ARR Rio Vista Luck of the Draw

I ran the 3rd Annual Rio Vista Luck of the Draw 8k on Sunday, May 10. The race was well-organized by the Arizona Road Racers club. Unfortunately since I’m horrible at committing to races (being the first to sign up for the Fireside at Norterra Adventure Run was a complete fluke), I couldn’t take advantage of my ARR membership to get a discount on the race. Race day registration was $25. Instead of a t-shirt, we received a participant medal. I thought it was a little weird getting the “medal” when I registered instead of after finishing the race. Participants also got a discount coupon ($10 off a $20 order) for Buca di Beppo, who seemed to be a major race sponsor.

The race was at Rio Vista Park in Peoria. The park facilities were very nice with plenty of parking, a group ramada area, and clean bathrooms. The 8k course was different than the 5k course that I vaguely remember from last year’s ARR Summer Series #3 race. For the 8k we started off running south along the edge of the park, and I think for the 5k we ran north. There’s a course map on the ARR website.

The 8k started at 7:30am and there was also a 2 mile fun run that started 15 minutes later. I don’t have a lot to say about the run itself. With only about 150 participants there was plenty of room and I just settled in to run at my own pace. I managed a 10 minute pace for the first three miles, then ended up slowing for the last two miles. There were a couple small hills, but overall the course was pretty flat.

After crossing the finish line, every participant was handed a playing card which was our ticket to a possible door prize. The post-race refreshments were handed out in pre-packaged brown paper lunch bags with a choice of an apple or banana. The other items in the bag were Pringles, a Nature Valley granola bar, a slice of raisin bread, and Famous Amos chocolate chip cookies. The bags made it easy to grab and go (no waiting in line for food), but I think I prefer being able to select my own snack.

Awards were presented at 9am, then it was time for the door prizes. So the fun thing about the race was that door prizes were given away, as the name of the event implies, by the luck of the draw. For each prize, a playing card was drawn. Everyone who had that card came up to the front, and then they drew another card from the deck, with the high card winning the prize. The door prizes were pretty awesome. The ones I remember are: two prizes worth $100 at Buca di Beppo, $25 at Texas Roadhouse, $20 at Sprouts, and a free meal for two at Sweet Tomatoes. Unfortunately the five of spades wasn’t a winning card for me that day.

I’ve enjoyed all the ARR events I’ve been to and this race was no exception. Assuming I’m not busy, I’ll be back next year to try my luck again.