Race Recap: Minnesota Nut House Challenge — TOTALLY NUTS!

I took a road trip to Rochester, Minnesota a few weeks ago — my first time to the state of Minnesota — to run the TOTALLY NUTS! challenge series of the Minnesota Nut House Challenge. The drive was just over 3 hours from the Des Moines area.

MN Nut House Challenge totally nuts logo

I love multi-event challenge races, so I was ready to get some miles on my legs in my build-up to ultra-marathon training. The half marathon would be my 12th — AND I got to color in another state on my map.

This was the 3rd year for the Nut House series; it’s a small local race put on by Triton Events and sponsored by Active PT & Sports. There are several races that made up the weekend of events: a 5k, 10k, and half marathon; there was a children’s/fun mile run before each of those races, too. While I knew what kind of mileage I was getting myself into by running all three (22.4), I’m SO GLAD that they were not in the order of 5k/10k/half.

Nut House Challenge flat runner blog review

The 10k was up first on Saturday morning, followed by the 5k Saturday evening, and the half marathon on Sunday morning. Participants had the option of running a single race or completing one of two challenges: Half Cracked (I couldn’t find on the race website which two events were included for this race but I assume the 5k and half marathon) or Totally Nuts (all three). Before each race, the event also hosted a 1 Mile / Kids Challenge. Kinda wonder if I should have signed up to run a mile, too.

I was working HARD in my 10k in hopes of getting that elusive sub-hour PR (my PR from 2014 is 1:00:39). It was not to be. And then I had to walk during my 5k and was all kinds of miserable (I found a place with gluten-free carrot cake, so I’LL BE FINE). Sunday’s half marathon was no better. But I just needed to finish before it was time to check out of my hotel.

Registration + Cost: I registered in December, and with online fees, all three races cost me $107.75.

Minnesota Nut House - race prices

Expo + Packet Pick-up: Pick-up was at local running store TerraLoco on Friday (I drove in that afternoon). There was also bib pick-up on race day. No expo for this race, but I enjoyed browsing the shop. For runners doing the challenge races, the same bib was used (thank you!!!). Naturally, I forgot to pick up course maps when I grabbed my bib; thankfully, I remembered to get the safety pins.

Nut House Challenge totally nuts 3 races

Weather: IT WAS HOT. Like, sincerely the hottest weather I think that I’ve ever raced in (if I’ve said that before, I was lying). The “real feel” temp at start time of the 5k on Saturday evening was 92. I set my limit after completing that evening’s race that I wouldn’t run the half on Sunday if it was over 80 degrees. It was close.

Saturday morning wasn’t overly-warm, but the humidity made my palms sweat within the first mile. It was the kind of thickness in the air that sucked all your energy away.

Nut House Challenge rochester minnesota race blogger
Looks beautiful – but it was HOT!

Start Line + Parking: My hotel was about .3 miles away from the start (and finish) line at Soldiers Field Memorial Park. It wasn’t crowded at all, which is always nice. I explored the memorial and then found a shade of tree to hang out and watch the kid’s mile challenge around the track before race start.

MN Nut House Challenge race day pics
Oh, hey – that’s me!

Course + Elevation: This race series was all on paved trails. The 10K went one direction and several points was in the woods, so it was peaceful (there was also a portion of the trail that ran along a major road, which was not). The 5K started from the same place, but turned towards the city on the trails. The half marathon was kind of a combination of them both (a little more extended into the parks/woods areas portion of the 10K route).

Minnesota Nut House Challenge totally nuts charity race

Aid Stations: Considering this was a small race, I was impressed at how the RD and organizers STEPPED UP to make sure runners were properly hydrated. There was Gatorade available at almost every water stop (if not all of them), AND during the half marathon, there were 11 total stations AND had GU available. Even when there weren’t enough volunteers to support an extra manned water station during the 5K, they left a giant water cooler and disposable cups so runners could self-support.

Minnesota Nut House Challenge start line blog
There’s a giant pool at the Finish Line!

Finish Line + After Party: Guys. There was a POOL at the finish line. There also was a bunch of kids lined up with super-soakers as you approached the finish chute — THANK YOU!!! There was complimentary bottles of water and Gatorade, and free beer from Grand Rounds (a local brewery; nothing gluten-free in the alcoholic department). Also, also: there were Pearson’s Salted NUT ROLLS candy bars (somehow I went my whole life having never had one!). AND there was hot nuts from a local company (wish I caught their name!).

