The ROC Race was a blast - it was real-life wipeout without so many of the faceplants! My team and I stayed together and got through each obstacle together. More importantly, the volunteers and folks running each obstacle were friendly, fun, and kept the energy levels up, even in the rain. So why the 3 stars? Like other folks have commented: - Very Expensive Race: In addition to a $60 registration fee, there was a $5 "convenience fee" charge for picking up race packets the day of at Gillette Stadium, instead of the day before in Mansfield. I'm not driving 1.5 hours out of my way to pick up my race packet; I don't think they even offered an option for it to be mailed to participants. They also charged a $10/pp fee for parking, even though we all carpooled together. The organizers must have made a killing on this fee alone. - Minimal Swag: I am disappointed in the lack of swag bags. The paper-thin cotton T-shirt they offered as a consolation prize for finishing the race was just not enough of an award for falling into murky, bleach flavored water at the Wrecking Ball obstacle. The vendors that sponsored the race were few and far between. And where's my medal and/or silly race favor (like a hat)? - Spectator Viewing: The bf's mom came to watch us all run, and could only set up shop at the last obstacle (the World's Largest Inflatable Slide). Given how spread out the course is, that's expected, but it would have been nice to allow spectators to follow runners throughout the course if they wanted. - Lack of Photographers: There was only one official photographer we encountered, and that was during Foam of Fury. At other 5Ks, there were photographers at every obstacle, ready to photograph runners conquering and being plain awesome. For the fee we paid, I'm shocked that a professional photography company was not employed. - Lack of Refreshments: No food and no beer make me go something something ... we were hoping for adult beverages and munchies after the race. None were found, so we made our way to Patriot Place to eat. - Wait Times: Even though we had a 10AM start time, we had some major bottlenecks at the Jump Balls and Wrecking Ball obstacles. I think we waiting at least 10-15 minutes just to get through the Jump Ball obstacle. - Lack of Wash Off Stations: With all the foam there was, I was surprised that there was no wash off station where I could hose off the foam I was covered in. I suppose all the water was diverted to keeping the water slides slick. Overall, we had fun, but in retrospect, I think the ROC Race organizers certainly have some work to do to bring the experience of this race to the level of the Warrior Dash or Spartan Sprint. read more

