I volunteered for a full day shift on Saturday which let me run the race for free on Sunday after earning my discount code. This was my very first Tough Mudder and I loved it! The course is really as challenging as you want to make it. We skipped obstacles that weren't quite our speed and challenged ourselves on others that were difficult. Tough Mudder is a great organization that totally gets you pumped up about fitness. Since we ran on Sunday, some of the course was a little run down after a full weekend of use, but that's to be expected and in some cases it just added to the challenge!

This was my first experience running a Rock n Roll Half marathon and my second half marathon overall. I stayed with my sister who was local at the time so I can't comment on the accommodations surrounding the event. On this weekend I ran the 5K on Saturday and the half marathon on Sunday. It downpoured on me both days, which I think was a blessing because they were also very hot and humid days. The rain made some of the bridges over the river a little slick and scary. If you like cities, this is a great place to run because you weave in and out around the city. For me, it got a little monotonous. I liked the portion toward the end of the race where you run under the convention center but honestly it was a little dangerous as it was so dark I couldn't even see my feet below me. Also, I expected a lot more on-course entertainment and music.

I LOVE THE INDY MINI. Growing up in Indianapolis, we had always gone to support friends and family completing this race. After some personal health struggles, I got into running in early 2017 and signed up for this race as motivation to help me train throughout the beginning of the year. Despite having never run long distances at all before, I trained and trained and showed up terrified but ultimately made it through without stopping. In the middle of this race you get to run on the track at the Speedway, and those 2.5 miles have never seemed so long. The Indy cars go so much faster than we do (duh). People come from all over the US to do this race and it's not hard to see why. If you're looking for a giant race with a mostly flat course and a ton of energy, the Indy mini is a great option.