This was my first race as a BibRave Pro and what an adventure!

Expo: The expo was kind of odd. It was in the Brewing District which had a ton of great places to eat, but hardly any parking. It was much smaller than I expected without a lot going on. I had a VIP pass so my pickup was upstairs.

Shirts/SWAG- They let us try on our shirt and jacket, which was great because they ran very small! I had to size up in both. The half zip jacket made the VIP package worth it. I appreciated that the shirt was a fitted t-shirt rather than a tech shirt. I dislike tech shirts.

Parking/Acess- As part of my BibRave Pro VIP I stayed at the Sheraton, which was the official hotel of the half! The start/finish was right outside our door!

Despite looming thunderstorms the race started on time. I hit up the pre race VIP tent, which had a very nice spread. I passed on the food and drinks and headed straight to the porta potties.

Course- I loved this course. It was fast and flat. Not a whole lot to look at, but it was raining pretty good.

Things got tricky around mile 7. A huge bolt of lightening shot in front of us on the course. We were told that the race would be halted and delayed for 15 minutes in the event of lighting but no one called us off the course.

It lightninged on and off for the next two miles. We crested a hill and the next thing I knew I was on the quarter marathon course not the half course. I thought I'd missed a turn and went to go back. A girl beside then said that we were being diverted because the race was cancelled. No official announcement was made by race security, people at aide stations or water stations. It was very unorganized and confusing.

I wound up completing 10.3 miles and received a finisher metal. The finishers were then shuffled in between two tall brick buildings to wait out the storm.

After Party- I made my way to the VIP after party just in time to grab a grilled cheese before sirens started blaring. They canceled the whole after party and told everyone to seek shelter.

There were some issues with checked bags as they were relocated to local running stores. This caused confusion and left some stranded. I was staying at the hotel so it was just a short walk for me.

I've never ran a race like this before. I think they could have come up with a clearer plan about what to do if the race was canceled. The weather didn't take us by surprise. We knew it was coming.

All and all I would do the race again. I liked the course and the after party looked like it would have been fun.