This was my first year running the Cherry Blossom 10 Miler so I didn't really know what to expect. I'd previously ran the Marine Corps Marathon so I wasn't a stranger to D.C. running.

Like MCM, the Cherry Blossom has a lottery system. If you plan to run this race make sure you plan ahead and sign up for their e-mails so you don't miss the lottery.

Early on we were made aware that the Metro would not be open prior to the start of the race. Knowing this I booked a pricey hotel to be within walking distance of the start line. We also found out that due to construction on the Washington Monument the staging area and the start line were going to be located at two different corners of the monument.

Not being from D.C. it was hard to keep up with what this all meant for race day. Luckily the race had a fantastic app that had everything from the expo schedule to weather alerts to exactly where to Uber to for the start line. I wish every big race would do this!

Expo

The expo was top notch. It was held at the National Building Museum which was a great change of scenery from the conventions centers expos are normally held in. The volunteers were great at making sure you knew where you were going. I was able to get in and get my bib with no wait in line.

It was a little smaller than some expos I've been to but all the major booths you would want to see where there. I was fortunate to see Joan Benoit Samuelson signing autographs and right in front of her was Meb Keflezighi sitting in the audience of one of the guest speakers. I wound up staying around to hear Meb and Deena Kastor even got up to say a few words before she went to her booth to sign autographs.

I was once at an expo with Ryan Hall and Kara Goucher but I think this may top that!

T-shirts/Swag

I opted for the cotton shirt over the tech shirt. There was an upcharge for the tech shirt. The cotton shirt was a simple grey with the race's logo on it. I also opted for a virtual swag bag. The offers in it were pretty good but nothing I was interested.

Shortly after the expo disaster struck for me. We lost my bib. I've never had this happen before. I was able to find an e-mail from the race that had a hotline number. I called it and within 15 minutes they had worked out a solution for me.

In the morning I headed to the staging area extra early and I was given a new bib at the volunteer tent. I'd like to thank the race management and volunteers for minimizing a very stressful situation for me.

Parking/Acess

I opted to Uber down because it was 5:45 and still dark when I left the hotel, A helpful volunteer pointed me to the volunteer tent right away.

After that things got tricky. The start line was a little ways away from the staging area and you couldn't see it from the staging area. I banded together with some people that were equally confused and we headed in the direction of the most people. It wasn't clear which way to go and there weren't any signs pointing either. Plus it was still a little dark out which added to the confusion. I know the monument being under construction wasn't ideal but more signage would have been helpful.

The corrals were crowded. More crowded than I ever remember any corral ever being. There were a lot of people on the outskirts of the corral because there wasn't enough room for everyone. People were also squeezing in between the gate which made things even tighter.

A crowded corral means it's going to be a crowded race. If you decide to run this race be prepared for that. I've ran some marathons that started out crowded but eventually thinned out. This wasn't the case. It was as crowded at the end as it was at the beginning.

Elevation Difficulty

This was a very flat race with one mini hill in the last half mile.

Course Scenery

This race is beautiful. Between the Cherry Blossoms and the monuments you were surrounded by beauty and history the whole time. You start and finish at the Washington Monument but you also run up along the one side of the Lincoln memorial, along the tidal basin that give a distant view of the Jefferson Memorial, you run right past the MLK Memorial and throughout the race you're surrounded by Cherry Blossoms, sometimes lining both sides of the street.

Aid Stations

The aid stations were perfect. There were enough volunteers at each one I stopped at and they offered both water and Gatorade.

One thing I was surprised about though was that there weren't a lot of cheering sections. Maybe I'm spoiled by some of the larger marathons I ran but I had though there would be more music and cheering sections. There were hardly any which I thought was odd. MCM had so many so I guess I assumed Cherry Blossom would too.

The finish line was full of cheering family and friends though. One odd thing was that the medals were not at the finish. They were way back at the staging area. Again more signage would have been helpful. I was really confused about where we needed to go. I've never ran a race that didn't have finisher medals at the finish line before.

Over all I enjoyed the race. The issues I had were mostly due to the Washington Monument being under construction. I do wish that there would have been more signage telling people where to go though. It was pretty confusing especially not being familiar with area around the monument. Hopefully this is something they improve on if the construction is still underway next year.

Add this race to your bucket list but keep in mind to plan ahead with entering the lottery and finding a hotel within walking distance. Though I was able to Uber down trying to get an Uber back to the hotel was out of the question due to the crowds.