Hot Chocolate San Francisco 5k

January 10, 2021

I received a free entry to this event through the BibRave Pro ambassador program.  What a way to start off the new year! I ran the Allstate Hot Chocolate San Francisco 5k virtually in the beginning of January. I've always admired the swag from others who have run it so I decided this was my year to join in on the fun. Race management was extremely professional which made for an easy registration process. My race packet including bib, running jacket, medal, 2 packets of hot chocolate, a few chocolate pieces, a waffle, some nuun, and a packet of pain relief ointment arrived well before race day. To make the virtual experience exciting, my husband and I drove to the Golden Gate bridge so that I could do my "race" there. The bridge spans 1.6 miles so I did an out and back with views of the sunrise over San Francisco. It was gorgeous! I celebrated with the hot chocolate from my registration packet and took pictures of the finisher's medal on the bridge. Later, I uploaded my results to the live leaderboard with no issues and downloaded a few of my pictures to the live results page. Their web page was so cute offering "stickers" and overlays for photos! It was a memorable way to jazz up the virtual finish line. Since this was a virtual race there was no expo, parking, or course descriptions to address. The race, however, is all about the swag! The jacket is warm and comfortable and the medal actually contains real chocolate inside! I'd definitely recommend the HC series and I look forward to running in person next year!