pumpkins in the park 5k recap

Disclaimer: I received an entry for Pumpkins in the Park 5k to review as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador), and check out BibRave.com to review find and write race reviews!

RAM Racing Pumpkins in the Park 5k took place on Saturday, October 21 with a race start of 4pm (2:30pm for the Kids Spooky Sprint). I love afternoon/evening races, so this is ideal for me (though traffic around/in the city on a Saturday afternoon is not ideal. 



We got to the race site around 3pm (parked in the Lincoln Park Zoo lot) and grabbed our packets. The line was pretty long, but went quickly. We stopped back at the car to get race ready and then wandered the zoo a bit before heading back to the race. They also had packet pickup on Friday at Fleet Feet Old Town, but I wasn't able to make that, so I was very glad they did race day and I didn't have to pay $15 for shipping.



I met up with fellow BibRave Pro Bree for a quick chat and photo, and then it was time to line up. We were in corral C, which started a few minutes after 4pm.  The course is below, but it basically wound around the park, went north, turned around and came back south till the finish.



The course was a bit narrow at times, and you had to be careful of your footing because it wasn't always a smooth surface (cracks and bumps, sometimes pavement, sometimes dirt). It didn't seem as congested as the year before, or maybe it was, but being prepared for it had my expectations on the same level.

It was fun to see all of the families and different costumes. At the finish line, we received a cup of Nuun, bottled water, a taffy apple covered in sprinkles, mini Clif bar, and individually wrapped mini pumpkin pies (two in a package). Yum. I found Bree again and we talked about our race, then she had to get going. We initially were going to grab beers, but then saw the very long line (as they were checking IDs and doing wristbands), and since we were hungry for dinner, decided to leave. They were also making popcorn and handing that out.







For dinner we went to Burger Antics in Brookfield, which has some amazing food and beer. I couldn't decide on a burger, so I got the three slider option where you can choose different ones. It was awesome. We then had some pumpkin pie cheesecake for dessert. Great way to celebrate my birthday - running, burgers, fries, beer, and pie.

Favorite burger? The one on top with FOUR different cheeses.
Get in my belly!

If you're looking for a fun Halloween race, you should give this one a go in 2018. They also have a costume contest, so bring your A game and win some prizes. I think there were also awards for the top 3 women and men, but don't quote me on that.

bucktown 5k recap

Disclaimer: I received an entry for Bucktown 5k to review as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador), and check out BibRave.com to review find and write race reviews!

At the start line.

If you prefer a short version, check out my BibRave review here.

RAM Racing Bucktown 5k was held on Sunday, September 17. This was my second year running it (2016 was my first; recap here). Though I have been trying to mostly run 10k or longer distance races, I couldn't help but register for this Bucktown 5k. Why? Because of the goodie bag. This year's included a super soft, Chicago flag blanket, and when I saw it in person at an expo/felt it, well, it was just too good to pass up.

At the finish line.

My mom picked up my bib for me on Friday afternoon at Fleet Feet Sports in Old Town. She said pickup was easy and no problems. We left the house around 7 and got to the race around 7:30. I went to where I parked last year, and both sides of the street were full. This put me in panic mode, even though we had a lot of time still. Parking in the city isn't easy, and since the course was a no parking zone, it meant all of the cars that normally were parked there were displaced, which means there was going to be limited parking in the area.

The photographer told us to do it haha.

In our search, we came across a policeman on the course. We asked if he knew where some parking might be and he said he had no idea. So, we just drove around. Eventually we found some metered parking on the street maybe mile from the race. A lot of other runners parked here as well, and in the end, though it cost us $4 rather than being free, it was closer to Starbucks and Stan's Donuts, so worked out better haha. I tried to get my mom to get out of the car near the race so she would have time for the bathroom in case we were cutting it close, but she refused.

Free race photos for the win. And there were actually a good amount.

Anyway, we were parked before 8, got our gear ready, and walked over to the race site. Plenty of time to use the portapotties, which didn't have very long lines, and all was fine. There was a DJ and an announcer letting people know when to go line up in the corrals. The race start was different than last year, moved up just a little bit so all of the corrals were on one street rather than being 'L' shaped, turning down a different street.

There were 6 corrals released every 3 minutes or so. We were in the second to last, and I ran with my mom the whole way with her intervals (45/45). The congestion seemed a bit better to me than last year, not running into as many people. I'd say the course was pretty wide in most cases, and MOST cars had parked elsewhere (there was an occasional car you had to weave around). Two sections you ran on half the street, as the other half was for another portion of the course, but it wasn't long or bad, and it was cool to watch the other runners go by.