Nut House Challenge nut roll finish line

The races were all timed by MTEC Results — and I got the results emailed to me within an hour of finishing, which included a BUNCH of fun stats! There was a restaurant called Twigs that had a gluten-free menu — I’m talking 4 PAGES FULL of gluten-free options PLUS DESSERTS. I was in fried green beans heaven. I was able to even order a Minnesota-made gluten-free IPA. On my second visit, I had a local cider made with Honeycrisp apples.

Nut House Challenge Minnesota gluten free beer

Fans + Experience + Charity: With small races, you don’t get much crowd support, but I did meet some wonderful runners on my trip — including a beautiful woman from the Carolinas (doing a cross-country trip with her kids) who told me all about the race’s charity partner, Inheritance of Hope. She adamantly expressed her desire to never run another half marathon ever (she was doing the entire challenge as well). Sadly, she lost her husband to MLS a few years ago and truthfully, I haven’t stopped thinking about her and her family since the race. I didn’t know anything about this charity before meeting her, and I’m so appreciative of her sharing her story. I could tell that she was emotionally connected to the purpose, and she really made me think about “why I run” — prompting me to plan to do another fundraise run for charity next year.

Triton Events gives a portion of each registration to Inheritance of Hope — a non-profit organization that inspires hope in young families facing the loss of a parent to a terminal illness. Through these partnerships with endurance events, athletes can raise funds to support Inheritance of Hope and send these families to Legacy Retreats.

Nut House Challenge medals race reviewer

Swag + Medals: There was an individual medal received for each race, and they’re pretty sweet. Though I was a little disappointed that there wasn’t an additional medal for completing the entirety of the challenge (I’m so spoiled), the uniqueness of these medals more than made up for it.

Also, while the t-shirt is a really nice design and SUPER comfy (also, it fits!), I was really hoping for something with the crazy squirrel logo that’s used all over the other race branding because, well… because it’s crazy and I love crazy.

OVERALL
The Great: LOVED the near-instant results email with access to a bunch of race stats.
The Good: Overall, a really fun event – with that “small race vibe.”
The Bad: If I really had to complain about something, it’s that there’s not a lot of the necessary race info on the website — and while this out-of-towner figured things out (and asked questions on their FB page), it could have been better. Also, I almost deleted the race day email because the subject line was about online registration closing.
The Ugly: Another race, another event complaining about the weather. Though this race really stepped up to support the heat!

Nut House Challenge start line soldiers memorial field

OFFICIAL RESULTS:
10K: 1:01:12
5K: 31:19
Half Marathon: 2:23:57
Totally Nuts Challenge Cumulative: 3:56:28 — 58th Overall; 5th in my AG

Race Recap: The Illinois Marathon 5K — Race 1 of the Half I-Challenge

Disclaimer: I received a free entry to The Illinois Marathon 5K 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!

Illinois marathon challenge blog runner

I’m breaking down my trip to the Illinois race weekend into two posts. This first post will include the 5K portion of the I-Challenge and the Expo. The second will focus on the half marathon and overall race weekend experience.

Location: Champaign-Urbana, Illinois! A nice little 5-hour road trip from Des Moines.

Illinois marathon road trip blogger race review
Road trip rest stop #1: At least I know that I hydrated properly!

Registration and Cost: As my disclosure states above, I received a free entry to the I-Challenge series (5K and half marathon). If you register for the race early, you can run the 5K for as cheap as $25. There are several incremental increases as the race approaches; expo registration (pending availability) went as high as $50. The Half I-Challenge for the half marathon and 5K starts at $85 and goes up to $140.

There are four different distances as part of the Illinois Marathon weekend: the full marathon, half marathon, a 10k and 5k. There is also a youth run, a marathon relay, and the challenge races that all include the 5k on Friday night and one of the distances on Saturday.

Illinois marathon expo recap blogger
Me and Alma… and Alma… and Alma.

