Race Report: Beverly Hills Turkey Trot

This will likely be my shortest race report ever. My sister and I got a deal on the Beverly Hills Turkey Trot and decided to meet up for a fun walk/run as part of our Thanksgiving festivities.

I got up early to drive the hour-ish to Beverly, a Chicago neighborhood.  I picked up our packet around 7:45 a.m. without incident, then drove 10 minutes to the El station to pick up Mandy.

Notice the sticker on her bib

We cut it pretty close at the start time because the parking was a bit confusing and hard to come by.  Mandy wanted to hit the bathrooms, which she reported were not acceptably clean.  Plus, there were no bathrooms on the course.  We ended up reaching the start line about three minutes after the race actually started.

Mandy and I walked and tried to enjoy it as much as possible.  It was a little cold for my sister's lungs, so we had to take it easy.  I also wore basically every item of running clothes I owned to keep warm, including a homemade neck and matching ear warmer I whipped up last night for the occasion  The course was nice, featuring some pretty houses and only two or three baby hills.

We also met up with one of my former coworkers on the course, which was highlight.  There were houses hosting their own music stations, so Mandy and I had to bust out some Gangnam Style, naturally.  There were also several water stations that we partook in.

After we finished, there were bagels, hot cocoa, apples and cereal bars.  The goodie bag for this race was nice, too, featuring a nicer-than-average cinch backpack, a long-sleeve cotton T-shirt, snacks and a raffle ticket.  I think we missed the raffle.

Overall, I thought this was a great race, especially since we paid $15 to enter it via Schwaggle. However, Mandy and I agreed no more Southside races. It was not easy for either of us to get to, and, well, Mandy doesn't run.  She did this just for sisterly bonding.  I am simultaneously flattered and guilty that she did this just for little 'ol me. I'm super proud of her for trying something new and stepping out of her comfort zone.  Running might not be her thing, but she gave it a go for my sake, and I appreciate that.