I totally loved the United NYC Half Marathon put on by the New York Road Runners. The event management for this race was probably the best I have seen for a run. Everything was so well organized from pre-race emails, bib pick up, pre-race logistics, race management and post-race logistics. Volunteers and staff where very helpful and friendly.

I will try to break this review down into different segments:

Race Registration:
You have to be selected for this run through the lottery. Ironically enough, all the men who I knew who entered the lottery got in but several of the women I know did not. Not sure if this was a coincidence or not. It is important to make sure that your credit card is up to date because if you are selected, your credit card gets dinged that moment. If it is not up to date, then you are out of luck.

The race fees were a little high ($130) but I was ok with the cost. The one thing I did not like was that I kept getting emails about paying for their Half Marathon Training program. I felt that was a little tacky and just way to make some extra money.

Expo:
The expo was extremely small. I was pretty much in and out in a matter of 20 minutes. I would have thought the Expo would be a little bigger considering there was 20K runners in the event. I was ok with a small expo because I was in a rush. They had some pretty cool merchandise which I ended up paying for. I thought the prices on the merchandise was pretty reasonable.

I did like the use of 'Flight Attendant' themes at the expo. It was a nice touch.

Swag:
Shirt was ok but nothing too great. The finishers medal was pretty nice but basic. Not much else you got.

Race Morning:
Everything was very efficient from getting through security and to the start line. I took a cab up to the start area which had a taxi drop off area. You had to walk a fair amount but nothing too bad. They would only allow runners past the security check in area and had to show your race number to get in. Once through security, it was easy for bag drop off and to get to your correct corrals. Depending on the wave you started in, there was different areas for you to go. It actually made things pretty efficient and you really could not tell there was 20K in the race. There seemed to be plenty of port of potties.

The one negative that I had like many big races was that it was up to each person to go to the correct 'corral'. As usual, it was a little annoying to see people clearly in the wrong corral. Part of the reason to start in the correct corral is a safety issue. When you are assigned to corral 30, you should not be in corral 6.

Course:
What more can you say about a course that runs the first 6 miles through Central Park and then down 7th Avenue to Times Square. It was a pretty amazing experience and something everyone who runs should experience. The last 5 miles are not the most exciting along the West Side Highway with the Hudson River on your left. You get to see some additional cool things such as the Intrepid Air Carrier and you run towards the Freedom Tower. You feel like you are reeling in the Freedom Tower the entire way down the road. The last 1.5 miles has you going through a tunnel before the finish in Battery Park.

Aid Stations:
Plenty of well stocked aid stations of water and gatorade. However, you had to get your water/gatorade on your own most of the time. They did have a Gel Station around mile 7.5.

Finishing Area:
The finishing area was very efficient. You quickly receive your finishers medal and heat sheet. Since it was pretty chilly, it was nice to get quickly. As you make your way out, they also have a photo area. I was not a huge fan that the people taking the photos would only do official photos so you had to get someone to do a photo for yourself if you wanted one. You also got 'fuel' bag that had some gatorade, apple and pretzels in it. It was not that great but I did like the bag. Bag pick up was very efficient.

Once out of the finishers area, you had to walk a bit to get a cab back to your hotel or other location.

Medal:
I thought the medal was simple but cool. I really liked it.

Overall Major Highlights:
- Fast Course and ran a PR by a ton. However, be careful of the hills in Central Park. They are sneaky.
- Live finishers cam on ESPN 3. My family got to see me finish which was pretty cool.
- Live Tracking App is awesome. Very cool and shows where you are at all times.
- Well stocked aid stations
- Central Park and Times Square (these two items alone make it worth it)
- Nice finishers medal
- Very helpful staff, volunteers and police
- Lots of runners but never felt over crowded

Negatives:
- Charging for training plans
- Event shirt was a little weak (not one of my favorites)
- Cost of Photos!
- Not checking to ensure people in the correct corrals
- Too many runners not in the correct corrals who caused some issues right in the first few miles (this is an issue at any large race though)
- Some runners not understanding basic running etiquette

Final Conclusion:
I absolutely loved this race and would do it again in a New York second. The Philly Half Marathon is still my favorite race but this is a very close second. I really encourage anyone get an awesome New York running experience to look at this race.