I ran the San Francisco 2nd Half half marathon. I had one major dislike (read below) but I still enjoyed the race and would likely do it again, but maybe give the 1st Half a try since you get to run across and back over the Golden Gate Bridge!
Likes
• They have five different race options which is pretty cool! They have an ultra, full marathon, two different half marathons, and a 5k.
• I love the race shirts. They’re long sleeve and have gender specific sizes. The shirts are the same design for each of the races but the shirts are different colors. Mine was a pretty orange-ish coral color.
• They offer a registration discount and preferred corral assignments to a limited number of runners who meet certain qualifying times in their respective races.
• The race expo was roomy and didn’t feel overly crowded (Disclaimer: I went on the first day, a Friday, around 3:30pm). There was also a food truck event called “Off the Grid” going on at the same location so it was nice to grab some food right after the race expo.
• The start corral area was well organized and there tons of porta potties! The pre-race area was very basic – gear check, porta potties and water – thus not crowded or overwhelming.
• The course was great – the first six miles were in Golden Gate Park (GGP). The finish was with the marathon runners so there was a large crowd cheering you on. But let’s be honest – any race on the west coast is likely to be pretty spectacular!
• The post-race area was very spacious. They had a major chunk of the road blocked off which allowed everyone to spread out. They had the usual giveaways at the finish line – drinks, fruit and protein bars.
• Race pictures are free to download! How nice! This is an incredibly rare race feature and a super cool one!!!
Dislikes
• Major dislike: The 2nd Half starts at the midpoint of the full marathon and runs the same course. The full marathon had a wave start starting at 5:30am and the 2nd Half started at 8:15am. My half pace was much faster than the full marathon people I was merging with. Some parts of the path in GGP were so narrow it was difficult to safely pass people.
• The aid stations seemed a bit disorganized in some spots. Some stations had tons of volunteers and others were a little light on assistance. I missed one aid station because there weren’t enough people passing out fluids (and I’m not willing to waste time waiting for fluids).