Expo/Swag: Packet pick up was at Greenlake Road Runner Sports and was easy enough to get to. They had lots of volunteers and it took 5 minutes tops to get out bags, so that was great. Had an area to buy all sorts of Oatmeal merchandise and I know Matt Innman was signing books at the pickup as well as on both race day. If you're looking for a big expo like they have with other races this is not it, but that's not a big deal for me. It's at running store so if you do have any last minute things to you can support the local running store.
Inside the bags were gummy snacks (delicious), a “I beat the Blerch” bumper sticker, a mini beat the blerch stress ball, and the race shirts. I cannot say how much I love the race shirts! Black 3/4 zip long sleeve made out of tech fabric with a big ol’ blerch on the back! Also liked out it specified which distance you ran. A friend of mine who ran it in 2016 said the shirts were just regular cotton t-shirts so they’ve definitely upped the quality this year!

Parking/Transportation: The race was in Carnation, WA which was about a 35-40min drive from Seattle. We came in from out of town so we just rented a zipcar to get there. Easy enough place to get to and had no problems with parking. I know there were parking passes you could buy but we just parked in the recommended free area (field) and maybe walked 1/4 mile to the race area. Super easy to get in and out.

Pre-Race Area: Race started/ended at a camp ground area so there was plenty of room for everyone there. They had same day packet pick up (quite a long line but still an option). Also had a bag drop off area that you didn’t have to have any kind of special race specific bag for, they just put a tag that corresponds with your bib number. They also had pre-race burritoughnuts which believe it or not were quite tasty! Also had people dressed as the Blerch to take pictures with and passing out marshmallows covered in chocolate sauce and bacon. They really were over the top with the amount of food and it was amazing.

Course: SO FLAT IT WAS AMAZING! First 0.5 miles or so was on a black asphalt trail that then turned into a loose gravel trail for the rest of the route. The first bit of trail had me nervous because it was quite loose and could be easy to roll an ankle but it transitioned to packed dirt pretty quickly. I’ve lived in the midwest for most of my life which is pretty flat and void of any kind of trees other than the occasional shelter belt so this course was AMAZING. You’re always surrounded by trees and other greens and it was just absolutely gorgeous. The course is out and back so it’s flat all the way along. My friend felt like it was a slight incline out but I honestly couldn’t tell. There were aid stations at mile 3, 6, 7, 10, and a last water stop around mile 12 or so. The first three stations all came equipped with water, “electrolyte water” (not gatorade or really super flavorful of anything but still nice), cake (DELICIOUS), nutella sandwiches, and GU. More importantly they also had couches to relax on and more people dressed up to take pictures with.

Post-Party: Same area as pre-race but with more cake, nutella sandwiches, burritoughnuts, and potato chips. There were also vendors there for cliff bar, some sort of protein milk that was delicious, and others that I can’t remember. Also the medals had the Blerch on them which was great.

Final Thoughts: Honestly this was probably the most fun I’ve had at a race. It was incredibly chill and everyone was super nice! We all were just there to be fatty’s while also being miserable while running. The volunteers were all very helpful and I think this will be the only race I run were they encourage you to take it easy at each aid station! If I lived in the area I would definitely run this every year. Heck, even living halfway across the country I still want to come back next year!