Easily one of my favorite RnR races. St Louis, if you have never been, is a really great little city. Downtown is very walkable, there's great food, and the people are friendly. When there is a race in town, it seems like the entire city backs it. As a result, some of the best spectators EVER can be found in St Louis, year after year.

I like that I can walk to the start/finish from my hotel. The course is not flat by any means, and the beginning part of it (after passing Busch Stadium) goes through a very questionable neighborhood. But then you smell the (Pappy's) BBQ and enter the university area, where college kids in their pajamas are out with signs and noisemakers for you.

The rest of the course is pretty great. Hilly, but great. You get to go through some neighborhoods with really pretty houses, and the finish is (hilly) right in downtown St Louis. The medal and the shirt are always great, and the finish area is very large and easy to get around.

Overall, this is a must-do for me, and I can't wait to see what's in store for 2014!