Expo and Packet Pick-up: The Health & Fitness Expo opened on Thursday (4-8pm) and continued Friday from (10am-7pm); I drove in on Friday and made it to the expo around 3pm (after checking into my hotel). The expo takes place at the University of Illinois Activities and Recreation Center (ARC) and, after parking, was easy for this out-of-towner to find her way. Arrows directed you to the bib pick-up area first — I didn’t experience any lines in the afternoon.

Illinois marathon expo review race blog

After picking up my bibs (separate bibs for the half and 5K), registrations are then directed to the large gym area for the vendor area and swag pick-up. There were a large number of vendors, a series of speakers — including marathoner Dick Beardsley — and several photo opportunities. I really enjoyed the experience and layout, and spent a good amount of time looking around (and, of course, shopping). Biaggi’s restaurant was also hosting a Pasta Feed at the Expo — and they had gluten-free pasta (YAY!).

Illinois marathon expo recap

Parking was a little annoying from a time management perspective, but there was plenty of it and it’s free. Signage was very helpful around campus to direct where to park — and look for all the volunteers with orange foam fingers. You just might have to do some walking, and the Expo gets busier as people get out of work.

Swag: Each race had its own drawstring race bag and t-shirt. The 5K shirt is short sleeved and the typical boxy fit that comes with unisex sizing. If you’re local to the area, there were a BUNCH of race and product flyers — many with discounts.

Weather: The weather was much chillier than I expected at 48 degrees (and super windy). And I’m REALLY glad that I packed that extra pair of pants and a long-sleeve layer.

Illinois marathon 5k review blog

Course: All of the races for the weekend started near the State Farm Center and ended at Memorial Stadium. I don’t know much about the area, but it was fun to run through campus and Champaign at nighttime. There was a great energy along the course, with a lot of students cheering from the sidewalks and porches around campus. I did my fair share of “woo’ing” with spectators.

Illinois Marathon 5K course map

Start Line: The 5K started at 7:30 pm — and at a half hour before start time, it was SO CROWDED. All of the runners couldn’t even fit into their corrals, and there was quite a long wait in between waves in order to fit all the people in as each corral moved forward. It kind of made me nervous for the half marathon start. Maybe that bottleneck could be alleviated with entry open to both sides of the corrals?

Illinois marathon bibrave pro start line
Bib Rave Pros!

Aid Stations: There was a water stop on the course about 2 miles in, though I didn’t need to stop.

Finish Line: The big appeal of the Illinois Marathon is the 50-yard finish inside Memorial Stadium. Imagine my surprise to learn we would be doing the same for the 5K! It was a really cool experience, though you couldn’t linger long on the field. Inside the concession area was free food for finishers: Jimmy John’s sandwiches (sadly no lettuce-wrapped), bananas, and Nature Valley granola bars.

After Party: The 4th Mile party outside Memorial Stadium was the celebratory kick-off to the 5K and race weekend. All participants got a free drink (lines were fairly long by the time we finished our races) from Riggs Beer Company. There was also live music, food trucks, and FREE CAKE to celebrate the 150th birthday. All of this, sadly, not meant for the gluten-free runner. I was positively shivering from the cold (I had to purchase an oversized men’s sweatshirt from one of the vendor booths to get warm) and unfortunately, couldn’t stick around the party too long.

Illinois marathon 5k medals

Speaking of birthdays, the 5K medal is a balloons bouquet celebrating the sesquicentennial. And for me, it also celebrated a new PR! HOLY CRAP. I ran the race by feel and… it felt easy. I’m just so ecstatic to have that feeling and see those splits — while also having so much fun.

Illinois marathon 5k finish line stadium review

OVERALL
The Great: I wasn’t planning for a 5K PR, so that was a GREAT surprise!
The Good: Despite being cold, I was having fun.
The Bad: Not the races fault, but my hotel room was right outside the elevators. Whomp, whomp.
The Ugly: Entry to the corrals was pretty backed up, and people were getting irritated and pushy. I hate pushy people.

Splits: 9:31, 8:41, 8:38

OFFICIAL RESULTS
27:44 — a new 5K race PR!

Illinois 5K finisher certificate

Weekly Therapy: Loyalty and road trips and early morning alarms

the week:
I purchased a lunch bag from eBags a few years ago and was sad when the interior lining started ripping away from the zipper. I finally replaced it a few weeks ago with something new, but strongly disliked its smaller interior capacity (less room for snacks!) and handles that don’t keep the back straight — and no short carry handle on the top of the bag (so high maintenance!). When looking around their site to find my original, I discovered that eBags-branded products have a LIFETIME WARRANTY against defects — and they replaced my well-loved lunch bag with a brand new one!

