Originally I had signed up to run the half marathon but due to an injury was not able to train much. A few days before the race my friend noticed there was a relay option. Even though the website said you could not switch from the half to the relay, I emailed and was told it wouldn't be a problem. When we got to the expo everyone was super nice and helpful and we were able to switch without any issues. They even let us switch corals for the start.
The expo was a little small for an RNR race. If you need to buy some discounted running gear, the typical booths were there. Otherwise, there wasn't much in the way of samples - just some vitamins and sport beans.
The course was fantastic. Lots of shade and plenty of people with hoses and ice sponges once the sun was up. The scenery was pretty residential for the second half and I heard the first half wasn't very exciting either. The only problem I had was that some of the roads were very canted which can irritate my hips if I'm not careful.
Everything was well marked and my partner and I had no problems finding the relay chutes and meeting up with each other. It was nice to be able to cross the finish line together.
The post-race goodies were standard and even though we had the wristbands for the beer tent we decided to pass because the lines were too long.
My biggest issue with this race is that if you're local it is not great for spectators. We decided to stay in a hotel near the start to avoid an early wakeup and traffic. My husband was planning to come and cheer and take pictures but after checking out road closures and the parking situation, we decided it just wasn't worth it. If you weren't a runner there wasn't much in the way of parking and by the time he found a place and walked to a good spot, he might as well have run the race himself. There were shuttle options but those were $20 per person and only ran before and after the race.
We stayed at the Riverfront Marriott which I would highly recommend. They were very helpful, gave us an extra parking pass, and a 4pm checkout.
Overall a great experience and definitely a race I would do again.