Rockapulco Run has a series of near-monthly races that take place on the boardwalk that is adjacent to Rockaway Beach. This particular race was very small with only 69 finishers. The low number could have been due to the very cold Saturday; I belive temperatures were in the low 20's.

Before running race, I was a bit anxious because there was not too much information about the race; e.g. the course, fluid stations, elevation (I assumed it would be flat, but you never know), etc. Now that I have completed my first one, I would not mind running another Rockapulco run in the near future.

Race registration of ~$50 included a regular T-shirt, a medal for finishers, one free drink at a local bar (Rogers Irish Tavern), and a small post-race brunch (pasta, an egg casserole, fruit, and a muffin).

The race's course was pretty simple: start at B116th -> B120th -> B57th -> B120th and repeat. The fluid stations, which were on B57th and B116, was a guy handing out water bottles. Since the weather was in the low 20's, there were not many spectators for this half marathon. Also, the race pack was pretty spread out so you did not really see too many runners during the race. So this would be more of a race where you will race against the clock instead of other runners.

It was nice to participate in a very low key race without 100s to 1000s of runners; it felt more like doing a long run with other folks. Since the race was small and there was a post-race brunch at a bar, it was nice to talk to fellow runners after the half.