Latest reviews by Kara

(2014)
"Falmouth Road Race "
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The Falmouth Road Race is a staple on Cape Cod in the summer. It attracts runners from all over and is a must for me every year. The course is a bit difficult, the beginning is three miles of congested rolling hills and then flattens out for another three miles but is in the bright sun ending with about a mile long gradual uphill and a HUGE hill at the end followed by a huge down hill under a giant flag to finish surrounded by thousands of cheering fans. This race is strictly a lottery race so you have to sign up for the lottery in the beginning of may. You pick your number up a few days before and there is a small expo which has gotten better from year to year. The one complaint I have is you have to buy a tshirt, you get a mug and poster for free and also their are no medals. I want a medal if I am going to run over seven miles. Other then that I love this race there are plenty of water stops along the way as well as cheering fans through out the entire 7 miles and the views are like no other! A must if visiting Cape Cod in the August!

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(2014)
"Warrior Dash MA 2014"
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This race is AMAZINGLY fun! If you are thinking about doing it but are unsure DO IT! The course is challenging very very hilly and some of the obstacles are tough to get over but if you are afraid of it you can go around it. The beginning of the course is mostly steep steep hills and then there are many obstacles grouped together. The best ones are at the end where you swim through a pool of thick mud and water and then the very last one where you slide down a huge slide into a pool of muddy water. It is AWESOME! The gear you get is great as well. You get a warrior helmet, medal, koozie, tshirt, finisher photos and a free beer (21+). Also a cool feature was when you were finished you could get your picture taken a on this huge warrior dash sign and it was uploaded right to your facebook, something I had never seen at a race. If there is one of these races in your area or even 2 hours away do it!

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(2014)
"Runners World Heartbreak Hill 10k"
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I got the opportunity to run the Runner's World Heartbreak Hill 10k this past June, a race I had been looking forward to running since I heard about it. I knew this course was going to be a difficult one as the majority of it was up Boston's legendary heartbreak hill. First let me start from the beginning, I arrived early as I still had to pick up my number at the expo. I was not warned that I should know my number prior to getting my bib but they had a wall with everyone on it so you could easily look it up. I picked up my numbers and things seemed to be pretty quiet around campus and I was a bit unsure of where to go for the start and what not. I wanted to check my clothes as it was a bit chilly in the morning and knew the race was going to be a hot one. I want to the gear check and there wasn't anyone there yet to start that process. I sat around for about twenty minutes and finally someone came and started setting it up. Once I was all set I found the start line and walked around a bit. The highlight of my race was I saw Shalane Flanagan who was running all the races at the start. There were not many people around so I went up and asked to take a picture with her. She graciously said yes! I was thrilled. I then headed back the corrals were self seated corrals by pace. I went to my area and waited for a bit until the start. Then the race was off. The first three miles were pretty much down hill it was a straight three miles out and three miles back. There were plenty of Poland Springs water stops that were clearly marked which was great. The first three miles for me were good. It was hot so I needed to slow my pace but it was good and then the last three miles were tough, basically all up hill. I took my time and finally came to the finish, collected my finishers medal which were pretty nice and has a spinner part in the middle and then headed to gear check. The expo wasn't open in the morning so I checked that out after the race too. Also they had a good selection of Gatorade, power bars, bread and bananas when you finished as well which is always nice! The expo was a bit disappointing I wanted their to be a bit more especially since the event was put on by runners world however their were some cool aspects. You could get your picture taken and put on a Runners World magazine which I liked. My one other complaint was with the shirts. They had a combined one for the 5k and 10k and then they had one for the half. There were several challenges during the weekend so I had hoped they had shirts for all the different things. All in all I had a great time and would do it again!

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(2014)
"Ragnar Cape Cod "
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First off let me say Ragnar is one of those races that while you are running it you are a bit unsure of why you thought this was a good idea, but the day after you are totally missing everyone in your van and you can't wait to sign up again. This was my first Ragnar race and it did not disappoint. It starts off in Hull, MA and goes 200 miles to Provincetown. We had an early start time 7:30 which worked out great for my van. I was in Van 1 so this review comes solely from van 1's perspective. The weather that day was overcast a little drizzly but nothing that soaked us. It was the perfect running weather, if it were any hotter I think it would have been difficult. Moving right along when we got to Hull they had a very big area where we could buy Ragnar gear and there was a place to grab an entire case of water which was provided for every van and then a place to go over all the rules of Ragnar. We got all of our gear and our team was checkd to make sure we had everything we were suppose to and out first runner was off. The course was pretty hilly, and even routes that were suppose to be easy were not. We ended our first legs around lunch time and took a break until we were suppose to run again around 7ish. We then started again and ran in the pitch black till around midnight had a few hour break and then started again around 3am and finished around 11am. Our team all in all finished around 3pm. Sorry for so much timing. It is an absolute blast and crazy experience. People who are great runners and people who are average runners can take part. The craziest times happen when you are completey delirious at night and when you finish you feel such a sense of accomplishment. The course is beautiful and the end party over looks all of P-town and the water it a race not to miss!

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(2013)
"Disneyland Half Marathon 2013"
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The Disneyland half marathon is my most favorite race of all time! I ran my first last year and it was a magical experience! The course is very flat with the first few miles around Anaheim and then you head into the parks which is an experience in itself. All the rides are going all the lights are on and there are characters and cast members everywhere! Once you leave the parks you head out around Anaheim again which is a bit boring but has many spectators, bands and dancers along the course. You then run through about a mile of old fashion cars which is so cool and then head into Angles stadium which gives you goosebumps! You run around the warning track and you are up in the jumbotron and there are a ton of cheering fans in the stands! Once you leave the stadium you have about three miles left which fly by you are then heading back into Disneyland with people sinigng and fans everywhere and Mickey and Minnie greeting you at the finish an experience that is truly amazing! The expo is also awesome a bit crowded last year but the were lots of vendors but get there early to get the good stuff as things do sell out fast. The best thing about the Disneyland half is everything is right there within walking distance. If you are staying on property you can walk to the parks, your hotel, the expo, start and finish line in minutes. The price of the race can be a bit expensive but it is well worth it! Oh and did I mention the medals?!?!? AMAZING!

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