Rock 'n' Roll Raleigh runners agree: 30-degree weather was perfect

At 7 a.m., temperatures were in the low 30s while runners anxiously waited at the starting line, jumping back and forth to keep warm and build excitement.

"To be honest, that is perfect race conditions," said Matt Williams, 31, from Goldsboro, who finished the half-marathon (that's 13.1 miles!) first in only one hour and eight minutes. "Mid 30s to low 40s is perfect."

Emily Hulme, 33, from Pennsylvania, was right behind Williams as the first female to finish this year's race. Her brother, who lives in the Raleigh area, was also running the half-marathon, and she joked that she was just happy to beat him.

"The course was great -- I didn't know what to expect," said Hulme. "And, being from the north, this weather actually felt nice."

Even WRAL's Jeff Hogan ran and live-streamed the entire race, keeping viewers up-to-date on his progress. "People were just engaged," said Hogan. "The heard what was going on, they heard WRAL and they welcomed me." Hogan, who is brand new to WRAL and to Raleigh, says this was a great way to take the city in.

Bedelia Jackson cheered on a friend.

"He's used to it -- I was the one that was freezing," said Bedelia Jackson, who was waiting at the finish line to cheer on a friend. "Look at all the layers I have on!"

Nearly 5,000 runners participated in the race. The oldest runner in this year's race was Grant Egley, 86, from Lake Waccamaw, North Carolina. The youngest runner was Barrett Kesling, a 12-year- old from Erwin.

Even apart from the unusual April freeze, this year's Rock n' Roll Half Marathon was quite different from previous years, with the route featuring fewer hills and showcasing different parts of downtown Raleigh, including the Capitol building and the city's historic district and neighborhoods.

Event organizers added music along the way, too, with more than 20 bands performing for runners along the routes. Mile markers featured built-in speakers to keep runners entertained from start to finish.

A free concert featuring the indie band Susto and several other performers was waiting for runners at Red Hat Amphitheater following the race.