I did the Coho Run 14k in 2013 prior to my first half marathon. You can't beat this race for beautiful scenery and we had great weather, although a bit overcast at first. September is usually a great month here and this day was no exception!

The race starts at Kits Beach in Vancouver and ends at Ambleside Park in West Vancouver. The route runs along the sea wall, over the Burrard St Bridge, around Stanley Park, and over the Lions Gate Bridge.

The morning of the race, I drove to the finish line with my fiancé and a friend who were running it as well. We parked there and took the race shuttle to the start line. I think it cost $5/person.

After a blessing from the Squamish First Nation, we took off down the famous Vancouver sea wall. The atmosphere was great and there were lots of other people along the route and in Stanley park running, biking, or going for a walk that cheered us on.

There is a pretty steep trail section from the sea wall up to the Lions Gate Bridge and then the bridge itself is a gradual incline. Once over the peak of the bridge, it's all downhill from there!

There are no medals but there was a pancake breakfast at the finish line!

The only negative about the race (aside from no medals - but I knew that when I signed up!) was the t-shirts. I was disappointed by the fit and quality of them. I found that they were strangely short and wide.

Read my full race recap here: http://briehemingway.com/blog/2013/09/race-recap-coho-run-14k-2013/

I ran the Surrey International Music Marathon half distance as my first half marathon. This race seemed like a no brainer since it was great timing and also in my city! Plus I had seen the medals, and they were HUGE! ... at least for Canada. I feel like a lot of races in the states have giant medals, not so much here from my experience.

It's right on a transit line in Surrey and starts at a mall so there is tons of parking. The mall was open and runners were able to stay warm inside before the race and use the washrooms. The weather was drizzly but not too cold.

I with my fiancé, who was fairly new to the half distance - he had only done one before.

This part of Surrey is not the most scenic but the route made good use of Green Timbers Urban Park. There were music stations along the way which is always awesome! There was a full marathon distance offered as well which was two laps of the half course. They started a little bit before us but we saw a few of them along the course.

The finish chute was awesome with lots of people around cheering everyone on. There was food and massages available but I didn't stick around too long. I was so excited to have finished my first half but also very exhausted and wet!

This was the second year for this event and both years seemed to have got really great reviews! Unfortunately, the City decided not to hold it in 2014 due to traffic issues.

HOWEVER, Wet Coast Events has brought it back from the dead (ha!) and is organizing a race called the Ghost of Surrey Marathon (http://wetcoastevents.com/races/ghost-of-surrey-marathon/). It is the same route but only has one aid station and no traffic closures ... and much cheaper registration!

Read my full race recap here: http://briehemingway.com/blog/2013/10/my-first-half-marathon/