My first time running in this event…read more.. The Good: I ran the 10K w/ my boyfriend a few weeks ago. We were unfamiliar with the park but we were very well informed about the best route to get there. Highway 130/Hamilton Rd. was very winding and scary to drive at 6am but we were told that it was safer then taking Quimby Rd. The event was very well-organized w/ informational updates, race instructions, post-race food and entertainment. Although the actual race is very small (500 participants max), they particularly had an event for everyone. The Not-So-Good: However, I didn't enjoy the abundance of potholes on the course since it made it very hard to "run" the course. I also didn't like the quick, sharp and narrow U-turn after the first mile. Seriously? It was too congested and I nearly had to stop to avoid running into runners or tripping into potholes. Also, where were the port-o-potties? I had to go so bad - I asked 3 different race officials along the course and they kept telling me "it's further up" which literally meant at the finish line. As a natural runner, I would've taken the bush route but there weren't any that were tall enough to hide and to take care of my business. But thankfully, my bladder was able to hold it and I didn't get UTI (urinary tract infection) after all. Sigh. Overall, I had a good time and enjoyed jogging the beautiful park but I'd probably not run it again in order to avoid driving up the dangerous route and running a twisted-ankle route.

Great race that I have done in the past. Does anyone know why the 2024 race was cancelled? 5/5…read morestars as it was a lovely run and I would love to support this cause in the future! Maybe in 2025?

Yep, this is a good one…read more This was my first 5k, but it was flat and fast, well organized, friendly, a certified course, and professionally timed--in short, everything you could want. The only bummer was the big 2 mile sign at around 1.7 miles into the course.

This is my review on my run!…read more Hmm...driving to pick up my bid and packet the day before the event was useless. WHatda waste of gas! Next year, if I do the race, I will just pick up my packet the day of. There was practically no one picking up their packet the day of. Just be there about 15 minutes early, and you will save yourself the drive to pick up the bid. Yea, no water stations or mile marker. I like how the run took place in Great America for the first .75 miles, but I thought the entire run should've take place in GA. We ran the 2.25 miles around the parking lot. That part was definitely not fun! =( At the end of the race, they passed out medal and water bottle. Bagels, and banana, fruit snacks, and oranges were served. Not too bad! $25 (family pack) goes directly to charity and they feed you, give you a medal, freebies (playing cards, and pens/pencil), water bottles (which they sell at great America for $4), a shirt, free parking, and a ticket to go into GA to bond with your friends and family. Can't ask for more=)

This is the first time I've done a run at Great America. Though it was fun to run inside the park,…read moreonce we got outside it was rather quite boring as all we were doing was running in the parking lot. Two thirds of the run was in the parking lot and it was easy to cut the corners in the parking lot, so in the end the distance didn't even end up being close to 3.1 miles. They only had one mile marker at mile one, and it was at least 1/3 mile off, and there were no water stations. Packet pick-up was the day before at one end of the Key Point Credit Union. There was only one sign to direct people to where that location is. My friend picked up his packet in the morning shorty after 9am, and he said they were completely disorganized. They were still stuffing the bags when he got there. By the time I got there they had gotten their act together. Unfortunately the only "goodies" I got in my bag were just flyers, which I ended up throwing in the recycling bin. The only thing worth keeping was the 10% off sports basement coupon. I did like that entrance into Great America was included in our registration as well as free parking before 7:30am. We got a finisher's medal after crossing the finish line. They gave us a bottle of water at the end of the run, but it wasn't even cold. There was slices of oranges, bananas and bagels available for us at the end, but no napkins. This is only the second year Mission City has done this run, so hopefully it will get better as the years go on.