There were plenty of volunteers and police out to keep the runners on course, safe, and keep traffic off course. There was one water stop (there might have also been Nuun, but I couldn't tell for sure - I skipped it). 

The course.

There were so many families out cheering for all of the runners, it made the race seem very special and local. 

At the finish line, we were given a cup of Nuun, bottled water, a banana, and a bag of snacks which included Soy chocolate milk, a plain bagel, Clif mini bar, Rice Krispy treat, and a piroucrisp. Post-race site had a DJ, games, and a photo backdrop. 

We didn't stick around too long. We headed back to the car to drop off the extra stuff and then headed over to Stan's to grab some amazing donuts. Then we got some iced beverages from Starbucks next door. It was a delicious morning haha.

I shared, I promise.

Definitely looking at running again in 2018 – looks like they are voting between a chicago flag blue long sleeve tech shirt with the 4 stars on the sleeve or a duffel bag. They both looked pretty cool. 

Have you ever run this race? Did anything I mention make you want to register? :)

run mag mile 10k recap

Disclaimer: I received an entry for Run Mag Mile 10k to review as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador), and check out BibRave.com to review find and write race reviews!

You can read my more succinct review here.

The Run Mag Mile 10k was held on Saturday, September 9 in Grant Park at 7am. I had attempted to pre-pay for parking at the Millenium Garages, but for whatever reason, SpotHero was saying all of the spots were gone. So we ended up at Soldier Field. A little bit of a walk, but that was fine. At the start, temps were about 58 with 76% humidity and when I finished it was in the mid-60s. Sunny most of the way.

I wasn't able to make packet pickup, so my mom grabbed our stuff on Friday morning at Fleet Feet Old Town. She said it was easy, though for some reason they didn't give her the right goodie bag. I guess if you registered before a certain date you got the sweatshirt and then after a certain date you received the same long-sleeve as last year, but branded with this years info. We found this out later. She had been excited for the sweatshirt, so I told her to email them to find out what happened. That's when we found out about some people getting something while the others got something else. Anywho - she had registered early enough that she was supposed to get the sweatshirt and they emailed her back quickly saying it was a mistake and they would have the sweatshirt waiting for her at the info tent at the race. That was cool of them (not only to fix the problem, but also how quickly they responded – some folks don't even respond to their emails). She returned her other shirt in the morning when we got there and then gear checked her new sweatshirt.

We got to the race around 6:15, I met up with my friend Angela (a fellow Oiselle Volée) and Zenaida (fellow Volée and BibRave Pro), and then we got into our corral (which was E, it went up to F). They released corrals every 5 minutes or so. I ran on my own rather than with my mom, because getting close to marathon day, I needed to work on my own run/walk intervals (especially after being in Disneyland and running wacky intervals for photos, the heat, etc). Since we were pretty familiar with the route, I knew she'd be ok on her own. 5k and 10 runners all started together.

The course started on Columbus heading south (if you were corral maybe C–F you lined up facing east on Jackson), then it sort of bottle necked on the east side while then curving west to go down Congress Parkway, around the curve to go north on Michigan, turn around right before Chicago, east on Randolph, south on the lower LFP, down to the end before it goes around Shedd where you turned to go on the middle path until Balbo, which you then went to the upper path next to LSD, back down to Randolph to head west, then south on Columbus to the finish line. Here's the map if you're a visual person:

Thanks to being on the streets the first few miles, runners have some time and space to spread out before getting on the LFP where it can get a bit crowded (especially since it's still open to the public – so beware of cyclists and other runners; maintain etiquette by running or walking only 2 across and let people know when you are going from a run to a walk). I enjoyed the course – it's nice not having the entire thing on the LFP and getting some different sights made it more interesting. 

There were four aid stations along the course with water and Nuun. I decided not to run with my own hydration since it wasn't going to be TOO hot out and it was a shorter distance. There ended up not being quite enough volunteers to meet the demand of the high volume of runners. I felt bad for them as they were trying to pour and hand out as quick as they could, but couldn't quite keep up. I ended up grabbing off a table most of the time since luckily they had poured a lot of cups and that seemed better than having to stop and wait to be handed a cup.

I also love the few out and backs where you have a chance to cheer on other runners. As I was going down Randolph, I caught Angela heading towards mile 6 and cheered for her as she ran past (and she actually heard/saw me and waved - yay!). 

I ran 75 seconds and walked 15 seconds and felt pretty good the whole way. The course was clearly marked and plenty of volunteers to warn the 5k to split and head to the finish line while the 10k was to keep heading east to the LFP. 

