This is probably one of the best "large" races I've ever ran.

There are 4 corrals based on speed. (I was in corral B) and are organized via a plus shape, so none of the corrals are that far from each other. This meant I was able to hang out with some fellow runners near Corral D until the start of the race. Which is great!

This year, it was a balmy 32 degrees with wind and drizzle. I'm a southern runner and was a bit underprepared, it had been in the 50s the day before. The expo was great for this though, not only were there vendors where I could buy a warm hat but several sponsors handed out free gloves. These could be tossed during the race if needed and they would be picked up and given to the local homeless shelter. Super cool idea!

The course is beautiful, and COULD be considered hilly. I found in moderately flat with a few hills. You go over the Route 66 bridge over the river (COLD, but an awesome selfie opportunity) and there is a nasty hill at the end. The course goes through several nice neighborhoods and several business districts. And its a party race! Huge amounts of the town come out to cheer people on. I had jello shots on mile 5 and mile 8, and some beer at several locations too. There was fireball shots also offered along the course, but I'm not sure if that's a good idea while running hard, so I didn't try that one. I might have to next year! I was told by others that the crowd support was low this year because of the cold weather, but I was still impressed.

The jacket I received as a half marathon finisher is NICE. Much nicer than the RnR ones Ive received before, I still wear it very frequently. The medal is very nice too. It actually comes on a little stand, so you can stand it up rather than hang it up if you want.

I enjoyed this half so much, Im most likely going to run the full this year. There are a few parts of the course I missed only running half, including the "world's biggest block party" around mile 15 and the "worlds shortest ultra" (You run an extra .1 down the street and you get a little coin. I think this is hilarious and will definitely do it)