The Beast 10K Official Website

The "Nitty Gritty" Details (User Opinions)

Dan H.
Ada, OH

  (08-16-2009)

"This race has great potential, but suffered a lot this year from typical inaugural event-related issues. Here's a quick rundown of my impressions.

1) COURSE. The course is a blast, once you enter the park. The first 1.5 miles (give or take), however, are run essentially around the perimeter of the parking lot, which was excrutiatingly boring and hot. I heard stories of the course not being very well marked for the faster runners, but didn't experience any of this myself.

2) LOGISTICS. These were a little rough around the edges, and what would have been little accidents were greatly aggravated by the sheer number of participants. The race was pushed back half an hour because packet pickup and check-in were so overwhelmed.

3) SPONSORS. This race has the potential to be a BIG event. However, the lack of sponsors gave the impression that, despite around 1000 participants (based on what bib numbers I saw), the race is small-time. A word to the organizers: more sponsors do more than just cut costs--they attract participants.

The Beast 5K/10K is the Luke Skywalker of short races in southern Ohio: it has a large, interesting venue, capacity for an enormous number of numbers, an additional incentive for people to come to the race (The park itself), and a central location between Cincy and Dayton; however, it just needs a Yoda to harness those great ingredients, polish out the logistical woes of this year and make some adjustments to the course. If that can be accomplished, this race will become one of the best in the area. "

Reviewed by a: First Time Participant for 2009