I finished with a good for me time, not a PR, but pretty close I think. 12:34 pace, which I was happy to see. I wasn't happy that I forgot to put my watch on Manual Laps, and my watch was off by about a mile. Once it got to be a full mile ahead, it helped to know my pace, but generally I was just going by feel, because I can't do math when running to decipher my pace per mile in correlation with my time elapsed haha. It's why pace bands or tattoos are something I like. So I really had no idea if I was going too hard or not, but just listened to my body and that seemed to work out well for me.

When I finished I grabbed my medal, bottled water, Luna bars, and then I met up with a new friend (and another volée member) Nora. She was such a sweetheart to hang around at the finish area waiting for me to finish. We then chatted a bit, met up with my mom, and then grabbed our brunch. She's a vegan, and she said they were very nice when she asked not to have eggs or sausage in her container (and offered her an extra bagel, which she declined). The post-race brunch consisted of Parm Crisps, Dole mixed fruit cup, Piroucrisps, plain bagel, grape jelly, ketchup packet, sausage, and eggs, along with a packet of utensils, napkin and a wet nap. Pretty awesome. Beverage options were some Revolution Brewing brews (I think Oktoberfest and Cross of Gold) or a Moscow Mule. I've never had a Moscow Mule and was intrigued, so grabbed one of those, while my mom grabbed a CoG. Very much appreciate the race partnering with a local craft brewery. Thank you! Tickets for drinks and brunch were on your bib.

The race kept everyone up to date on race details with frequent (but not annoying) emails, and afterwards they sent out a post-race survey, link to results, and photos. Photos were FREE and I actually had more than one. Hooray! Not to mention they were ready about two hours after the race. Super quick.

I enjoyed this race and would recommend it for anyone looking for a September 5 or 10k. RAM just about always comes through with unique swag and medal designs. Registration is already open for next year if you're interested.

btn big 10k recap

Disclaimer: I received entry for BTN Big 10k to review as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador), and check out BibRave.com to review find and write race reviews!

The BTN Big 10k was on Sunday, July 23, 2017 with a 7am start for the 10k and an 8am start for the 5k. I registered for the 10k and this was my second year racing this event. You can read my shorter review here.

I was unable to get my packet during the week (it started on Wednesday and went through Saturday at Fleet Feet Old Town), so I was heading into the city on Saturday after my dentist appointment. My friends Angie and Josh were coming into town for the race, so we decided to coordinate a run on the Lakefront Path together with a planned meet up of around noon.

It took me a while to get into the city on Saturday. I left around 10am and got there around 11 or so. Pickup was a breeze – I had my QR codes ready to go and after going into Fleet Feet and going to the back where the pickups are held, I waited maybe a minute or two for a volunteer to be available and it was another minute to get both packets. Turns out, my mom and I had registered early enough we were also getting cookies. I expected it to be one, but it was five or six in a bag held in a plastic RAM Racing cup. Awesome, and as later I found out, delicious. They were from a place called Carol’s I believe.

I had a little time to kill, so I looked around the store and found a Momentum Jewelry wrap I had wanted that said runCHI on it, so I bought that. My friend Mike was working the register, so we chatted a bit about running and shoes while he checked me out. 

It's nice to have someone with you to take a photo.

I headed over to Montrose Harbor to meet Angie and Josh. I had 8 miles scheduled for the day, and so Angie ran with me. Josh ran 11, but we met up with him a time or two on the LFP while he was getting a snack/drink. It was a warm one, and the path was very crowded, but we had a lot of fun. Afterwards, we ate at the Montrose Docks. I got a BLT and fries and it was delicious.

These two are the best.

Anyway - back to the race details :)

My mom and I parked at Millenium Garages (pre-paid for a spot using SpotHero) and arrived at the race site around 6am. I had a planned meeting with the three other BibRave Pros racing at 6:30, so we hit up the porta-potty lines which were starting to get long.

The Start Line.

I ran into my Oiselle teammate Jen while waiting for the other pros and we chatted a bit. She was out there to cheer and we talked about how humid it was – it was going to be a tough race if it was that bad already in the morning and we felt it just standing there. Temps were already at 75 degrees with 86% humidity and 70 dew point.

Eventually, the four BRPs were able to find each other and we high-fived, hugged, took photos, and wished each other luck. It was time to get into the corrals.

The BibRave Pros.

I was in the last one, so didn’t matter so much for me, but the rest had to get up closer to the start. There were about 2 minutes between corrals and the line-ups were along Columbus with the start line (going north) at Monroe. Soon enough, we were off. I was attempting to race on my own, using my own intervals, which for that day I was trying 70/15.