This was my first obstacle race and also my first 5k (since running them daily in college during lacrosse practice...woof). POSITIVES- The course: It was really spread out and there was a nice distribution of running and completing an obstacle. It was raining all day which I actually thought was better since it saved my skin some serious sun burn. Also...you're gonna get wet anyways. Staffing: Checkin was a breeze. Bag check was simple and convenient. I had raised money for the Challenged Athletes Foundation and had to go through a bit of a process to collect the items you're supposed to receive for raising certain target goals. I raised over $500 and had no record of even being a fundraiser. I had to present emails from C.A.F. staff conferming my fundraiser status. After that...the staff was more than helpful at helping me collect all the items. Price: I thought the price was fair (especially since we signed up months ago and got a bargain). The $5 "convenience" fee for packet pick-up wasn't that big of a deal. I would have rather paid for parking upon arrival...$10 pp was a bit much. Basically they got $30 for my one car. Lame. I also got my registration fee refunded for reaching a $250+ goal for the C.A.F. fundraiser. Not a bad incentive for a great cause. Food/Vendors/Post-Race: I didn't see any food vendors and merch tents were spare. There also wasn't anything set up for post-race. It didnt really look like anyone was sticking around anyways due to the rain. I talked with some staff and they said usually there was food and a beer garden but weather squashed that. NEGS- Photos: We only encountered 2 photographers on the whole course...and had to ASK one for a group shot. The other one was taking "wipe out" photos of select people. I would have loved to taken more pictures but a combination of the rain and water obstacles pretty much shut that idea down. They also had a foam area set up at the end of the course for photos...but no one taking pictures. Changing tents: didn't realise this was a thing. There weren't any. I brought a change of clothes and towel and we all changed in the car. Post-Race/Food/Beer: There was nothing....I would have enjoyed hanging out after the race with other runners. SWAG Bags: I've had friends run other races and they always come home with bags of things either race related or donated by local companies. All you got here was a tshirt. Somethings better than nothing....but still. A towel would have been nice. (Note: I actually received over $200 in items for raising money for the C.A.F. charity. I got my registration returned: $69, an upgraded tech shirt: $20, a C.A.F. zip up hoodie: $40, R.O.C. Race Sweat band set: $20? and a pair of frogskin Oakley sunglasses: $110.....so that was actually pretty rad). OBSTACLES- Me and buddy were running in kilts so there are some raspberries in places due to some sand on a couple obstacles. No biggy, though. The Gorilla Bars: They were very slippery from the rain. They had them taped to try and help but it didn't do much. My height was also an issue (I'm 6'4"). I didn't have enough clearance from the mat to be able to build up any swing/momentum. Worlds Largest Moonbounce: This one was fun. You hop down to about 30 yards...jump up 5FT to another level of bounciness....then jump down to the last bounce out. In total...oprobably about 50 yards long. Tight Rope Traverse: One rope for hands...one for feets. Actually pretty fun! Get Up and Over: Just a line of wooden walls of various heights. We went over the highest. Kilt was not a smart clothing option for this one. Sweeper: Lolz! Time it right and run like a bastard across the balance beam. THe slide down was unexpected and fun. Cool Runnings: Carrying an inner tube about 50 feet up the incline was a challenge on its own. The slide down was really fast. If you were dry up to this point...you ain't dry no mo. The ending is splash into a 3FT deep pool. Wee! Foam of Fury: Line up along one of the lanes...run...jump...dive...slide! Try to keep your mouth shut...the foam tasted funny. The Drop: Run about 20-30Ft up an inflated incline using the rope and then slide out the other side! Weeeee!!!!!! Jump Balls: We all made it to the first one....and that was it. Be prepared to eat it...bad. This was another where my height played an issue. My head was in the netted ceiling to the obstacle so I couldn't really jump. Tarzan Swing: Meh. Swing on a rop for about 10FT.... Wrecking Ball: Put on the life jacket and try to run across a floating 20FT pad without getting hit by the GIANT dodgeballs swing around by an overhead crane. I made it about 2/3 of the way before splashing into the pool. World's Largest Inflatable Water Slide: One word...AWESOME!!!! read more

Obstacles were a BLAST! I was torn whether to give it 3 or 4 stars, but, like other reviewers there were major drawbacks to this event. - Too Expensive: In addition to the advertised registration fee, there was a $5 "convenience fee" charge for picking up race packets the day of the event. They also charged a $10/pp fee for "parking." Just another way to milk $10 a person. I would rather them put the real price instead of all the hidden fees. - Little/bad rewards: Only a thin cotton T-shirt - Spectator Viewing: There was really no spectator viewing and no photographers on the course. How are you going to get a cool picture of you wiping out on the big balls or on top of the wall? No selfie's here unless you have a waterproof phone or a gopro camera. - Lack of Refreshments: No food or beer tents. - Lack of Wash Off Stations and no change tent: There is great foam photo-op at the end of the race, but no where to wash off after. Also, no where to change. Not fun to drive an hour+ in wet underwear and I'm not changing in a porta-potty. read more

The ROC Race sounded like a fantastically fun event in theory. And it was a blast once we arrived and ran through the course. Pro: super fun obstacles, nice to not get muddy Con: small amounts of backups at each obstacle, but not enough to be irritating Pro: Energetic, fun MC's (or whatever they're called) Con: The race was very expensive, charged everyone for parking when registering even though three of us drove in one car. T-shirts were very cheap looking and feeling Pro: Everything was in one contained area, the course wrapped around the gravel parking lot so there wasn't too far to go between it and our car Con: It was held in a gravel parking lot. Pro: It was a race unlike any other Con: I wish medals were given out. read more

