Rockdale Ramblin Run

This is a fantastic small town race. Might be one of my favorite races ever. It’s affordable (I think $ 35?), and you get a hoodie, which is a nice change of pace from the usual short sleeve shirt. The course is hilly — but this race is billed as «the toughest 10K in the Midwest,» so hills are expected. I thought the course was a nice tour through Rockdale — through residential and park areas, under the expressway, up and down hills. The course never felt crowded. Post-​race, you get a little finishers medal — a dog tag, which was nice and unexpected for a shorter distance race. Overall, I think this race is very well done and a great deal for the price. I definitely recommend it.

The Rockdale Ramblin’ Run 10K is organized by the Joliet Park District as part of the Run3 Series, which includes the Sundowner 5K and the Red Eye 8K. Ramblin’ Run winds through the paved, hilly streets of Rockdale and Joliet. It is considered «the Toughest 10K in the Midwest» and was quite popular in the 70’s and 80’s. A 5K option is also available, but is not part of the Run3 Series.
I thoroughly enjoyed the run. I did the 5K version of it and found it to be pretty challenging with the steep inclines, but nothing anyone with a little bit of running experience and in decent cardio shape couldn’t handle. The nice thing about being in the smaller race was that there were only 102 people who raced, so it left the course clear and easy to navigate. It allowed me to take in the scenery instead of having to worry about weaving through a crowd of runners or being in someone’s way.
The course is USATF/​CARA Certified with time being marked at each mile and at the finish-​line. Water was handed out somewhere around 1.5 and 2.5 miles. They also have a number of cops to regulate traffic and medical teams in case of emergency. At the finish-​line volunteers handed out bananas, water and super sweet dog tags with Rockdale Ramblin’ Run 2011 engraved on them. I wish more races would do this.
The after-​party was held in a small tent near the finish-​line. Michelob was one of the sponsors and they handed out samples of their new fruity beers and cans of their lite beer. A local restaurant provided pastries and bagels. They had a raffle for the school and drawings for prizes. Everyone was super friendly and complete strangers would strike up a conversation. You can tell this town is proud of their race. I recommend it to everyone and it is definitely worth the drive!