Wow, what a change from the previous year!! (and not for the better) The team behind the Philadelphia Marathon/Half Marathon totally changed things up for 2016. Gone was the Full/Half on the same day and sharing the same course as they moved the Half to Saturday and totally revamped the course. Some quick hits and thoughts on the 2016 Half:

* Packet pickup for half runners has to be a Friday now. Not a fun experience unless you live close to the Expo (PA Convention Center) or have easy access to public transportation. Driving into the city on a Friday is a nightmare. What used to be a quick trip in on a Saturday with time to enjoy the expo became a very LONG commute to and from. Not a positive takeaway there.
* Philly is pricey race to enter and at it's core should be about the city and it's history, landmarks, neighborhoods. The original course took runners past Independence Hall, down along the Delaware, back up to South Street and the roaring crowds of Chestnut through the party of Drexel's campus, down past the zoo and finally back into the city (Art Museum) via the West River Drive. Great course, city landmarks, great crowd support and a natural flow for a loop course.
* Gone! Now the half barely runs into the city (you get a slight glimpse of Independence Hall) and takes you out along the River Drives into Fairmount park. No longer a city race but a park race. Plus the course winds and weaves around as they struggle to find the amount of road for the distance. No flow to it, contrived course, very little crowd support. For the money spent not worth it. One can run in Fairmount park anytime for free! Running in the city with the crowds and support - that is what the $ should pay for.
* Post race food - again for the $ paid is poor. The typical water bottle, energy bar and banana. Plus they give you food and how do you carry it (hmm, a bag would work nice). Ran Rehoboth Beach two weeks later, they know how to feed runners after a race!

Philly has always been my go-to Autumn race (I have run it five years in a row) but I doubt I will run again unless they change back to the old course or make drastic improvements (away from the drastic 2016 changes). What was once a classic race is now a shell of what it once was. I understand the Marathon is the marque event but to make the half a poor stepchild is very sad to see.