You're from Orange County, Craig. Isn't a 6-hour drive to San Jose a little much to simply run a…read more5-mile or 5K? Yes, it is. And it isn't, for many reasons... First, if you're a die-hard San Francisco Giants fan, there'd be no question: you'd be there, just as many, many others were, dressed proudly in orange and ready to run. (The San Jose Giants, by the way, are the San Francisco Giants' farm team.) Registering for San Jose's Great Race, now in its 4th year, you'd not only receive free tickets for the SJ Giants' evening game, you'd not only collect a custom SFG World Champions replica ring, but you'd also be able to take your picture with SFG's 2010, 2012, and 2014 World Champions Trophies! So that's a pretty cool reason to run. Second, by running both San Jose's and San Francisco's Giant Races (any distance), you'll be handed the "Turn Two Award": a Runner's Armband/Phone Case, the San Jose Giants logo and San Francisco Giants 2014 World Champions logo on the side. And third, there's the 2015 Three Bagger Award! I want this! You must finish both San Jose and San Francisco, and your third race is your choice: the 2016 Scottsdale Giant Race (SFG's spring training camp in Arizona), or Sacramento Training Run on 7/12/15. I'll be traveling to Arizona! Then the Three Bagger will be mine: a super sparkly mega medal commemorating not only the three Giant Races, but also the three-time World Champions on the field. No, I'm not a huge Giants fan. But my pops is, and so are my nephews. (I guess that makes me a fan by association.) Nevertheless, I am a medals fan, and I love running. So to answer your question, whether or not driving six hours out of my way is a bit excessive... Well, I got another sweet medal, didn't I? =]

This year was a bit disappointing. I've completed all 5 years and they've been pretty organized…read moreuntil this year. I did the 5 mile and the organizers didn't seem to care about a large group who finished around the 1:20 mark. We had to ask cops which way to go as there were no guides for the last mile, NO medals and nobody was handing out water. Apparently they only cared about the 5K folks and anyone who finished in 15 min. Turns out, after about 10 min of standing around, a box of medals was left in SF. Just disappointing. The shirts are another thing. Why bother asking for our size, only to run out? The race was also short by .3 or .4 of a mile. I remember last year the route was a true 5 miles. Not this year.

i've volunteered at san jose rock' n roll almost every year since 2017 and i've run the event…read moreseveral times before that, so have been to the expo quite a few times. back in 2010-2019, this expo was in the convention center and always occupied the big hall on the second floor, tons of space for bib and tshirt pickup as well as exhibitors. i used to be able to spend around an hour here, just walking thru, talking to vendors, perusing the race merch, picking up samples, etc. post-covid, they've moved the expo to the south hall, which is much smaller, more cramped, and showcases fewer exhibitors. i can get thru the expo in about 10 minutes now, since the largest exhibit is the race merch, and there's only a small handful of vendors, with very few samples. the expo is great for picking up your bib and tshirt, but it's just not what it used to be, esp for a race boasting close to 20,000 runners.

This is the 2019 run on a super wet day. Rain just let up a minute ago. It's a comin' back!…read more I almost didn't come, but decided I'd could always back out if Mother Nature proved too playful with the category 2 storm today. A small but enthusiastic crowd is here today. I think I'm one of the most heavily clothed participant here. I come from a family that fully believes in layers. We are like onions in that respect. The layers of shirts and sweaters are unending.

