PROS:
True to it's reputation this is a fast course! Only 2 very small uphill moments with enough downhill to more than make up for the up! This time of year at time of day the weather was perfect! 50s, crisp, cool. Definitely PR'able. I ran a 2.5 minute PR not in full fitness, and also came in 1st in my AG! I'm definitely thinking I'll be back to race it even harder in the future.

CONS
*There are some specific logistics to be aware of for this race when you are committing. Because it's point to point you need to get on a bus in Sandy OR (30-45 min outside Portland) around 3:30 am, which means waking up in the city at 2am! Then prepare for waiting, a long bus ride, waiting in a staging area. If you are prepared for it (like people are for Boston, NYC, it's fine). But if you are not prepared it will leave you feeling restless. After the race, you also need to be bussed from the finish area to where you parked your car. The line for this was long. Race staff was nice enough to run out water, pizza, and donuts while we waited which was much appreciated! Again, if you are prepared for this it's fine. But if you are expecting to get on a bus quickly to head back it can feel frustrating.

OTHER
COURSE - For the half you are on back roads until mile 11 where you run on Hwy 26 for 2 miles. I didn't mind this portion because it's short, but i heard the Full is on the hwy almost the whole time so I could see it potentially be unnerving having speedy cars pass you constantly on the shoulder. The half was great, very peaceful. Some of the roads were at a pitch, so I did end up weaving a bit to make sure I could run on the flattest part of the road.

AID STATIONS - Most of the aid stations were great, but one there around Mile 11 where there were zero people handing out cups. Running at PR pace I tried to pick a cup up off the table but fumbled so missed water. Also the cups are all the same color so I constantly had to yell for water or Powerade and wait to hear what was where. Again, knowing people are trying to PR it would be great to have diff color cups and make sure people are ready to hand out cups that were clearly marked.

SWAG - T-shirt and hat were nice giveaways. There are also throwaway gloves and a space blanket in the bag which are nice in the morning when you are waiting in the staging area.

POST-RACE - Love the pizza and coke post-race food offering. You also get water, protein shake, and banana post-race. Lots of places to take pics, lay in the grass, or go back to cheer on others. Def a plus of a race this size.

START - When you get off the bus and walk to the staging area it's pitch black. If you have a headlamp it could be nice to bring it to offer some visibility. There were plenty of portapotties so you never had to wait long which was nice. I was able to go twice to ease my nerves :) They also had water at the start.

Overall, it was great to run a Revel race after hearing so much about the series. Hoping they'll tweak some of the issues for year two!

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