Race Communication- about one email every few weeks until it was closer to race day then the emails increased. All were very clear in providing helpful information about hotels, parking, race times, entertainment or spectators, and wave starts.

Expo- The expo was held in the Los Angeles Convention Center. It seemed way smaller than other Rock N Roll expos I’ve been to. That may have been because this one is more spread out and wraps around the hall it’s in. Parking for the expo was a nightmare. The race is the same weekend as LA Comic Con and the Convention Center area was a mad house. I circled for 40 minutes before finding parking. I didn’t realize that this race is always the same weekend as Comic Con and it wasn't mentioned in the pre race emails.

Bib pick up- Bib pick up was organized by number which you needed to know first, they went paperless this race, so runners claimed their race numbers via the Rock n Roll app. Timing chips were located on the backs of the bibs. Shirt pickup was smooth but once again the shirts run small so this time I exchanged it for a mens shirt, this took less than 30 seconds.

Race morning- The race was pretty specific about using Waze to avoid running into road closures but I still ran into road closures and got turned around. I managed to find a spot in a garage for $20.00 and stayed in my car before heading out to the start line.
Instead of the usual wave start, the corrals were released via a constant stream but everyone funneled through 2 small openings. I’m on the fence if it made things better.

The course- The course consisted of 2 out and backs. The first one was just shy of 3 miles and the last made up the remainder of the course. We were mostly on Figueroa St and Wilshire Blvd. Some of the buildings were industrial/business but there were quite a few historic buildings and churches along the route to check out. I felt like this course had less on course music than other Rock n Roll races. While at times it was fun seeing other runners on the other side of the out and back, it was kind of sad seeing the sweeper car right behind some runners.

Elevation- The course had around 600 feet in elevation gain and consisted of rolling hills. There was one good hill before mile 4. I love hills so this was perfect for me, in fact I could used a few more in the first few miles.

Aid Stations- The course had 8 aid stations with water, Gatorade Endurance and SIS Gels. There were plenty of port-a-potties at each station as well.

Finish- Once across the finish line, a volunteer handed you a medal and you were directed down the chute. Finishing photos were next then bottles of water and snacks. I kept looking for Gatorade but couldn’t find it.

The after race entertainment was taking place up a level or 2 in one of the garages. The concert was just starting when I finished but I had spent 9 miles battling GI issues (again, thankful for all the on course bathrooms) and all I wanted was a Gatorade and a real bathroom. I finally found people handing out Gatorade bottles on a street corner on my way back to my car. Not the usual place post race.

There were parts of this race I really liked and parts that completely stressed me out. I don’t think the business of LA and I get along. That could also be colored by how sick I was feeling out on the race course though.

The medal was awesome- Frankenstein's monster!

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