My 2nd half. Overall enjoyable. No expo:( Packet pickup super easy. Swag okay, mostly local with 1 bio freeze sample and 1 $10 off $100 to local running store. Soft fitted cotton shirt.

Mandatory bus ride to the finish makes for an early morning! Parking was plentiful near buses. Plan to arrive early for a smooth pre race ritual. A lot of port potty at start but not enough! Waited at least 15 minutes to use. At least there was music. And they offered a bag drop out there so I didn’t have to throwaway my long sleeve!

Beautiful first ~9 miles of the Flint Hills! Then through downtown Manhattan and K-State Campus. Tough uphill last 5K.

Volunteers at water stations every 2 miles were GREAT. Enthusiastic, cheering, ready with water, even holding signs to let you know what’s water and what’s Gatorade! Smiling and saying all the right things to keep me going.

Being a 2:52:02 finisher, the post race refuel was... well, un-fueled! Was great to finish on the field, have my name called as I crossed and be given the opportunity to have Bill Snyder sign my medal. The volunteer had to tilt the Gatorade jug to get me what was left. I did have an option for an apple. But chocolate milk and chicken was gone!

Nice final touch was having access to free video and pics of my finish! Thank you.

Again? Yea!

Spring Prairie Fire 5K is fast and flat. You definitely run it for a PR and not the scenery.

I made a weekend around the race and enjoyed downtown Wichita. Easy stay at hotel half mile away and the walk was a perfect warmup. If I did the half, that walk home may have been a different story. Unfortunately, a Sunday race meant cautious eating and beverage intake Saturday!

Packet pickup is organized and easy. Expo is okay, not large. Best deal I scouted was recovery sandals.

Course had some potholes, but flat. Volunteers blocking the roads were tentatively watching and engaged but spectators enthusiasm lacked. A well-manned water station.

Excited for the 5K finishers medal. Score since that does not always happen.

Refuel was good!!!! Breakfast burrito, smoked sausage, oranges, bananas, water, Gatorade! Well done!

Again? If I was local, yes. Since I have 2-hour travel one way, no thank you. Already signed up for the B2B series, so I’m excited for the Fall race to check out the different course.

A wet road race. Fast, flat course but puddles to the point that eventually I smiled, embraced my inner child and gave up trying to jump them and instead splashed in them! I signed up for the 10K but knew I needed to give my knee a rest and asked the morning of if I could change to the 2 miler and race mgmt was great and they took care of it!

Local, smaller race, so no expo, easy parking, nice cotton tee, minimal swag. Scenery was through beautiful community park, local neighborhood and the historic downtown Aggiville.

Again? To fun to pass the opportunity to dress up in green!

Small, local, well-managed race. Who doesn’t love a Wizard of Oz themed event?! This race has a costume contest, colossal medals and an easy opportunity to place due to the small number of racers! Oh but that hill... DANG! It’s a step one in mile 3!

Packet pickup was simple, but no expo. Swag was minimal but a nice cotton shirt. Opportunity to purchase extra, higher quality swag if wanted.

Parking was close. We drove to the start and parked on side street. Host hotel and bus option if needed.

Bagels to refuel and a neat hangout at a local shared workplace.

Again? I’m in!

1st Half Marathon! My mom always wanted me to race one with her so I signed up in February and surprised her by telling her two night before! She thought I was just coming home for Thanksgiving dinner? LOL

I grew up on Fernwood, a street just off River Road, so to make this my first half was a no brainer. The race on the river was perfect. Views were wonderful:) Considering I had been training in KS where the temp was well over 30 degrees colder so this day felt HOT! The elevation was there with a few hills. Enough that I would recommend you consider some training before race day.

Expo was great. Well organized, full of booths, merchandise, and photo opportunities. Parking was not the best, having to cross over A1A. At least there were police there for some control. Parking was even worse at the race. Next year, I will be far more trained and am actually considering walking the mile to the race from my moms house. So much less hassle.

Wearing the LS tech shirt as I write this... cozy for a cool KS evening. The bling is BIG!!! If you look closely enough, you can see your reflection in it, as if you were in the space ship!

Again? This was the 1st of 4 in the next series and I cant wait to complete the series!