Frank Lloyd Wright 5k/10k

Great race in Oak Park. For the price, you really cannot beat it. The race is always well organized and having the school open helps in case it is really cold outside. There is always a good number of sponsors for the small race and some crowd support along the course. I will definitely be back, it is one of the few races I make a point to try and do year after year!

Do not run this race. I have run the 5K for the past 4 years, and I used to love this race but now it has been taken over by small children.
The past 2 years there have been so many children in the race that you might as well be racing the youth mile (that’s right, they have their OWN RACE but they still race with the adults).
Yesterday a small child was at the front on the start line and he dropped his ipod right when the gun went off. He then bent down to pick it up, impeding everyone behind him. I was hoping he would get trampled just so the morons in charge of this race would get the message: STOP ALLOWING CHILDREN IN THIS RACE. IT IS NOT SAFE. Someone is going to get hurt and you will be responsible.
I am done with the FLW Races. Until the race director learns how to put on a race for grown-​ups THIS RACE IS NOT SAFE.

One of the best fall races there is! It doesn’t get much better than this.
For a very reasonable registration fee ($ 30), the amenities are as follows:
Rockin’ goody bag. Actually the bag itself is one of those nylon drawstring backpacks with the Frank Lloyd Wright (FLW) race logo on it, stuffed to the gills with fun, cool things. I love a fun goody bag! It sucks when they’re filled only with boring coupons and fliers with info about hundreds of other races. My mom, a good friend of hers, and my husband did the 5k walk and so also recieved the same goody bag. We were all tickled.
Good amount of parking on race morning — a huge plus.
The pre-​race atmosphere was awesome. Tons of volunteers, and tents offering lots of fun give-​aways. There was the big Stewart’s Coffee truck on site; much appreciated by spectators and participants alike on such a cool morning. (I myself, cannot partake of coffee before a run. I won’t get into why. But the root word there is «run». Ok, enough of that.)
The course itself is stunningly beautiful. As a sidebar, I’d like to thank Mother Nature, and any other participating powers that be for making a perfect day for it. Crisp, chill air. The fall colors. Sunny skies. Pair all of that with running through Oak Park and marveling at the beautiful homes and the equally beautiful architecture. It was marvelous.
The course support was pretty unbeatable! It’s so cool that SO many residents are out on their porches with flags and horns and groups of people singing and hollerin’ to cheer you on. Sometimes you need all the motivation you can get!
The post-​race offerings were perfect. I stopped at a physical therapy tent to have my stupid, uncooperative, dumb old foot stretched out (plantar fascitis) and the gentleman who helped me easily took about 20 minutes to stretch it, assessed my shoes, and gave me tips and at home exercises. Dang! Very generous. Plus — awesome recovery food. I appreciate that very much.
A long review, I know. But there are so many aspects that make this one of the best fall races of all time. See ya next year FLW!