Four years ago, I ran my first race: the Mchenry River Run.
It was a hot and grueling first race. I walked...a lot...but I was so proud of myself at that finish!
Fast forward 4 years...
Dozens of pairs of shoes
Thousands of training miles
And many many races behind me and I was still excited and proud to finish this race. This race has changed in two big ways since the first time I ran it in 2012. The best change is the date: it used to be on a weekday (Tuesday, I think) night at 6:45pm. That was BRUTAL!! 6:45pm on a night in mid-July is typically going to be HOT!!! River Run 2012 was just that. In the last 3 years, the race has been held on the first day of Mchenry Fiesta Days on a Saturday morning at 8:00am which is much better! This year the weather was beautiful.
The second big change is the course. The course in 2012 started downtown Mchenry by Veteran's Park. You started and finished by the River. The new course is much hillier. You start at Mchenry East High School, head south on Green Street, loop around in the neighborhood and head back on Green Street back to the high school. There are volunteers at miles 1 and 2 to encourage you and yell out your time which is helpful. There is also one water station close to 2 miles.
I like the newer course, even though it kind of stinks that you aren't by the river at all. I did the 10K last year, and you get to see the river a bit on that course. But I've been training on hills, so they didn't bug me. It's also really nice to end the race on the big down hill!
There were a lot of families and kids which is always great to see! This is a great first or fiftieth 5K. It was well-organized and run and there was a good amount of support on the course. It felt great to be able to get out there and continue my tradition of running the Mchenry River Run! Thank you so much, The Running Depot for sponsoring me in this race!
What's next? I get to run another Ragnar Relay with 11 of the coolest people I know in August in Minnesota and I can't wait!! And I'm in the thick of training for my first 50 mile race, The Hennepin 50!! I know there are still spots for this amazing race! There are three options, so there's something for everyone! You can run 50 miles like me (I hope!!!) or 100 miles solo like some of my amazing friends will be doing. Or if that's a little too crazy for you, get 4 friends together with you to run the 100 mile as a relay. I've never run this race before, but it has the same race director as my two favorite races: Earth Day and Frozen Gnome so it HAS to be amazing!
Keep moving friends! Enjoy the weather and live life!!
Fast forward 4 years...
Dozens of pairs of shoes
Thousands of training miles
And many many races behind me and I was still excited and proud to finish this race. This race has changed in two big ways since the first time I ran it in 2012. The best change is the date: it used to be on a weekday (Tuesday, I think) night at 6:45pm. That was BRUTAL!! 6:45pm on a night in mid-July is typically going to be HOT!!! River Run 2012 was just that. In the last 3 years, the race has been held on the first day of Mchenry Fiesta Days on a Saturday morning at 8:00am which is much better! This year the weather was beautiful.
The second big change is the course. The course in 2012 started downtown Mchenry by Veteran's Park. You started and finished by the River. The new course is much hillier. You start at Mchenry East High School, head south on Green Street, loop around in the neighborhood and head back on Green Street back to the high school. There are volunteers at miles 1 and 2 to encourage you and yell out your time which is helpful. There is also one water station close to 2 miles.
I like the newer course, even though it kind of stinks that you aren't by the river at all. I did the 10K last year, and you get to see the river a bit on that course. But I've been training on hills, so they didn't bug me. It's also really nice to end the race on the big down hill!
There were a lot of families and kids which is always great to see! This is a great first or fiftieth 5K. It was well-organized and run and there was a good amount of support on the course. It felt great to be able to get out there and continue my tradition of running the Mchenry River Run! Thank you so much, The Running Depot for sponsoring me in this race!
What's next? I get to run another Ragnar Relay with 11 of the coolest people I know in August in Minnesota and I can't wait!! And I'm in the thick of training for my first 50 mile race, The Hennepin 50!! I know there are still spots for this amazing race! There are three options, so there's something for everyone! You can run 50 miles like me (I hope!!!) or 100 miles solo like some of my amazing friends will be doing. Or if that's a little too crazy for you, get 4 friends together with you to run the 100 mile as a relay. I've never run this race before, but it has the same race director as my two favorite races: Earth Day and Frozen Gnome so it HAS to be amazing!
Keep moving friends! Enjoy the weather and live life!!