First in-person race back after the pandemic, thought I would write a quick review!

T-shirts/SWAG: T-shirts were okay. They were a cotton blend, so not a tech/dri-fit style. The printing on the shirt feels like it may wear down and flake off after several washes, but that is yet to be determined. My partner was really happy with the design, so it's really subjective. The medals at the finish are identical to the DC Half logo (visible in the photo I attached on the start banner). There are no awards for winning the half or the relay (age group OR overall)--a huge disappointment, especially considering how competitive the half turned out to be. What was the point of dividing our relays by gender at that point? I did enjoy the bibs, and since I collect them, it's a neat one to add.

Aid stations were good, but they were missing a key aid station at the relay hand-off. You finish your 5 mile portion of the relay and you can either walk 1/4 mile to the finish or 1 mile or so to the nearest aid station. I wish they had an aid station there since I had to wait at the relay hand off to run the 3rd leg.

Scenery: Running through the cherry trees was cool! You also hand off right at the MLK Jr. memorial. It might be a little on the plain side if you're from the area, but I enjoyed it as an out-of-state runner.

No expo. Packet pick-up was to be done at Pacers Running 2 days before the race. No day of race packet pick-up (why? This made no sense to me).

Difficulty: Hardly any elevation! Makes it easy for a quick pace, and many runners were using this race as a workout or a tune up for one of the upcoming marathons.

Parking/Access: Parking is awful as you are near the national mall. Recommend using the Metro or an uber service. We were dropped off by a friend which is probably the best way to do it.

Management was ok. I was disappointed in how little information was on the website. I'm the type of runner that wants every little detail and I felt that the website was very minimalist.

Overall, I guess I would recommend this, but it's a close call. I don't want to be too harsh on its inaugural running, so I'm opting to allow for them to grow and change next year. It's a fast course and you'll have good competition if you're running the half. Don't expect to walk away with swag that you will cherish for years or really enjoy after the event.