2019 is the first year the Monumental Marathon was sold out across all distances. However, thanks to the amazing group of volunteers and race officials, the races and expo all ran very smoothly! All race communications were timely and clear, the response times were fast for any questions—a very well-executed race, despite the sell-out race size! And the Indianapolis spectators were incredibly encouraging and enthusiastic, more so than I’ve experienced in any other marathon.

The course itself is a beautiful tour around Indianapolis in the fall, and the spots along the White River and through the Woodstock Club grounds were beautiful! The course was nearly pancake-flat, which is always a bonus for tired legs. The medals, shirts, and hats were nice, and of good quality. The post-race band was fun, and I enjoyed hanging out in the Beer Gardens to listen with a Sun King beer in hand! This is my go-to marathon, and they put on another great race in 2019…already looking forward to next year!

This is my fourth time running in the Urban Bourbon. Pre-race communication was timely and packet pick-up was easy. The Race Expo was fairly barren, but the race organizers say this is done purposely to focus on the bourbon experience. Still, it would be nice to see a few more local running stores or running-related charities at the expo.

Getting into the race corral was very difficult this year–I ended up at the back of the pack after being unable to get into the corral any other way than through the gates at the very back. That was frustrating and probably added some minutes to my overall time. The course itself was much the same as years past, taking runners around the city to enjoy some of the fall foliage, period architecture, and the rolling hills through Cherokee Park. There ARE several hilly sections on the course, but they are largely manageable if you’ve run any hills during any of your training.

Plenty of food and hydration was available after the race, and the volunteers were very helpful! The medal was pretty standard this year, very similar to the medal two years ago, but still nice. The after-party in 4th Street Live was a blast—loved the bourbon, loved the burgoo, loved the Louisville Crashers! All in all, this is a great local race, and I’m already looking forward to next year!

This was the first year since the race was renamed as the Norton Sports Health 10k, which is the second in the Louisville Fall Runathon series of races. This race goes through the Parklands, and offers runners some pretty scenery on paved running paths...with plenty of hills to keep things interesting. The hills weren't too daunting in and of themselves, but there were several of them on the course.

Race communication was pretty minimal, and packet pick-up was a fairly utilitarian affair. That said, the race medals were pretty nice (the Fleur de Lis is a Louisville icon). And the festival afterwards was pretty nice, and the Egg Lawn was a great place for it! All in all, a fun race, and a great second leg of the Fall Runathon.

If you’re looking to set your pace on a flat course, this is your race. The course itself isn’t the most scenic, but it is nice to be able to run through a cute little town, and the view running over the bridge is great! The race is very well-run and well-organized, with thoughtful communication and good course identification. It’s carefully thought-out and executed, with nice swag and the chance to compete for an additional medal if you’re a top 100 finisher.

The time of year makes this race a little dicey for me. This year, the heat was just a killer. There are several parts of the course that are running on blacktop or cement with zero shade, so some miles towards the middle of the race are more challenging than others. I will say that there were too few portable toilets on the race course...I didn't see any on the half-marathon route, and a few water stations on the full-marathon route had one toilet each. Definitely could have used a few more!

To combat the scorching heat, race organizers and local families set up a TON of water and aid stations, which were life savers. I will say, the food available at the finish line was minimal and the food/beverages and at the after party had limited options available.

All in all, I probably won’t do this race again solely due to the likelihood for high temperatures on race day. But the race itself was great!