Finally, the Seahawks Run At The Landing fit into the race calendar! This one has been on our radar for a while but timing has never worked out for us, until today! This race is very much a fun event and not one that I took too seriously. The 12K distance is, of course, based on the 12s...the official designation of us crazy die-hard Seahawks fans.

Given the non-standard type distance and the obvious fun-football themed spirit of this race, I wasn't really sure how to pace. I did not set any kind of time goals and decided to fit it in as my designated tempo run for the week.

I was unsure of the logistics in terms of parking and the layout of the area having never visited The Landing which is a sort of open-roof shopping/dining mall area with a few big box stores surrounded by the Boeing-Renton facility. Race communication, however, was excellent and they provided a couple of emails in the week leading up to the race that all the information that I needed in terms of parking, start-times, packet pick-up etc.

Packet pick up is held the day before the race at Dick's Sporting Goods but same day is available. We live quite a way from The Landing so went with day of race pick up. There was a small race day type expo with a few stalls but nothing much of note. This race has over 5,000 runners between the 12K and the 5K so we elected to arrive early...very early to avoid any congestion issues. I parked in the Target parking lot which worked out great, although getting there at 7am, 2 hours before race start we could have parked pretty much anywhere. The Starbucks inside Target was open so we hung out there doing the normal pre-race activities idling over coffee.

The race itself started promptly at 9am for the 12K with the 5K starting 20 minutes later. We were sent off by Blitz (the Seahawks mascot) and Kevin Pierre Louis - a linebacker for the 'Hawks to the tune of Bittersweet Symphony...the theme played when the Seahawks take the field - it's a Chariots of Fire moment if you follow the 'Hawks :) Some members of the Seagals cheerleaders were also on hand along with the Blue Thunder drum line.

Note - corral seeding is on the honor system so and the starting chute is quite narrow. I placed myself just behind the very lead group which was loosely designated as 6:00-7:00 minute pace as I was planning to run around 8:30'ish. There are a lot of walkers in this race and strollers and dogs are permitted so if you want to avoid some early bottle necks, you should self-seed a little faster than you might anticipate running.

The 12K course is beautiful running the rolling hills of Lake Washington Boulevard along the east shore of the lake to the Seahawks VMAC training facility. A circuit around the impressive building alongside the practice fields marked the turning point with the course heading directly back to The Landing. Keep in mind this course is not flat. There is one particularly tough hill around mile 6 (or 10K) but, overall it is certainly not an overly challenging course.

Aid stations were fine, though a little sparse...about every 2 miles. This race is obviously all about the 'Hawks and almost every runner has some kind of Seahawks shirt/hat/skirt/leggins/socks/face paint/helmet/wig/mask etc. Support between runners is also great with everyone cheering each other one...except for the guy wearing the Packers shirt :)

12K is 7.6 miles. For some reason I thought I would be running over 8 miles today so was pleasantly surprised as we left Lake Washington to see The Landing and the finish close by. Water, bagels, bananas, and organges were plentiful at the finish. The event medal was also very nice (same for both distances) as was this year's shirt which is a long sleeve technical hoodie. After hanging out in the parking lot and chatting with another runner, my wife and I both started to feel the chill so headed back to the car to make our way home.

Summary:

- Super fun event centered on the 12s, Seahawks, and Community with proceeds benefiting A Better Seattle.
- Very nice shirt and medal (and bib).
- Plenty of parking (if you don't leave it to the last minute).
- Places to hang out pre-race.
- Reasonable lines for portables...we waited <5 minutes.
- Free race photos!
- Plenty of finish line food and water.

Could be better:

- 1 more aid station.
- A couple more players or coaches...would be nice if they wereout cheering us on a Sunday!
- Expo, but I'm getting a bit picky here...there were a few kiosks set up, we just didn't really check them out.
- Starting corrals a bit narrow.

If you're a runner, you live reasonably close, and you're a Seahawks fan, you need to do this race. Not necessarily every year, but at least once. Even if you are not a fan it is still worth coming out for a fun race experience that I would definitely recommend.