Summerfest Rock ‘n Sole Run

Having sampled a variety of area runs in the past year, this one remains my favorite. I’ve run the 5K and quarter-​marathon (half-​marathon, I’m coming for you next!) and found that both years the event ran smoothly, with a number of volunteers and aid stations along the way.
If you’re looking for a race to explore downtown Milwaukee, this is a great one. The routes have changed a little year-​to-​year, but generally you’ll run through Walker’s Point, Bay View, over the Hoan Bridge, and along the main stretch of the lakeshore. There are beautiful views of the downtown area and local bands along the way.
Sign up early to snag registration discounts. In the past, the registration and packet have included a shirt, finisher’s medal, Summerfest ticket, Polish Fest ticket, and other promo items or coupons. There are also lots of tasty treats waiting for you at the finish line, along the lines of a free beer, bananas, chips, granola bars, and chocolate milk. What’s better at 8 am than chocolate milk and Miller 64?

This is a nice race… even if you wimp out and only sign up for the 5k like me. :) All the races have good attendance but there’s more hype around the quarter (its essentially a little less than doing a 10k) and the half marathon. I think it used to start later in the summer but they made the wise move of starting earlier in the June. Its a lot more pleasant to run when its 60 than when its 80 degrees out.
With the quarter and half marathon:
–you get to go on the Hoan bridge.
–you get a «tech» material shirt.
–you start right at 7 am vs 7:20.
Why I didnt do the quarter marathon (other than I’m flabby and tired sometimes :):
It’s about $ 35 more for the quarter marathon and it starts at 7 am on a Saturday in summer. I dont know about you but it’s really a gamble whether I’m getting my butt out of bed and showing up for these things on a weekend morning in summer. $ 30 is one thing — $ 65 is another.
I registered late so it was $ 30 but you get goodies that make up for the cost including:
–tshirt
–medal
–summerfest ticket
–polish fest ticket
–nice earbuds (you know you can always use more of these.)
–free drink ticket
–water, chocolate milk, banana, & snacks at finish.
Couple things:
— they ran out of large t-​shirts by the time I got to pick up my stuff but medium is still pretty decent sized.
–chocolate milk at the finish line=nothing I want in my GI tract after running hard in the summer.
–I would suggest walking or biking down here if you live nearby at all. Many roads are closed in the morning and it just seemed a lot easier. Bike racks are next to the Summerfest Southgate and by the finish line

I heart Milwaukee and I heart this race!
It was my second time running this half marathon and I finished 20 minutes faster than last year! I signed up at the Shamrock Shuffle 8K Expo in Chicago and got a discount as well as the dirfit shirt from last year’s marathon… score!
The course was pretty much the same as last year with a challenging start up and down the Hoan bridge twice… and that wicked incline up to the residential area after mile 6. What makes this race special are the great scenic views of Milwaukee’s Hoan bridge, lovely quiet mansions, downhill stretch down towards the lakefront, past Discovery World and the Milwaukee Art Museum. Energetic pacers will keep you in check in case the fun sights begin to distract you from a PR goal.
Water/​gatorade stations litter the course about every couple miles or so… the most I’ve seen in my history of running half marathons… all three of them! Entertainment along the way also took the form of a band rocking out the 80’s music, a Chinese dragon, Mexican folk dancers, a saxophonist, a spectator dressed as Scooby Doo. Even the runners were part of the entertainment too. I saw one dressed as Elvis!
Crossing that finish line with the Hoan bridge in view was an amazing feeling. The volunteers were so sincere in congratulating runners. I love love the chocolate milk you get at the end of the race. They actually have so much re-​fueling snacks at the finish that I was running out of hands to carry it all!
This race is definitely challenging but worth every minute of the blood, sweat, and tears. The free beer doesn’t hurt either=)

Love the half marathon. Great course support, great entertainment, awesome medal, nothing but a great experience here. I did the half last year, and the 5k this year, and both were great. I wish there was some more support and entertainment for the 5k, but I realize the half is the signature event.
Will definitely do this again next year.

this course was designed by satan. i’m pretty sure that detail is written somewhere in the website, but i just didn’t see it.
i’ve run a lot of races… in a lot of cities… but this one haunts me. :)
maybe it was because it was hot and humid on race day.
maybe it was because you run up the hoan bridge not once… but twice.
maybe it was because after all that… some idiot spectator was like, «don’t worry! there aren’t anymore hills!» and there were like 72 more hills.
this race hung me out to dry, like most full marathons haven’t.
all that being said… it was well organized. the expo was easy to find. the parking was great and free. the aid stations didn’t disappoint. there were plenty of them, and they all had water, which is good — considering rock ‘n sole races of summers past. plenty of port-​a-​johns and they all had toilet paper, which is also good, considering some races i’ve been to… some have either not enough potties or not enough toilet paper… or both.
i know some people really like the chocolate milk after a race… but blech. on a hot day… after i’ve just run until i feel like i could barf… and someone thrusts thick chocolate milk in my face, it’s about the last thing i want to see. i really would have knocked over a 7 – 11 for some ice cold gatorade right then. i settled for water though… and a seat on the ground to stretch out my aching quads from all those HILLS! :D
(oh, and there is something totally eerie about running up the hoan bridge for this race. it looks like people are leaving the city mass exodus style. if you are a fan of «walking dead» … just picture that while taking the bridge for the first time… because it is seriously about the weirdest thing in the world to have been caught in rush hour traffic on the bridge the day before and then running up it with 7500 people the next day without a car in sight the next. that was worth the price of admission there… the other 71 hills… not so much. :)

I ran the Rock N Sole Half Marathon (13.1 miles) on Saturday June 23, 2012 and had a great time. Race started on Lincoln Memorial Drive then up and over the Hoan Bridge to the other side then up and over again. Down Lincoln Memorial Drive, up Lafayette Park Hill, to Prospect and Wahl, to Lake Park, then Down Lincoln Memorial Drive — just me and 7400 other runners. They had great volunteer support — I understand about 950 volunteers (my wife was a volunteer at the 12 mile water station). Race ended at Summerfest grounds and they had some good freebies. Race Expo the day before was also good. Nice dry-​wick shirt and free Summerfest tix.
Note — I did not wear the bag on my head during the race.