Austin 10/20

Whether you’re a runner or not 10 miles sounds like a tough strut but it’s really not that bad! They have bands pretty much around every corner and beer at the finish line. The weather is always great here in Austin around April and 10 miles in the morning is a great way to start the day! If you haven’t run anything and are curious what long distances feel like this is a great starter race, the energy of the crowd, runners and bands really help to get you through all 10 miles.

When looking for a fun event to do that includes 10 miles of running, walking or crawling; then look no further than this event.
Pros:
–enjoyable easy to navigate course
–plenty of on course entertainment
— great bling and shirt
–not too crowded and coral placement was great
–fun after party
Cons:
–packet pick up location, not well marked
–parking at The Domain
Overall I will do this event in the future, maybe even 2016. The deciding factor will be how I feel after Army Marathon. Love the Bluebonnets along the course.

A large group of us came from Encinitas to do the race. We had all done the California ¹⁰⁄₂₀ and really enjoyed the venue. Austin did not fail us. Didn’t hurt that we were treated as VIPs because of our group size. Wish every race was this well organized.

You like live music, right? You’re into fitness, too? Are you willing to walk or run 10 miles? Well then you should sign up for the annual Austin ¹⁰⁄₂₀ race to enjoy a beautiful spring morning race with about 3000 fellow music lovers that ends up in a concert at Domain’s Central Park (near Burnet and Kramer, on the east side of the Domain). Your family & friends can come, too, so it’s like a free concert for them.
Here’s what I loved about this event at the end of March 2015:
+ Starts and ends at the Domain, very nice for us Northsiders. No hauling myself to downtown Austin at the crack of dawn, and it’s pretty easy for my special friend to drop me off pretty close to the starting chute without being mired in traffic. Exiting was a breeze, too.
+ Plentiful port-​o-​lets with TP and hand sanitizer around the start/​finish festival and along the route. I never waited in a line and they were pretty clean (even after the race).
+ Mostly flat course through the Domain, Mopac service road, Burnet, and IBM campus, providing a few spectacular bluebonnet patch sightings. I now know exactly where I can access some great bluebonnets for family photo ops before they fade for the season.
+ 19 bands playing along the course and 1 headliner show for about an hour at the end of the race. Honestly, the bands along the course didn’t make much of an impact for me, as I only was able to hear about 30 seconds of their performances as I ran by, but it still made for a fun atmosphere. The finish line festival, on the other hand, provided an incredible opportunity to get up close & personal to the rockin’, high energy headliner duo, Black Pistol Fire. By the time they came on stage at 10:40a or so, 80% of the 3000+ runners and their cheering sections had already cleared out, leaving plenty of comfortable space at front & center on the grassy lawn viewing area. Frontman/​guitarist Kevin McKeown came down from the stage & thrashed right in the appreciative crowd. It was awesome!
+ Registration comes with 1 post-​race beer ticket and additionals were only $ 4. This is way better than other music show beer prices around this town. Thanks to TABC, we could not partake until after 10am, but the line to redeem those «free» beer tickets moved quickly once the beer stand opened.
+ Five featured charitable organizations with running teams. The 2015 featured charities were Without Regrets Foundation (assisting children with parental deaths); Leukemia & Lymphoma Society; Team Red, White & Blue (supporting wounded veterans); Alzheimer’s Association; Team to End AIDS; and Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. If you ran for these teams and meet their minimum fundraising goal, you received race support (like team gear, food, bevs, massages, and additional swag).
+ Cool pre-​race expo for packet pickup at the HPBC Quarries Recreation Center. It wasn’t as massive as the ones for the Austin Marathon or 3M or Cap10K, but there were plenty of vendor discounts & freebies available, as well as promotions for other upcoming races.
Negative stars to the never-​ending wind gusts in my face throughout the 2015 race, as well as the 2 giant blisters on my big toes I took home as a souvenir.
2015 Race Results:
2015 Race Photos: