Let me start by saying this was the first half marathon I've ever completed outside a city landscape. I love large races, I've done Pittsburgh, Columbus, Baltimore, and Toledo. I'm trying to run a half in every state and I chose this as my KY race because of the stellar reviews on Bibrave and the race's "America's prettiest half marathon" tagline. I came into this high expectations of a mid-sized race with incredible course scenery and rolling hills. While the hills were indeed rolling, the course left much to be desired...

Disappointments:
- Having experienced only city-half's, I was shocked and disappointed by how few spectators there were... and by few I mean like maybe 20 people total all race, with the exception of the start and finish. I couldn't believe that I only saw a couple groups of spectators, and many weren't even cheering on the runners continuously. Assuming they were only waiting for the runner(s) they knew to cheer? Pro Tip: if you're cheering- cheer on all the runners, it helps, we love it. It makes a difference.

- Another disappointment was the scenery. I saw some beautiful farms and houses, don't get me wrong, but I only saw a handful of horses, I was expecting more to be out and about on the farms. Maybe that's my own fault for having high expectations. I'm surprised the farmers weren't out to cheer on the runners or out bringing the horses for people to see. It coincides with the overall lack of people spectating. I will say it was supposed to rain all day with strong winds, so I did expect less people to show, but the rain and wind held off until about an hour into the race, and even then it was only a drizzle. Regardless, if you're looking for a race with a large crowd support, look elsewhere.

- I was a little disappointed with the expo as well. Not too many vendors, and the main area with all the race merchandise and packet pickup was in the small, congested space. It was tough to navigate.

The Good:
- Great race management and contact the entire race and leading up to the event. They're active on social media as well.
- FREE RACE PICS!!! Huge plus, as race pictures are usually really expensive.
- There is a TON of parking and you can get there pretty close to the start and still make, extremely accessible.
- The medal is one of the prettiest and most-detailed medal I've ever seen. It really is a thing of beauty
- The race shirt options- you can have a gender-specific short or long sleeve tech tee, or pay to have an upgraded jacket. I got the short sleeve and it's incredibly soft, but it runs big and baggy unfortunately so it doesn't fit. Sad it wasn't athletic fit.

Post-race was pretty standard with food options, beer, and a band playing. NO protein option, like a bar, which was disappointing. But again, super easy to access if someone is coming at after the race starts.

As far as the hills, they aren't THAT bad, at least not if you come from a hilly location. I'm from Pittsburgh so I didn't think they were anything crazy, I even PR'd. If you have the time Friday or beforehand, go drive the course, it was a HUGE benefit. I got to see where the larger hills and drops where in-person and was able to note when to reserve some energy. If I recall correctly, after mile 6 it gets pretty choppy for about 3 miles.

Overall, if you're from the area or near by I'd run it the race, it's a nice small to mid-sized race that's managed well and I would definitely recommend it as a local race. But I wouldn't recommend people traveling far for it, I.E. making a trip all the way from Pittsburgh just for this race. There's plenty of other options in KY, like the Urban Bourbon Half Marathon. Unless of course you like the smaller races where there's less congestion and you can relax and enjoy a calm run. Then I would completely recommend it. All depends on what you expect and are looking for. Looking back I think I just expected too much out of this race and compared it to city races, which this is not.