This was my first full marathon. A few friends from my run club traveled to run this race, and from the beginning everything said small - the race expo was under a tent, didn't have many people and vendors, the swag bag was virtual (which I appreciated, because the bag at big races are mostly filled with junk anyway), and bib pickup was effortless, lasting all of 5 minutes, and it was probably my fault for it being that long because I like to chat.

I was expecting lines everywhere on race day but the shuttle bus had space upon arrival and there was no waiting. Lots of great conversations on the ride out and there were plenty of potties at the start line. Compared to larger halves I did in the past year, everything was a cinch.

I had a few logistical issues during the race. My original plan was to stop every 6 miles for a short break and I expected to stop at the station at mile 6. For some reason that station wasn't there (maybe I missed it?), or was placed earlier (I remember something at mile 5), which meant that I went without water for 3 miles and couldn't use the restroom until 8.5 (and had to wait 5 minutes because of the queue). I know that it's a small race, but I thought it was standard to have water every mile and depending on temperature this should be a requirement. If there is a staffing issue, one nice thing would be to have unmanned water stations with just cups and a jug. This became more of a problem as the temperature rose and the race went into the hills. I had to rely on some friendly neighbors who had water on some of the uphill portions.

One other minor issue was that I was handed a leaky gel packet that I put in my pocket and didn't consume, and so I wound up with sticky shorts at the end. Fortunately there were enough sprinklers left out in the street that I could do some spot cleaning. It was probably my problem for not choosing a larger race for my first marathon since I could have used the better support.

I guess another thing I could nitpick about is that the entire course is uphill. I think most marathons design the course such that there is a bit of a downhill in the last few miles so you feel like it's about to wrap, but other than the last couple hundred yards on the bridge there is a gentle grade. The scenery is spectacular, but I don't think it's easy to PR at.

I'd like to give a special shoutout to the volunteers and people of Missoula for being so friendly and welcoming. Just by having conversations at the race expo, some volunteers were able to pick me out by name on race day (I think the Asian thing helped though :D). The small town vibe was great and I would love to spend more time here next time.

Overall, despite some logistics issues, I really enjoyed this small race of only 1,000 runners, and would love to do it again.