So much fun. I had an amazing time! The rain didn't matter because you were going to get wet anyways! made it less of a shock to get wet! Every. Only issue was that there was really no where to have spectators see or take pictures and there were no photographers to take pictures. ALSO: Charging for parking for everyone, we all carpooled and had to all pay for parking.... read more

Pro's - Fun , Great For Beginners some of the obstacles very unique! Run was really not much of a run but that is good for some people they pretty much just walked it. Cons- Registration horrible i've been to a lot of runs and this was slow and disorganized and for them to charge you to pickup the day of the race is a rip off, Line at last ob-scale was like 50mins this is just retarded. Over all glad i did it but would prob not do it again. read more

SO MUCH FUN!!! By far the best "fun" race I've done... and I've done them all! It is all about fun and being silly versus how fit you are or how good you look doing something. Let's be honest, it's way more fun to see someone get knocked over by the wrecking ball than actually make it across :) Highlights: Obstacles were unique and I felt comfortable just going for it each time because hey, you'll land on something inflatable or in water if you don't make it. Signs were clear and entertaining for each obstacle. Packet pick-up was easy and the bibs are a great waterproof material. Staff was great! Super organized and very efficient at entertaining us at the start line, guiding people through the obstacles, keeping people in line, and fixing any problems that happened. Music throughout the course was fun. Parking was free ;) One change I would make: have a changing tent for post race ( I had to change in a large porta-potty... not fun) Overall, I had a great time with a big group of people that I went with. I would highly suggest this race to anyone of any fitness level. read more

Pros: Really fun obstacles and staff was friendly Cons: No beer tent or good atmosphere to hang out after the race. One of the obstacles in particular had a line that took almost a half hour. We lost momentum and were really annoyed Don't understand why we all had to pay for parking when we carpooled. Should charge just one person the $10 or whatever it is. Was expensive for what it was. read more

The entire ROC was a blast and the obstacles are super fun. I have zero to say about them except I can't wait to run across/fall off them next year. My family is totally going to do it again next year and I really like that age 13+ runners could enter. However, there were a few things the organizers could do to improve the race in the future. Like many others I talked to at the event, I registered for ROC Boston with a Living Social voucher which got me an upgraded t-shirt and reduced fees at the event. The site ROC uses to sign people up is a nightmare though, it took me forever to sign me and my husband up but we figured it out. Once we were at the race, it was disappointing that there wasn't a spectator area. My niece didn't want to run and had to basically hang around the big open registration area while we ran instead of watching us like she wanted to. For me, this was my first "obstacle" 5k and for the rest of my family running with me this was their first 5k ever. The obstacles could have been spaced out a bit better, and there could have been markers to indicate how far along in the course you were. The only distance markers we saw were at the 3.0 mile mark, right before the final giant slide. There weren't many photographers and since we didn't wanna risk our phones/cameras in the race, we have zero pictures of us at the event which is a bit of a bummer. As others have noted, there was no "rinse off" area after the foam celebration area and no real food/beer stations. I know Patriot Place is across the street (which is where me and my family ended up going after) but it would have been nice to chill with a beer and a hot dog with other participants after. The rain/overcast weather actually kept the event from being too hot but it made obstacles like the gorilla bars too slippery to do well. In spite of all that, we can't wait to come back next year and have a blast. read more

My favorite store to go to when I am in the Palo Alto area! Monica and team do an amazing job of representing the brand. Their style and suggestions are always perfect! The staff is amazing and super engaging! And the store always looks impeccable! Some of the best pieces in my closet come from that store!! Can't wait until my next PA trip so I can stock up my fall basics!! read more

Overall, the ROC race was a fun course! It was alot less challenging than some obstacle courses because it was inflatables, water slides, etc. which was attractive to me and my friends. I'd do it again, and would recommend it to a friend. Pro's: Fun obstacles, not super challenging 5k portion so very attainable goals for non-runners. Con's: 1) Very expensive race. For the price I was appalled that we were charged $5/pp to pick up packets that morning. 2) No medals and cheap, thin shirts. For the price, I got much nicer gear at other races. 3) No food after race. Big miss there since we raced at 1pm, ate light before race and had nowhere to go (soaking wet) afterwards. 4) Also could really use a beer sponsor/beer tent. After completing a silly race you really need to celebrate with an adult beverage. 5) Had to wait in line at about half the obstacles. 6) Registration line was very slow and backed up. Even for pre-registered participants we waited over 40 minutes. 7) Spectators could only see 1 or 2 obstacles. read more