Mascots at the start line.

I was doing ok the first few miles, though the very high humidity had me struggling. By mile 3.5 or so, it hit hard. I couldn’t keep up with my intervals any more, and I had to walk a lot more than I wanted. I tried bringing them down to 60/15, and then 60/30, but I still struggled. I decided that day was just going to be about finishing, and I assumed my mom would catch up to me before the finish. 

Great views of the city. This was right after aid station 1.

The first aid station was pretty packed, so I kept going (I brought my own hydration for situations like these – and I get to drink the electrolytes I prefer), but I stopped at the second and third for some water (to both drink and to dump on my head). 

Shedd Aquarium.

I really like the course (minus the bad cracks and holes in the lower path near the lake, but that can’t be helped. One of these days the city will fix that area, right?). We had some beautiful views of the city, and the lake looked really enticing on such a hot day – I wanted to just jump in.

When you aren't having a good race, might as well stop for some photos.

There were clocks and mile markers for each mile, and three aid stations, and 2 slip and slide blow-up things. I passed on those, assuming I wouldn’t have the energy to slide the whole way haha. I think there was a timing mat around mile 3.1 too, but not completely sure. I get runners brain and forget a lot of things about on course happenings ha.

Around mile 5 mom caught up and so we ran the last mile together, keeping each other going when I know all we both wanted to do was walk. We did 30 secs running and 60 secs walking I think. Eventually we crossed the finish line. Summer running in Chicago isn’t my favorite, and so I know to have lower expectations of my finish times. This one was far from a PR.

At the finish line you got your medal, which was the same for everyone this year (10k finishers only), bottled water, a banana, and Clif Protein Bars. I saw towels laying around, so they must have been giving those out, but I couldn’t find any and assumed they were all gone. I did grab a bag of ice to help cool me down (wrapped it in my BUFF® and then held it to my neck, face, and put it on top of my head).

Trying to cool off using ice in my BUFF®

After leaving the finishers chute, we headed to get our magnetic coins. This is where you would go to your alumni tent for the school you chose when registering. You tore off the claim ticket on your bib and exchanged it for the coin, which then stuck to your medal. Mom got the generic BTN Big 10 Fan shirt at pickup (liked the colors a lot), and so we headed over to that tent first to grab her coin. Then it was to Illinois for mine. Luckily, Iowa Hawkeyes was right next to it, which made it easy to find Angie, Josh, and Kelly. I also met up with another Oiselle teammate from WI, Allison, who was super sweet.

A ton of people hang out for quite some time at this race. There are games, photo opportunities at your alumni tent (if there weren’t trophies or mascots, there was at least the school backdrop). The Illinois tent gave out coupons for Chipotle (free guac and chips). Food was Amylou sausage and pretzels – I didn’t get any, as after being super hot, the thought of eating something hot just wasn’t doing it for me. They also had Revolution beer. I was SO happy to see that the race partnered up with them, a local brewery, instead of one of the big guys. Thank you RAM! I didn’t have any, but I’m always in favor of supporting and promoting local. 

We hung out behind the tents in a tree shaded area for a while, then decided it was less crowded so we could get our photos taken at our tents with props and things. On our way out, we had a small dance party (I believe Angie posted a video on her twitter or instagram) and then some more photos by the blow up football. We went to Buckingham Fountain for some photos, then Dunkin’ Donuts for some drinks (I was very disappointed that they didn’t have the iced teas they had on the menu, but the Strawberry Banana smoothie was good… and the hashbrowns), and then over to The Cloud Gate. Lots of great photos and conversation. Lucky for us, my mom doesn't love to be in photos, so she took all of the group ones for us. She's awesome. Eventually will sat down by the fountains where the wind would bring over some cooling water spurts that felt awesome. Kelly headed out and we talked with Josh and Angie a bit longer. Around 11 I think it was, we all said our final goodbyes until hopefully Marathon weekend. 

I'm a good sport.

Exhausted. Early wake-up. Hot. Humid. Sunny.

Though I’m not a super fan of college sports, I enjoy this race. It is well-managed, packet pickup is easy (and you can have it mailed if you wanted up to 3 weeks before the race for $15 and packet usually arrives about a week before race day), the course is a little different, great scenery, and great vibe from the runners. Though there’s school rivalry, it’s all in good fun. I’d recommend this to anyone that’s looking for a fun race, there is an Elite start so it’s great for the fast runners too. I love that so many people are still there when I finish. A lot of races, most people are gone by the time I finish, so I think it’s cool that there’s enough going on at this post-race tailgate that entices people to hang around.

Closing out a fun weekend with fun friends.