i had heard of this event in the past, and even coached a friend for the 5k, but never had a chance…read moreto participate myself since i always had a conflicting race or training run on super bowl sunday. i cleared my schedule this year since i had heard good things about this race and wanted to run this portion of the lower guadalupe river trail. for this particular event, there was a choice of 2 distances: 1. 10k (6.2 miles) 2. 5k (3.1 miles) i signed up for the 10k so that i could burn more calories, since i knew that i'd be pigging out at a super bowl party later that afternoon! the pros: -REASONABLE race fees, $40 for the 5k and $45 for the 10k if you register during the early bird period -takes place at ARENA GREEN, just outside downtown san jose, next to the lower guadalupe river trailhead and just off highway 87. -CLEAR MILE MARKERS for both both 5k & 10k, as well as marker & volunteer at the respective turnaround points (to ensure you don't run further than you signed up for!) -ACCURATELY MEASURED DISTANCE, as my garmin read 6.22 miles immediately after crossing the finish line which is pretty much spot on with the official 10k race distance of 6.2 miles. -FRIENDLY VOLUNTEERS assisting at the registration/information booths, handing out water at aid stations along the course, and handing out snacks at the refreshments' tables post-race. -FREE and EASY PARKING in multiple parking areas, all within a 1/2 mile from the start/finish area. i actually got lucky and found street parking a block from the start! -PORTA-POTTIES at the start/finish area, along with portable hand washing stations with soap, water and paper towels. -COMPLIMENTARY BAG CHECK at the finish area with volunteers to guard your bags until after the race -VERY FAMILY FRIENDLY, perfect for families, small children, and strollers what you get: *choice of PACKET PICKUP @ the guadalupe river park conservancy, wednesday-friday prior to the race, or on site pick up the morning of. *green, technical FINISHER'S SHIRT *several AID STATIONS with volunteers handing out cups of water *POST-RACE FOOD & DRINKS, including tortilla chips, guacamole, clementines and water *custom FINISHER MEDAL for each participant *official RESULTS posted online the afternoon following the race *RACE PHOTOS posted online within 48 hrs of the race bonuses for top finishers: *customized guadalupe conservancy beer glasses for the top 3 men and top 3 women in each age group for both distances. since i was 2nd in my age group, i got to take home one of these beer glasses and partake in the post-race awards ceremony. the cons: -both 5k & 10k courses were out and back, and had a slight uphill on the return trip as well as strong headwind. not the race organizer's fault, but this definitely made for a tougher finish (and difficulty in negative-splitting) for all runners. -this course was not very scenic since we ran next to san jose airport for most of the race. only a small portion was in the guadalupe river park, but there wasn't anything interesting to see. -i ran the 10k, and was one of the earliest finishers, but by the time i got to the refreshments' table, they had run out of tortilla chips! tons of guacamole left, but no tortilla chips!?!?! -wish they had more carbs available, maybe bagels or muffins or granola bars, since those who ran the 10k would need a bit more sustenance after a longer effort. thank you, to on your mark events, for putting on this terrific event, and to the guadalupe river park conservancy for being the title sponsor!

This was Reciprocal Energy Fitness's inaugural 5K/10K fitness fun runs…read more We were a small gathering of enthusiastic athletes on an early Sunday morning. Both races started in Gill Park in Milpitas and worked their way through part of the Berryessa Creek Trail and looped back to Gill Park. Great times were had by all. Proceeds benefited both the Milpitas Teen Recreation and American Diabetes Association. Registration fees included: tech t's and race bib Plenty of after race food: water, oranges, and muffins. This was not a huge event but the fun, excitement and enthusiasm was just as rockin as any other big racing event.

1st time to do this race and I really enjoyed it. Great organization at the beginning and ending…read more The only part that needs improvement is the t-shirts. Upon picking up the bibs, we were not given a t-shirt. The race, there's a 5K and a 5 mile. Of course at the finish, the 5K runners got first dibs on t-shirts. I did the 5 mile and was able to get my t-shirt, but my friend wasn't able to get her t-shirt size, they ran out. She was pissed. I recommend either 2 things to avoid having upset or angry runners. 1- give the t-shirt on the day they pick up their bib 2 - have 2 different t-shirts, one for 5K runners and one for 5 mile runners. These shirts should be given at the finish in exchnage for a bottom section of the bib. This will ensure runners receive the correct shirt, correct size, and only One. Just a thought......

This is the 2nd year that I've ran the San Jose Giants Race. I ran in 2012 and 2013, both 5 mile…read morerace. I plan to run this race again in coming years. Overall, I like this race route and the race is well organized. The last quarter mile is running into the San Jose Giants stadium. At the end of the race, you get your race dri-fit shirt and race medal, plus the usual post-run snacks and drinks. Exiting the stadium there was a line to take a picture with the 2010 and 2012 San Francisco Giants World Series trophies. A++