Santa Hustle 5k Review

Overall: Great!

Shot Recap:
Sign Up Process: This was just ok. I purchased a Groupon for this event, which cut the price in half, but it meant that I couldn’t just sign up online. I had to print something off, fill it out, scan it back in, email it over and then follow up to ensure I was actually enrolled…..ugh! But it did save me $20, so I will take it.
Price: $20 or $6.45/mile. Nice price, but I did get a Groupon for ½ off. $40 is a lot for a 5K in December in Chicago where it could have been freezing and hailing and snowing…..
Communications: This was great! They sent just enough to remind you that the race was coming up, but not enough to annoy you.
Packet Pickup: This was super easy! There was a big sign outside the door to let you know where to go in. They gave me my bib and pointed me to the next area, where they gave me the shirt, hat and beard and I was out the door!
Gear Check: Nice and easy! Huge signs to indicate what area you should go and the people were friendly.
Route: Nice route in an area I haven’t run before. We went under the parking garage of the McCormick Place, which was fun, until it got super dark in there.
Water Station: Nice. They had Gatorade and Water and clearly marked the difference. In addition, they had a Cookie and Candy station  -- nice touch.
Swag: Santa hat, beard and shirt. The shirt fit and the hat wasn’t scratchy at all. The beard on the other had was not fun to run with. I should have realized this and just left it at home, but I didn’t.

Full Recap:

The Chicago Santa Hustle took place at Soldier Field on December 1, 2012. This summer I purchased a Groupon for ½ off and assumed that December weather would be warm as it was 90 degrees all summer. As soon as I registered, I realized that I live in Chicago and it does get cold…..oh no! Luckily we’ve only had a few chilly days and I have been able to run through it. The week of the race was super chilly, but all the weather people stated that it would be in the 50s on race day. Waking up race day, I was excited to see that they were correct! It was sunny morning with few clouds in the sky. It was even warm when I left my house at 7:30 am.

I arrived early and walked around. I noticed a few port-a-potties and jumped in quickly to avoid long lines. I walked around and looked at the reindeer (nice touch) and looked at the mass number of Santa’s that were in the area. It was one of the only races where I and everyone else were wearing the shirts.

The 5k race started right at 9 am and they had self-assigned corrals divided up by 0:30 mins/miles, but only went up to 14 min/mile. There were a ton of walkers for the event (they announced the 85% of the participants didn’t consider themselves to be “runner) and they might have stressed the fact that the walkers should start after the runners. This would avoided a lot of runners passing walkers, which I saw all the time. They did have port-a-potties lining the entire corral area, which was nice as it took us 30 mins to get to the start. This did allow for a lot of chatting with my fellow runners and a nice smooth course with only a few crowded areas (usually around a water/candy station).

The course was nice. I don’t know of many races that start at Soldier Field and it was nice to be able to run in that area. The race went south, then turned around and came back. A simple out and back. We did go under the McCormick Place parking garage (I believe) and it was super dark at points. Have some more lights would have made it feel safer. Also, it wasn’t a completed 3.1 miles L.  If I just wanted to run a random distance, I would go and run. I pay money to run a specific distance in a safe manner with support. It stinks when races can’t get these two basic components down!

The route advertised cookie and candy stations, which there were. They had M&M’s and stated they were “Santa’s Favorite” candy. I did not know that. In my house they are a staple at Christmas and every family gathering (my grandfather would always give them to us and we continue to share them in his memory) and I know that M&M advertises it as that way, but I just assumed Candy station would by Candy Canes or something more “Christmas-y”. Also, they advertised “music along the course, which turned out to be music at one station and some guy who was walking the race and playing tunes. It would have been nice to have more Christmas music---maybe even carolers?

The finishing area was good and there were people cheering. I snagged the last banana, and they also had candy canes (also a nice touch), water and granola bars. You had to walk a little bit (which they could have shortened and done a complete 3.1 miles maybe???) to get to the post run area. There were milk and cookies and carriage rides. I started my walk back and ran into someone I had started with. We chatted until our routes turned and I headed the rest of the way to the EL.

Overall it was a fun run! I think I would do it again if I can pay the same price I did this year. $40 is a lot of money when it’s not actually a 5k. The shirt was nice as was the hat, but you can get the hat at any store for less than $40. The small touches that make the race unique (reindeer, cookies and milk, candy cane, etc) could even be stressed more and added to in order to add value to the race. It is truly a fun run and everyone was smiling and laughing!