In 2012, I ran this race as my first ever half marathon and it was rough, especially for a first half marathon. I returned back for my 5 year runniversary to see how I had progressed over the years. First off I will say that this race has some of the nicest feeling race shirts, super soft and super comfortable. Now for the race itself, it has a staggered start. The half marathoners start at 7:30, followed by the runners doing the 5 miler at 8:00. They didn't have starting corrals, just pacers for every 30 minute pace, beginning with 6 min mile. I am not going to sugarcoat this race, the course is filled with rolling hills, making it a good challenge. The whole race you are going uphill or downhill, but mostly uphill. The course takes you through downtown Durham attractions and at some points through the campus of Dook University. Race management had water stops about every 1.5 miles and pretty much every stop had water, gatorade and gels. Between mile 10 & 11, you encounter the largest hill of the course. If you can power through that hill, the rest of the race isn't nearly as bad. The finish is slightly uphill, but nothing like you would have already experienced earlier in the race. Upon finishing you are given a very nice finishing medal, free beer and access to one of the nicest food truck rodeos around. While this is not a race I will do every year, I would recommend it to anyone that likes a more challenging course with a great finish line party. Run Bull City