I'd been eye-balling this race for a while and was pleased with the fact that I registered for the race three days in advance (with a code) for just $80 for the half marathon). Perks included tech jacket (half-zip) and medal. Not really any sort of expo, but a few tents for local partners or organizations that came out in stride.

The course runs along the Phoenix Canal, which was an awesome little bit of scenery. After a while, it got a little mundane, but it was nice running along water (how Californian of me). There were few folks out cheering, however, with most of those being Startline employees (volunteers?) manning the water stations - but that was literally 1-2 people per table every mile and a half or so. They were super sweet and at least knew the course and when the next water stop would be, but it made for a desolate run. However, I can see why all my Phoenix friends like running along the canal, especially considering how much it makes you feel like you're NOT in central Phoenix.

My only beef with the course was that my Garmin seemed to lose signal in the underpasses. Mind you, these are all of 20 yards long, but enough to toy with pace and mileage that it definitely threw me off my game!

Race Pros:
- Small event (if that's your thing!)
- Jacket is awesome; can't wait to wear it!
- Quality event from start to finish

Race Cons:
- No crowd support - if you run best in a high-energy course, this is not the place to be your best!
- Medal ribbon had the wrong date (just an LOL moment when we realized)
- Underpasses are a popular place for trash and/or homeless folks. They should have been looked at/cleaned up prior to race start, if not for safety alone. Under one, there was a whole smashed DVD player/VCR and one had half a camp set up.

I think this race can really develop into a popular event. Don't mind that it's a "women's" race, as there were two men that completed the half too! I think Startline can reach out to local organizations (especially MRTT) that sponsor and support women and have them participate as volunteers to continue to make this a bigger and better event!