5 Things about J&A Racing

Happy Friday!  I'm linking up with Mar, Cynthia, and Courtney today.  Make sure to check out all the amazing blogs!  They are doing a "Fall Preview" theme, but since I'm way behind in my life, I'm straying away and am going to talk about one of the big loves of my life: J&A Racing.  J&A holds my heart for many reasons which we'll get into in a minute, and I'm so happy that I get to be a part of their team as an ambassador for the 2014-2015 season.  There are many amazing things about J&A, but I'll try to keep it brief.

1. J&A Racing made me exciting about running.  I don't remember how I found about J&A to begin with, but I do know that because of J&A I realized that I was faster than I realized and could run further than I ever thought I could.  My senior year of college I ran the Wicked 10k with my little brother and had a blast.  We then decided that we may as well run the Virginia is for Lovers 14k to prepare for the Shamrock Half Marathon.  Each run felt amazing and was fun in its own unique way. VIFL had a cupcake curve.  Enough said.  Back then, there were only three races.  They've since expanded and have SIX!  Check them out here!

Wicked good times.

2. My first and best half marathons have been with J&A.  The Shamrock was my first half and I beat the time I thought I would by about 25 minutes. I remember crossing the finish line and being so proud and so excited, and also thinking I never wanted to run that far again!  (It was my burning quads talkin'.)  I guess somewhere along the lines that changed!  You can read my race recaps here, here, and here.

Shamrock Half is a PR kind of race.

3. The food is SO good.  This may seem like a silly reason to run, but I've gotta say that the awesome soup in bread bowls makes every single mile completely worth it.

4. The courses are fun!  They put jokes up on the course (which yes, are cheesy, but are also highly entertaining).  They have DJs, radio stations, and bands set up on the courses.  One of my favorites was at the Inaugural Crawlin' Crab Half Marathon.  They had a guitar player by the James River and although it wasn't traditional race course music, I really liked it!  The volunteers are incredible as well and cheer you on (your name is on your bib if you register early enough!) and hand you oreos and candy.

My friends are hooked on J&A, too :-)

5. They keep things exciting.  J&A makes changes to their races, but makes sure to keep the same feel and quality with each change.  I am so excited for the Crawlin' Crab Half this year because they are having a craft beer fest after the race.  They added a new race this year (the Harbor Lights Half Marathon and 5k) that just happens to be on my birthday weekend.  Must have heard how much I loved them.  The Surfin' Santa changed from a 10 miler to a 5 miler, and is going to be amazing because it's going to be in the evening so we can run through the lights on the boardwalk.  I cannot wait!

Have you ever done a J&A race?  Which one?  If not, which race would you want to do?