, t-shirt were fine. Probably not one to run for the "bling".
There was pizza available for finishers, but I didn't really stick around for it. Race management was overall pretty good. One place for improvement may have been traffic control along the golf course. That road was a one lane-each direction with no shoulder...and at one point we had to contend with traffic traveling in both directions. Not ideal, but I think it was maybe a one-off error?
I really appreciated that it was a mid-November race on a weekend where there wasn't much else available.

It would be impossible to live in Indianapolis and not know about the Mini Marathon. It's THE event to kick off May (Indy's greatest month), and a bucket list item for practically everyone in the City.

Because it was my first half marathon, I signed up for the Miler series, a set of three runs leading up to the Mini. One a month, from February to April, we ran progressively longer routes through downtown Indy (3-miles, 6-miles, and 10-miles). It was an awesome way for me to stay on top of my training. And for doing the series, I ended up getting extra swag... which is always welcome. :)

The Mini itself is kicked off by a huge expo at the convention center. Tons of volunteers pass out the thousands upon thousands of bib packets. Tons of race and running gear vendors set up shop. The swag is abundant. And if you like, there are plenty of cool photo ops set up as well, including a huge wall with all of the racers names printed on it.

On race day, the corrals stretch across a good portion of Downtown Indy. It's impossible not to get hyped by all the people and atmosphere. Gear check is set up between the start and finish lines, and portalets are available along the start corrals.

The 5K starts off the morning, and the 13.1 corrals start a bit thereafter. Note: this race is HUGE. The difference in starting times between the first and last wave/corral is not negligible, so consider that when planning your clothing/nutrition/warmup routine.

The announcers starting the race and bringing people into the finish line do a great job hyping the runners and spectators. Musicians and water stations line the course at regular intervals. If you're running towards the back of the pack, you should have no worries about resources--the stations are very well stocked, but watch the ground as discarded cups and gel packets can make things a bit tricky.

The route started downtown and took us out to Speedway (shoutout to the people of Speedway--amazing posters and amazing enthusiasm!), then to the Track, where there was a mile dedicated to fallen service members and their families. From there, the course makes its way back to the city, towards the sun. The final stretch is a straightaway through the campus of IUPUI that ends with bleachers and fanfare and a party at Military Park. Post race recovery snacks are generous and photographers are at the finish to snap your photo. Race results and most anything else you can think of are available at the after-party in the park. Great atmosphere for runners and spectators.

Annnd, if you like additional perks/swag, Challenges and VIP are available!

Bottom line: hard to beat the excitement of running a half with 35,000 friends. See you there next year!

Great race, signed up again for 2019!
Geist offers 3 distances (5K, 10K, and 13.1); all started and finished in the same place. What I thought stood out most about this race is how kid/family friendly the event was. When I arrived on the course, it appeared as though there were class/school groups that had all signed up together and has destinated areas to meet up and get amped up for the race together. I love that! And once the race was over, there were tons of kid friendly activities set up at the after-party.

As for logistics, packet pickup was at a nice local hospital. Pickup went smoothly, and while there were a few vendors, many were already tearing down by the time I arrived (still during the announced pickup window). On race day, parking was free, and available a few blocks from the start line. Tons of portalets were set up near the start.

Along the course, super friendly volunteers cheered along the route. The course was really well marked, and I found there to be plenty of aid stations. The neighborhoods we ran through were very nice, the pavement was good, and there were only a few, conquerable hills. My favorite part hands down had to be running over the bridges, especially the last stretch approaching the finish line. Very cool, and a large part of why I'll be back.

Swag was great. I've gotten a lot of use out of my long sleeved hooded tee, and the medal was HUGE. Post race snacks were generous and finishers could grab a brew in the beer garden. While I didn't sign up for VIP, the perks sounded good enough that I may in the future.

Thanks, Geist! Way to put on a race!