Springfield Missouri is the home of Bass Pro shops and the proprietor of this race. They take ownership of this race and knock it out of the park! The race is managed like a well oiled machine. All details are covered in this odd sized race. I say odd sized because this race of (I'm guessing) 5000 people, is bigger than many smaller races, but smaller than most big city races. But don't be fooled, it acts like, and achieves the quality of a major big city marathon! Bass Pro has a very large parking area and I have never had any difficulty parking on the property. The start has an adiquate amount of port a potties and space for lining up in front of the iconic Bass Pro headquarters front doors. There are pace groups for just about every goal time to join in with and make new friends. The start is quit a celebration. The course is mildly hilly so be prepared for that. The course winds through the towns and you get neighborhoods, downtown, through the campus of Missouri State University, and more neighborhoods. It's okey. Of course being from the area it's nothing new to me, so a new person to the town would be more interested to see the sights. The aid stations were adequate and plentiful with water and Gatorade. There were sports beans given out at various points of the route. There is not much crowd support. Other than the start, aid stations, relay points, and finish, onlookers are few and far between. The expo is top notch and equivalent to big city marathons. Lots of stuff to do and see. The expo is open Friday and Saturday prior to the race on Sunday. Ample time for packet pick-up, which is smooth, quick, and well staffed. The shirts are top quality tech long sleeve. The design on them is good. I'm sure most people will love it, but personally I wasn't blown away by it. I still wear it a lot though. I say this with a lot of confidence, the medal is probably one of the best in the country, seriously. If you are a bling chaser, stop reading this and sign up immediately. It's that good. Overall this is a race worth traveling for. You also get much more than a race. If you have never been to the Ozarks, this is a definite runcation destination. You get Bass Pro Shops and are only an hour from Branson for pre/post race vacation and entertainment. Put this race on your calendar sooner rather than later.