I’m in no way sponsored or compensated by the company, but I absolutely love when brands do right by their products and will shout my loyalty from the rooftops. I’ll love this lunch bag for another few years and all is right with my world and my many (many) meals and snacks that I need to bring with me to work.

race day 5am meme
WORD.

weekend:
I’m off to Illinois to take on the I-Half Challenge (a 5K tonight and a half marathon on Saturday morning) and my first race as a BibRave Pro ambassador! This will be my 10th half marathon. CRAZY.

A friend is also driving up to Champaign to spend the remainder of the weekend with me, and I’m so happy to get to see her and drink wine, since it’s been YEARS. If the weather stays nice, we are planning on trail skating, too. #shutuplegs

seven things, seven days:
1. Remember my office fire from two months ago? Well I finally got a box of my personal belongings from my desk. Which included close to none of my belongings.
2. I had a dream this week where a parade of kids were wearing items from my closet that I haven’t worn in forever. What a message, eh? Must be time for another round of Cleaning of the Closets.
3. For my wedding celebration this summer, I requested a box of party dresses from my Trunk Club [referral link] — and she sent the PERFECT dress.
4. Collaboration creates mediocrity. According to Science. And me, a high performer.
5. Well, this is interesting: The new rules of hydration {via Outside}
6. That voice inside your head will make you a better runner — another great article from Outside.
7. Weirdly, success is about thinking you’re not too successful {via Science of Us}

Challenge Events: Multiple Races in One Weekend

Disclaimer: I received a free entry to the Illinois half marathon and 5k as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador), and check out BibRave.com to find and write race reviews!

Illinois marathon challenge blog runner

A year ago, I finished the Gasparilla Ultra Challenge — a total of 30+ miles across 4 races. In 2015, I completed the Steel Challenge — a 5k and half marathon. I am also doing the Minnesota Nut House – Totally Nuts! challenge this summer and a DIY 2x Half Marathon series over Labor Day weekend with a friend who is crossing off two more states in her 50 States Quest.

I really like the challenge of challenge races (and let’s not kid ourselves, the extra medals are awesome). And I was excited to see the I-Half Challenge as part of the Illinois Marathon weekend. This will be my first time visiting the Champaign-Urbana area AND I’ll be crossing a state off my map!

The Illinois Marathon has a few different options for its I-Challenges: All include the 5K on Friday; and then the 10K, half marathon, full marathon, or marathon relay on Saturday. You receive:

  • Two shirts (5K shirt plus the 10K, half marathon, marathon, or marathon relay shirt)
  • Three medals (5K medal plus the 10K, half marathon, marathon, or marathon relay medal as well as an I-Challenge medal [different for each I-Challenge])
  • Bragging rights

Challenge events are unique to each race – some are back-to-back AND multi-day races (like Gasparilla) and others are two different mornings (like Pittsburgh’s). I liked the idea of doing a race in the evening before waking up to do a half, particularly on a Friday night and Saturday morning, with enough time to drive home and recover for an entire day. This race fell perfectly into my marathon training and will provide some good mental training for me too. My goal for training is to do something similar (evening run, followed by a morning run) — not every week, but tossing in a few here-and-there for practice in running on tired legs.

I don’t have any goals for the half marathon aside from having some fun, getting in my miles, and cheering on my fellow BibRave Pros who are completing the full. Also, I’m not currently registered for any other 5K races (yet) this year, so I might attempt to actually race the 5K. We’ll see…

Room for more Runners! The Illinois marathon weekend is coming up April 20-22. Want to join me in Champaign-Urbana? Use discount code: “bibravebonus” for $15 off all race weekend events (excluding the Youth Run).
*Note: discount code needs to be entered towards the end of the registration

If you want to compete in an I-Challenge, do not register for two races separately. Instead, register by choosing one of the I-Challenges:

  • Full I-Challenge = 5K + marathon
  • Marathon Relay I-Challenge = 5K + marathon relay
  • Half I-Challenge = 5K + half marathon
  • Mini i-Challenge = 5K + 10K