RACE – Run Against Cancer Events

I ran the 5K for the 2014 Super Sunday race this year. This was my first time running a RACE event. I’m not likely to repeat this race next year unless some major logistical changes are made.
Pre-​race pick up at New Balance was quick and you get lots of loot in the process. You walk out with a long-​sleeved shirt, hat, and gloves as well as your bib and chip for your shoe.
In terms of the course, I thought it was just fine. A flat course with some good straightaways. There were volunteers all along the course providing encouragement and also helping keep the course clear. Sadly, there was one rather irate driver giving an earful to a volunteer which was disappointing to witness. I give major kudos to the event volunteers and police helping keep us safe.
The staging area before the race had plenty of port-​o-​potties and the lines moved pretty efficiently just prior to the race. Bag check was relatively simple, and if you got there on the early side, your stuff was placed in a garbage bag to protect it from the elements. The line was a bit long, though the pre-​race email said bag check would close at 9:30, so I think it was part of that final push to get bag check buttoned up in a timely fashion.
Ok, so far I’ve paid compliments to this place so why the two stars? The post-​race party was a bit of a nightmare. The process for getting your wristband was disjointed at best. There was no way to get ID’ed and the wristband before the race, which I think was part of the problem with the sea of runners seeking a nice cold beverage. Would be nice if you allowed ID’ing before the race. I had heard that the field had expanded significantly over last year, and it was definitely obvious. My friends waited 45 minutes in line for beer and when they got to the front they were told they were out. A more efficient process has to be available. Also, having people in front making a mad-​grab for beers and passing them off to friends doesn’t seem like the coolest thing to do… we’re all in this together. On the plus side, the band playing in the tent was out of this world and definitely had the crowd going. Great band choice.

The Super Sunday 5K was the 1^st RACE event I ran in.
I enjoyed the race course, and was very happy to see some friends along the route once the 5 mile course joined back up with the 5K runners. I even set a PR — shaving 4 minutes off my 5K time from an early January race!
As others have mentioned, yes, drivers were jerks, but I don’t fault RACE for that. I agree that we could use more detail cops on the route in the future to prevent traffic from driving the course. The volunteers & officers that were there did a great job, especially dealing with some unruly jerk drivers.
The party crowd post race was so unmanageable, that I left instead of fighting to get in. I’d even paid an extra $ 10 to get my husband a guest pass for the party, but it was 11 AM, and we didn’t want to fight our way in to get him a beer. (I don’t even drink beer, so that aspect of the party was not motivating me to run any faster.)
But, I’d still run the RACE Super Sunday 5K again. I just wouldn’t buy an extra party pass, since I know I wouldn’t use it.

I have to say that I was a little disappointed with this event. After I registered and paid, I noticed that cancer survivors can register for free, I contacted them to ask for a credit and never heard back no big deal.
It was nice that they offered early bib pick up at the New Balance Store a couple of days before the actual race. However, I was trying to be friendly and engaging to the RACE staff there (they were not busy) and there was one staff member that for some reason I can tell got annoyed at me. Again, no big deal, but excuse, I am excited and psicked about this race, how about a little more friendliness?
The actual day of the race things moved VERY slow. The initial bag check took wayy too long, and there were no heaters or anything like that as we waited for the start. the Race started 10 minute late, again, no big deal except that it was very cold and just standing around was not fun.
The course was good and clearly marked and there were two water stations. I did not like that traffic did not seem to be controlled: it seems that traffic could flow into the course at points I felt unsafe, the pnly safety was from being in a large group/​
At the end of the event it was even worse. It was cool that you could use an app to check your time. Thre was no clear spot to get food or water at the finish line and it was a myery to me where the fruit and water was. It took a long time to get my bag back, and then I don’t know why but it took forever to get a free beer, and there was only ONE heater on the outside waiting area. The tents they used were more like for summer as they were open aired, at least the main tent where the music was closed and felt warm from all the prople
The only good part was the warm chowder from Legal Seafoods, that was yummylicios.
I’ll probably try again next year

The Super Sunday 5miler was my first RACE event, and overall it was a great experience! Besides the fact that this was my first road race at the 5 mile distance, and therefore an automatic PR (woo!), I had a great time! The organizers were very helpful, and responded courteously and promptly to a billing question I had after registering a few weeks before the event.
While I can’t speak to the awesome-​ness of the post-​event party, since I took off for a delicious brunch, the rest of the event was very well-​organized and definitely geared towards a wide variety of running abilities. The start was not too crowded, and official times were posted just a few hours after the event — as an added perk I even got to hear my name called by the announcer just before I crossed the finish line!
My one complaint (and the reason for 4 stars instead of 5) may lie more with the Cambridge police department than with RACE, but since I’m not sure I’ll mention it here. At points during the race, particularly after the 5k mark, cars were attempting to drive in the closed-​off lane that we were running in. This created a potentially dangerous situation for all of us out there running, and seemed to be made worse by the fact that several intersections along the way did not have anyone directing traffic in them.
While it seemed that police and RACE staffers were doing all they could when I DID see them along the course, I would suggest adding more bodies along the route next year to prevent this from happening.
I will definitely be doing more RACE events in the future! Thanks for a great start to my Super Bowl Sunday.

Super Sunday was an amazingly fun event! I do many races and my friends and I all said this was in our top three. Awesome route, awesome schwag and super tasty post race beverages and a really fun band! Can’t wait for next year!

Awesome staff, planning and organization! Fun race, fun after party with Free BEER! Must do next year.