I did this with my sister and her family. They all did the 5k and I did the 8k. First off it was held behind one of the bigger shopping malls in Charlotte. Parking is very adequate because of all the parking decks and lots. Packet pickup was at the same location. I went the day before and because of the vehicle I was in parking was a nightmare. I had no issues getting everything including my sister's family. The shirts were blue long sleeve shirts and are comfy. Race day came and I had no issues parking. Because I was in the 8k and we started earlier than the 5k there was no problem with parking. Got to the starting line with no issues and the race began. It started out hilly but towards the end it was mostly flat. It went though a few of the neighborhoods near the mall. The water stops were properly marked and well available. The bonus was that a few of the neighbors had set up some tasty adult beverages stops along the course. They were lot of fun. The 2 distances ran a different path but eventually met back up. Finished the race before my sister and her family. I got my medal but by the time they finished all the medals were gone. TO me it seemed like it was a disorganized mess because of all the people around. We found out that apparently someone did not bring all of the boxes of medals but they did offer to mail them out to those who did not get one. The finish area and expo area seemed small for the amount of people that were there. Overall it was a great race and I definitely plan on coming back.