I was interested in Reykjavik marathon as a cool race in August. Of course, never before being in Iceland also was an inducement. Another temptation was cheap direct fares from Chicago by WOW air, which was inaugurated this year. All those factors combined, we flew to Keflavik, rented a car and drove to Reykjavik to stay at a hotel few blocks from the race start/finish area.

The city is amazing, one of the few Scandinavian capitals with distinct character, and everybody is fluent in English. The expo is outside the city center and considering the size of the country, very well managed and organized. Do not expect the excesses of consumerism that we would be used to in the US, there is only one event t-shirt!.

The start point is at the city center, corral organization is satisfactory, temperatures at start around 50s. Course is wonderful with urban, mildly hilly, rural, national park, seashore, highway, park, waterfall, residential areas. Considering that fewer than 400,000 people live in the whole island, there is "satisfactory" cheering.

This is one of the memorable runs that should be repeated as often as possible. The Icelandic beer, which, I believe, is the best in the world, will make you for get the 26 miles. Excellent food in almost any spot is a bonus!