The fees are a bit much and push the cost for this well outside of being a reasonable fun activity for a day. Especially adding the drive into it. It's pretty bad when the cost is advertised as $60 but by the end after the fees you are paying over $80 without any upgrades/add-ons. The obstacles themselves were awesome though. I thought there was supposed to be an after party where you could purchase food and there was NOTHING there. So that was a letdown as well. There was no food, no music, no vendors, except for the Marines. I was hoping they'd have professional photographers out on the course so I'd be able to have some photos of myself participating but I didn't see any out there. Overall though I am very glad I did this, I had a great time and most likely would do this again. read more

This was my first obstacle 5k and I had a blast! Check in/bag check was very easy. The price was steep- as others have said it included parking in your fee which is nice and all but when you carpool with 4 other people that makes it 50 dollars for one car which is a bit crazy, would have rather paid for parking on site as it would likely have been cheaper for carpoolers. Also, I have don't races that cost much less that include more than just a t-shirt (tattoos, reusable bags, headbands etc) so I thought it was a bit cheap of them to only include a tshirt in what ended up being an $80.00 race. #1 disappointment: No photographers. #2 disappointment: No vendors afterward for food and drinks (other than one small table with some granola). As well as no changing tents/stalls/rinse off areas. #1 happy surprise: The layout was perfect, just when you are tired from running there is an obstacle. You can do the obstacles multiple times if you want too, as I sometimes went ahead of my group I could do the obstacle then wait for them and do it again. #2 happy surprise: I didn't wait long at any obstacle. I have heard this could happen at other races but I really never had to wait longer than 1-2 people before me to participate so that was great! Lamest obstacles: The Gorilla Bars, they were too wet from the rain but in general were just monkey bars and not all that fun. Get up and Over, just a wall to go over and Tarzan Swing, just a rope you swing on for 2 seconds (and the longest we had to wait oddly enough) and I didn't like the jump balls... pretty much everyone hurt themselves on these. Best obstacles: Cool Runnings, a tube water slide with a pool of water at the end. Foam of Fury: Giant inflatable foamy slip and slide! This one was our favorite. And of course the worlds largest inflatable water slide, what a great way to finish! Most overrated: The wrecking ball: Really hard to balance because there wasn't much air. If the balance beam was more sturdy it would have been much more fun trying to get to the other side while avoiding the wrecking balls. Overall there is a lot that can be done to better the experience (especially for the price) but despite that, I had an amazing time and will definitely be interested in going again next year! read more

A great alternative to the more physically demanding Spartan/Tough Mudder/Warrior dash races. It was more about the fun less about the physical challenges. Not sure Foxboro is the most central location you can pick for Boston area, and Patriot Place didnt really add anything to the experience. read more

ROC race was a good time! This race was fun and lighthearted versus the competive of other races. This made for a great day with my family, we stuck together and did every obstacle together, I'm hoping the rain was the reason for lack of after race vendors and hopefully next year this will be different. Overall we had a blast and would highly reccomend doing it next year! read more

I had a great time. The obstacles were awesome and well spread out (unlike the Diva Dash), the volunteers were friendly and everything was easy to find. I picked up my packet the night before so I didn't pay the $5 dollars everyone else is complaining about. I agree changing tents would have been nice but I changed in the car without too much trouble. T-shirt was cute and of decent quality. Someone said there were no mile markers? I saw one, two and three mile markers. I'm definitely going to run the race again next year. read more

The ROC race was a blast and we had a great time, but I was a little disappointed with the after race fun. No beer or food tents were available which was a bummer. I will absolutely do it again next year! read more