Savannah is a beautiful little city on the east coast of Georgia that also happens to be very historically significant to the US as well as being the gateway to Tybee Island and Georgia's only beach. I had heard a lot of great things about Savannah (including the fact that in addition to Las Vegas and New Orleans, it's the only other city in the US that allows people to drink alcohol openly while walking around downtown). I didn't want to miss out on an opportunity to check it out.

Getting There / Where to Stay

Savannah Hilton Head Airport is about 20 minutes away from downtown Savannah so if you can find a flight into it, that will probably be your most convenient option. Flights into Hilton Head tend to be a bit pricey though and there's a limited number of airlines that fly there so scheduling might be a problem as well. If you're looking to save some money and have a few more flight options, check the flights into Jacksonville, Florida. It's about a 2 hour drive from Jacksonville to Savannah straight north along coast. Flying into Atlanta and taking an Amtrak train to Savannah is another option although trying to combine flight and rail schedules can also be a bit complicated.

Regardless of which airport you fly into, you'll probably need to rent a car to get around Savannah. Some of the race's host hotels have shuttles on race day but the expo is several miles away from the start and finish lines and there are a lot of attractions around the city that aren't walking distance from one another so driving is simply a more convenient way to get around.

As far as places to stay go, there are a number of bed and breakfasts in Savannah, some of which are close to historical areas like Forsyth Park, and others which are Antebellum and Victorian Style mansions and quite comfortable to stay in. The race is in November, which is a time of year when Savannah doesn't see a lot of tourism, so some of these may be worth looking into since the owners may be more open to negotiating lower prices. Otherwise, just like any other city, there are also a number of hotels around Savannah with varying price ranges. I found the host hotels for this race to be a bit expensive and while some of them are within a few blocks of the start line, the race doesn't start and finish in the same place, so there aren't as many benefits to staying at them as there are at some other races.

Race Expo and Organization

The race expo is at the Savannah International Trade and Convention Center and is a little bit bigger than I would have expected for a race the size of Rock n Roll Savannah (which was a nice surprise - after I got my goodie bag I spent over an hour there checking out the various vendors and displays). The convention center is easy to find but it's a few miles away from downtown Savannah (and also on the other side of the Savannah river). If you have enough time afterwards, you can go for a walk along the river and check out some of the tall ships or have dinner on a riverboat cruise.

The start line of the course is pretty well organized. Runners are separated into corrals that start about a minute apart, and gear check, porta potties, medical tents and snacks are all easy to find both at the start line and along the course itself. My tip for race morning is to make sure to get there early and give yourself more time to find parking than you think you might need, especially if you aren't from Savannah. The streets get blocked off early on race morning and there are a limited number of parking lots and garages near the start line that are easily accessible. Most of the streets that remain open are one way streets too, so between the street closings and limited ability to go in the direction you want to go in, if you aren't familiar with the area, a single wrong turn could end up costing you a half hour delay while you try to find your way back to where you were originally intending on going.

Course

The course starts on Bay Street in front of the Savannah City Hall. It heads northwest down Bay Street, which runs alongside the Savannah River and through downtown Savannah before heading underneath the Talmadge Memorial Bridge and towards Bartow park where it takes a turn and heads south past a number of churches and through some residential areas. This part of the course isn't particularly scenic, but a lot of people come out of their houses to cheer for the runners, which makes it enjoyable.

The course eventually ends up back in downtown Savannah, passing by Pulaski Square, Lafyette Square, Troup Square, and Colonial Park Cemetery. Over the next few miles, runners pass a number of other historic buildings and parks until about mile 11 when the marathon and half marathon courses split. Runners doing the half head straight towards the finish line while the marathon runners do another loop which passes through Daffin Park, Hederman Park and the University of Savannah Campus. Both courses finish in Forsyth Park.

Savannah has a few rolling hills but the overall elevation gain for both courses is only in the double digits so neither one is particularly challenging. There's plenty of crowd support along both courses as well, particularly in the residential areas, and there are also plenty of local bands playing at various spots along the course to help runners stay motivated.

After the race, there's a big party in Forsyth Park where runners can get snacks and beer and listen to music.... although I actually thought it was more fun to walk around the park and check out all of the monuments. The park is beautiful, so no matter what you're interested in, the race organizers couldn't have picked a better spot to end the race.

Bling

I like the Rock n Roll Savannah race medal, although to be honest, it isn't one of my favorites. Being a Rock n Roll race, the medal is heavy and well constructed and definitely nicer than a lot of my other medals, but given Savannah's rich history and the number of historical locations around the city, I thought the design could have been a little bit more creative. The organizers of the Rock n Roll Marathon series tend to change their race medals from year to year though, so there's a good chance that 2013 was just an off year and Savannah is such a fun city to visit and run in that I wouldn't let the medal keep me from doing this race again. Interestingly enough, even though I wasn't a big fan of the medal, the technical shirt that came in my goodie bag is one of my favorite running shirts.

Overall, I thought that this was a great race in an awesome city. I was kinda bummed when it was time to leave Savannah and I ended up wishing that I had planned to spend more time there so I'll definitely have to go back at some point. Tybee Island is known for being a favorite spot for sea turtles to come up on the beach and lay their eggs in the spring so besides going back to do the race again, I may have to plan a spring trip to Savannah at some point as well.