This was my 8th half marathon and by far it was my favorite. The race runs through scenic downtown Orlando's many shaded residential neighborhoods. All along the course, the residents came out to cheer us runners on.

The race is mostly flat, but includes occasional elevation changes which keep things interesting. At various points through the race, you will run on cobblestones, but I found they were well maintained and weren't too bad as long as you stayed towards the middle of the road. Around mile 11, there was a section that clearly needs to be re-paved, but it was mostly easy to avoid the holes. In addition, there was on-course entertainment every couple miles. There were DJs and various bands that kept the runners moving.

I started towards the back and I found the first four miles to be a little crowded, but after that it opened up. It seemed the 2:30 pace group was rather large and I never had a chance to get past them before my pace fell off. I tried to stay in front of the 2:45 pace group, but they passed me when I had to stop to take my socks off since they were too tight

There were aid stations about every 1.5 miles with both water and powerade.It was a little humid that day and I found myself wishing there were more. Next time, if it's humid, I'll bring a handheld and carry water on me. At mile 8 they had various flavors of gu available. At mile 9, there was a group with several kegs handing out free beer.

The race medal is a big shiny piece of bling that I look forward to hanging on my wall. The race shirt was a super comfy raw threads long sleeve bamboo tech shirt. Now that it's getting a little cooler here in the evenings, I look forward to wearing it again.

At the finish, they handed out water, powerade, bagels and bananas. I had two tickets for free beer, but I skipped it since I had to drive home right afterwards. I skipped the post race party area, so I'm not sure if anything else was offered in addition to the free beer. There is a panera shop right there at the start/finish area so I was able to grab a quick bite and something to drink before heading home

One thing I would definitely recommend is not trying to park at the closest parking deck. It was the one listed on the race info email. I initially headed there since I wasn't familiar with the parking situation. After waiting in traffic for 10 minutes going nowhere, I decided to move on and I lucked out and found a private parking deck only charging 5$.

I have nothing but praise for this race. It was well put on and I will definitely be back. If you are looking for a half marathon in the Orlando area, you'll want to do this one.

MM#6820