Kansas City. I would have thought the marathon would have been a bigger one, as far as runners are concerned. To learn that in the end only 1250 ran the 26.2 came as a complete shock to me!

We arrived Friday afternoon to a relatively quiet expo experience. It was a small expo, and that was our first hint it would be a small event. Back at bib pickup, we noticed just 1-1999 were the bib numbers for the marathoners. Looking around, there were no bib named vendors to be found. Much of them were local businesses selling their wares, or advertising their services. There were a few running stores, and one outfit who printed tech wear right on the spot. Very intriguing! But there were no big name companies who dole out the samples at other major marathons.

The Waddell and Reed Kansas City Marathon did have pacers, however. I haven't been a big fan of pacers recently, because I've been forcing myself to start slower for my events. I was so exicted to hear that this is how the Kansas City pacers pace. Each mile is run at a slightly different pace determinate on the geography of that mile. Way cool! It gave me the courage to try a pace group again. They were handing out bands, so I grabbed one after I visited the booth.

The finisher shirt we received was a long sleeved, hooded, "tech" shirt. Meaning, it was polyester, but I don't think it would hold up to the rigors of a real sweaty run. But it is a nice looking shirt. It did run very small, however, or else, I'm liking larger sizes lately. They were readily able to exchange sizes right there, which was a nice perk.

SInce there wasn't much to see at the expo, we headed out, but not before getting our parking ticket validated. Therefore, there was no parking fee collected. Excellent perk #2!

On race day, we prepared to arrive 45 minutes prior to the start of the race. We anticipated parking in one of the 5 free lots provided on race morning, but upon arrival, my husband found cars parking a block from the start line for a fee and he opted to just park there. It was in the parking lot of the KC Sports Commission. $10 was the cost, and he wasn't phased by it since he planned to just hang out until I finished anyway. It is about the going rate to park in the Twin Cities where we live now.

After we parked, it was a quick jaunt to the start line. There was a big line of portapotties, and there were NO lines. Nice! Got that out of the way on the way to the start area. Again, a sign that it wasn't a very big attended event...at least for the marathon and half marathon.

The entire start went off without a hitch. On time...in fact, 8 seconds early.

The race itself started in the dawn. It was pretty dim! The clouds helped with that, but by mile 3, things began to brighten up. The anticipated warm weather never happened, but it was cloudy and humid and I was sweating good by mile 3. The course was hilly....short, quick, steep hills that provided a great challenge. I lost my pace group early on and never really caught up. For the most part, I ran between two pace groups solidly the entire run.

There was very little in the way of fanfare. But there were a few brave souls out there cheering us on. I was disappointed in the finish in that respect. Usually, you see a couple of miles worth of fans at the end of an event, but there was literally NO ONE in Kansas City until the final hundred yards, at best.

The aid stations were fair, although I would have expected to see more of them near the end of the race. And all I saw was water, gatorade, and one station with gels. I don't use aid stations unless absolutely necessary since I carry my own hydration. But some vaseline on a stick would have been nice on this skin chafing day. I did not see that in Kansas City. Nor was there anything other than those three items offered at any aid station, unless I missed it.

It wasn't a completely "closed" course, so officers were allowing traffic to pass when the runners were sparse on the course. This was new to me, but they did a terrific job and we never had to wait for traffic to cross. I give the race coordinators a lot of credit for this. Bravo!

The course itself was very scenic. It basically passed through a good portion of the distinct neighborhoods in Kansas City, and running alongside the river was a bonus. The steep neighborhood hills, however, were killer at times. It just added to the event. You either like a challenge or you don't. I do...so I enjoyed this run. It was fairly well marked, although I did have to ask a few of the volunteers if I was headed the right way. I'm glad they were there to help.

We collected our medal at the end, and they had the typical post race fare at the finish, including apples, bananas, oranges, bread, chocolate milk and bottled water. Outside the finish area was a giant party featuring more food and beer for the finishers. We didn't hang around, however, and I didn't get to try any of the food. I was disappointed. I did see Chil-fil-a was there, however, offering chicken sandwiches at their own tents. There were bands and events for the kids inside the park area. Certainly plenty to do for any family. And the scenes inside the park area were tremendous. It is a charming city, to say the least. And the event was a grand one by far.

Overall, as far as coming into a city to run a smaller sized marathon, I highly recommend the Kansas City Marathon. It's a great bang for the buck in a fun city that provides much entertainment during the race, before, and after as well. Make a weekend out of it and enjoy the city. It is worth it!

OH! And getting to ring the gong at the end...well...that was just AWESOME!

For me, it was my second fastest marathon. I was very surprised. I also got an age group award. I don't know what it is yet, but I'll be sure to come back and tell you!