This is the 3rd time I've participated in the Philadelphia 1/2 Marathon and after experiencing the new course, it might not be a standard go-to race for me anymore.

I attended the expo on Friday at noon, when the doors opened. The expo is held at the Philadelphia Convention Center and the place was teeming with folks there for another event. Add the swarms of runners that were there for the Health and Fitness expo and it was particularly challenging to get in and out of the area quickly.

The shirts are small. Very small. And ill-fitted. Knowing this from the previous year, I got an XL. It fits but honestly, it's not something that I plan to wear. The bottom is baseball shirt cut and overall it's short and I don't have a long torso. I'm guessing those who do would have issues.

There were many changes made to the Philly Marathon weekend. The first change that was made was that the half and full marathons, which were usually both held at the same day and time were split. Which makes sense from a business standpoint. They added the Rocky Challenge, which is for those people who wanted to run both the half and the full races. Good on you, running all the miles folks!

The race weekend, once run by the City of Philadelphia, has been taken on by Philadelphia Parks and Rec (they manage the Broad Street Run as well). Communication prior to the race was a bit on the light side. People asked questions via email and Facebook, many went unanswered. I know there is a learning curve that comes along with these things but I was surprised that there wasn’t better communication, as this isn’t their first race rodeo.

The change that impacted me the most though was… they changed the half marathon course. I take issue with this because I know the old course and I really loved the old course. The new course was less through the city and more through Fairmount Park. Which, while beautiful, is very hilly.

As I am a slower runner, I lined up with the last corral. The first runners began at 7:30. My race started at 8:03. The first mile was very congested but I was feeling great and happy to be running! I noticed there was a lot of construction within this mile, which didn’t help with the squeezed feeling.

I bobbed and weaved in the first two miles but after that I found a good spot and we all spread out. I loved miles 1-5 because they were through the city and there was lots of great crowd support, which isn't necessary but something I can certainly appreciate.

Miles 6 and 7 were along across the river from Boathouse Row. Running along the river was gorgeous. I continued with my 2:1 intervals and was exactly where I wanted to be pace-wise. There was one hill there but again, I expected it because we'd run that part of the course in previous years.

From mile 7 on, it was uncharted territory for me. There was a nice stretch of road and we all continued happily along our way.

Around mile 8 we turned to go up a hill and then it felt like we never stopped going uphill. It was hill.

After hill.

After hill.

Yikes.

Eventually the hills stopped but I was so off my planned pace that I knew my goal of a huge PR was over. I decided to just try to enjoy the rest of the race and go for a smaller PR (which I accomplished!).

Finish line is always fun, especially with the announcers calling out names and welcoming the runners back home. Right after we crossed that line it was kinda of chaotic. It seemed like there were people walking around in the chute everywhere (not just runners).

I found the volunteers giving out medals, which are GORGEOUS! After that I was able to tracked down the food tent by asking other runners. In the past it there were tables in the finish chute so again, it was different than expected. I wish they had bags for us to put items in as they have in past years. It always helps a lot instead of trying to juggle and I hope they decide to add that element back.

Overall, being a repeat runner of this race, I was disappointed. I might need to take a year off from the half to reassess my feelings.

For more pictures and opinions: http://www.scootadoot.org/2016/11/21/philadelphia-half-marathon-2016-recap/