#park2park

If you are looking for a Fourth of July firecracker of a race, I highly recommend Park 2 Park in Bloomington/Normal, Illinois. This was my third year running it (not consecutively) and you best bet I’ll be back for more. 

Registration: Easy peasy, online, through this link. https://runsignup.com/Race/IL/Bloomington/Park2Park 

Cost: $25 (goes up to either $30/35 after a certain date) I feel like this is an incredible deal given the quality race they put on. This includes a t-shirt. I LOVED the t-shirt for this year and will wear it casually. In the other two years, it was a cheaper, tech fabric and I did not end up wearing it. This year, the shirt did run a wee bit small. 

Start: This is a point-to-point course that begins at Miller Park and ends at The Corn Crib ballpark in Normal. There is the option to take a shuttle from the Corn Crib to Miller Park, but I cannot comment on how that is as I have always had someone drop me off and pick me up. The great thing about Miller Park is that there are plenty of brick-and-mortar, flushable toilets and the lines have not been terribly long, in my experience. I arrived about 30 minutes before the start and that was plenty of time. There was music and announcements from the Pavillion and then you walk to the start at the corner of the park on Wood Street. One note that I never remember, this race is chip timed, but there is only a pad at the end with everyone going off the same start time. So, if you are not at the front of the pack, your time is likely 10 - 45 seconds slower than your actual time. Not that this is such a big race that you need waves or corrals, but as someone who does care about my time, I should have started up closer to the start line. 

There were about 600 participants... from competitive runners (I am always amazed with how many local fasties there are!) to casual runners, families, I even saw a stroller or two. Course: This is a sneaky course in that it is a slight uphill most of the way, with a couple of nice downhills. It isn’t so much of a hill that you are thinking “woah, this is a nasty hill” but the type that makes you go, why does this feel so hard? This is compounded because each time I have raced this run it has been hot and humid, and this course has very little shade. You run down Wood to Main and run on Main for miles 1 - 3.5. At mile 3.5 (by ISU) you turn on Gregory - which brought a sweet, needed breeze and downhill. Then, you turn right onto Adelaide (mile 4) which leads to a nice, shaded path that goes along a golf course. Finally, you cross Raab Road, run into the Corn Crib and finish on the Pitcher’s Mound.  Finish: First of all, it is really cool to finish the race in the Corn Crib, on the mound. Second of all, their finish line spread is AMAZING. After downing a delicious grape Powerade, I headed up to the concourse where they had bagels, donuts, cupcakes, as well as apples, bananas, sodas, etc.