Altitude + Ungroomed snowy foot trails = Hardest 5k of my life.

I wanted to start the year off right so I decided I would do the New Year's Day 5k that was being held in-town where I was on vacation. You could sign-up in advance but I wasn't certain I was going to do it so I waited until the day of. Since I signed-up so late, I didn't get the scarf that they provide participants but they gave me a small discount on my registration fee. They didn't have gear check - people, myself included, just left everything on the chairs and floor in the lobby of the college. There was ample free parking. The course was marked as well as an ungroomed foot trail could be. There were race volunteers when there were major turns in the race but it was essentially and out and back course. The bibs weren't runner specific; Everyone was #2016. The race also wasn't timed, other than for the top 3 males and females. The course was very difficult despite being a flat course. The elevation of Breckenridge is ~9600 feet so fast times should not be expected if you're a visitor. I walked a handful of times because of the snow, elevation and lack of an official race time. :) The views of the mountains were amazing and the creek that the trail followed was pretty. My watch clocked the race at 2.6 miles - I had never been so thankful to see a finish line in my life and I wasn't angry about the short course. They had a few snacks and drinks at the end (inside of course) and a raffle which included several Whole Foods gift cards. I won some Smartwool socks. Race pictures were free to download afterwards.

If I was in Breckenridge on New Year's day in future years, I would likely do this race again. It was hard but it was fun! Maybe I'd consider doing the snow shoe division...

This is definitely my favorite turkey trot in the Chicagoland area!

Packet pick-up – Since I live in Chicago proper, going to the suburbs to pick-up my packet wasn’t the most convenient option, especially when pick-up ended at 6pm each day. No race day pick-up which was surprising for a mid-size race (~3k total people between the 5k and 10k races). You had the option to have your packet mailed to you when you registered.

Swag – RAM racing usually does something other than a shirt which is nice. This year they did a hat and gloves. Both are of decent quality.

Parking / Pre-race – I arrived about an hour before my race started and had no issues with traffic or finding a parking spot. The race is a couple of miles off the interstate but very easy to find. There was a big parking lot and ample street parking near the start of the race. There were plenty of porta potties with no lines and gear check was smooth.

Race – I loved this course. The whole course had a few gentle rollers. The course was clearly marked and had a couple of aid stations on the 10k route. The 10k started 40 minutes after the 5k so it’s possible to run both races if you’re speedy!

Post race – You received mini apple pies after crossing the finish line!

I would highly recommend this race to anyone who is looking to do a Thanksgiving day race. I’ll definitely be doing it in 2016 if I’m in town!

I really enjoyed this race and highly recommend it to everyone!

Packet pick-up was super easy. It’s held at a local running store so you can buy any last minute necessities that you need. They let you pick up bibs for others and also have packet pick-up on race day. If you register early enough you can add a customized name to your bib. The shirts were very festive however, the sizing did not seem standard. Thankfully they have a shirt exchange – I swapped my women’s specific shirt for a larger size. The parking is your typical Chicago street parking. I arrived early enough to get a spot pretty close to the start/finish (i.e., just under ½ mile) but the spaces were limited! I highly recommend getting there early to find parking, or you might find yourself doing a 5k just to get to the start line! The course was pretty simple – nothing too exciting. You do get to run a tiny portion of the marathon course during this race, which made me smile! The course was clearly marked and had ample volunteers. I don’t recall seeing an aid station on the course. If you expect to need a sip of water or whatnot, you should probably bring your own. There was plenty of post-race activities going on… face painting, singing and dancing, foods, etc. The AG and overall awards were pretty cool. They’re hand painted sugar skulls! A local [art?] school decorates them each year. I know many people who run this race in hopes of earning one of these very unique awards!

I would definitely do this race again. It was a lot of fun to run a race in Chicago that’s not downtown, at Montrose or at Diversey Harbor.

I ran the San Francisco 2nd Half half marathon. I had one major dislike (read below) but I still enjoyed the race and would likely do it again, but maybe give the 1st Half a try since you get to run across and back over the Golden Gate Bridge!
Likes
• They have five different race options which is pretty cool! They have an ultra, full marathon, two different half marathons, and a 5k.
• I love the race shirts. They’re long sleeve and have gender specific sizes. The shirts are the same design for each of the races but the shirts are different colors. Mine was a pretty orange-ish coral color.
• They offer a registration discount and preferred corral assignments to a limited number of runners who meet certain qualifying times in their respective races.
• The race expo was roomy and didn’t feel overly crowded (Disclaimer: I went on the first day, a Friday, around 3:30pm). There was also a food truck event called “Off the Grid” going on at the same location so it was nice to grab some food right after the race expo.
• The start corral area was well organized and there tons of porta potties! The pre-race area was very basic – gear check, porta potties and water – thus not crowded or overwhelming.
• The course was great – the first six miles were in Golden Gate Park (GGP). The finish was with the marathon runners so there was a large crowd cheering you on. But let’s be honest – any race on the west coast is likely to be pretty spectacular!
• The post-race area was very spacious. They had a major chunk of the road blocked off which allowed everyone to spread out. They had the usual giveaways at the finish line – drinks, fruit and protein bars.
• Race pictures are free to download! How nice! This is an incredibly rare race feature and a super cool one!!!
Dislikes
• Major dislike: The 2nd Half starts at the midpoint of the full marathon and runs the same course. The full marathon had a wave start starting at 5:30am and the 2nd Half started at 8:15am. My half pace was much faster than the full marathon people I was merging with. Some parts of the path in GGP were so narrow it was difficult to safely pass people.
• The aid stations seemed a bit disorganized in some spots. Some stations had tons of volunteers and others were a little light on assistance. I missed one aid station because there weren’t enough people passing out fluids (and I’m not willing to waste time waiting for fluids).