I was honored to be a part of the first ShamRox in the Columbia-area. Ultramax, Columbia's local running shop, hosts the race. I cannot say enough good things about the company and the race coordinators specifically. A large portion (miles 2-9) take place on the scenic Katy Trail along the Missouri River. We have been having some pretty bad weather (6 inches of snow a week before the race) but luckily temperatures raised significantly for race day. I was initially concerned about the condition of the trail but was pleasantly surprised when there was almost no mud. There was actually some ice left but it was easy to get through. The course has a steep decline for the first 1.25 miles and then the elevation stays flat the entire time you are on the trail. The final quarter mile of the race, you climb a STEEP trail. This was the only part of the trail that was muddy. Even seasoned runners weren't able to run up the entire incline.

The whole atmosphere of the race was a blast. All finishers got a shirt and pint glass. The overall and division finishers got QUALITY medals. I placed first in my age group and was really shocked by how great the medals were- definitely a VERY high quality compared to previous races I have been a part of. The run finishes at the local winery which offered great food and drinks (plus free beer for finishers), a spectacular view of the Missouri River, and live entertainment.

The only negative thing I have to say about the race is related to the parking conditions. With the snow melt, the race coordinators had to make a last minute decision to park cars off-site (about a quarter of a mile or so away from the start line). This meant a bus had to shuttle runners in. This resulted in a 10 minute start delay (as many runners were unaware of the change and did not allow enough time to be shuttled). Further, we were told the bus would run all day, but when we went to leave around 11:30am (immediately after awards), it was nowhere to be seen. This resulted in people having to walk back to their cars.

I highly recommend this race and will definitely be participating again.