Ennis, Montana is a city of about 800 people -- fly fishing capital of the northwest -- out in the middle of nowhere.
1. expo/packet pickup -- there is no expo --- packet pickup at a bar in town pretty easy and race day pickup
2. The City -- Hotels -- most all hotels are for fishermen and cater to that clientele -- as far as runners -- there is NO late check out --- the resturatants -- mostly just bars with food -- some are friendly, some are not so friendly --- one little diner we went to was very unfriendly and the waitress yelled at customers (apparently she had had a bad day)
3. Starting line --- parking at the pickup point is easy -- bus ride to the starting line is a little scarey and takes about 1 hour --- goes up the mountain - a bad dirt road --- oh and thats the road we ran down
4. course --- starts high on the mountain about 7500 ft elevation and goes up to about 8600 ft --- then runs about 7500ft up and down for 10 miles then drops about 1000 ft with the last 2 miles being flat --- sceney was great -- air was very thin and hard for me to breath ( I live at 600ft) -- water stations were water jugs on tables about every 2-3 miles ---
5. finish line -- when we got to the finish line there as no one there --- if not for a really great Volunteer following us and picking up the water tables we would have been 13.1 miles from town --- our half would have been a full --- he took us into town and the RD(he is a really nice guy) accepted our time from our runkeeper as our official time (thank you) -- the RD talked with the HM finish line people and apparently thought all the HM'ers had finished ---
Well we did it!!! our first HM at altitude --- really rough and mostly a walk -- signs along the course -- BE BEAR AWARE!! -- they did see a bear the day before on the Madison marathon course
overall if you want a mountain altitude run with great scenery on better than a trail but still a bad dirt road run THIS would be a good one to do --- being a low lander -- I probably wont go back but there were alot of runners from the area that really liked this one ---
I give high fives to the RD and his really great Volunteer that gave us a ride to town --- I found out He has no help putting on these races and does it for the love of the run -- very few sponsors and little money ---
As advertised === THIS AINT NO PANSY ASS CITY RUN

Even though there are some bad points in my review -- I liked this race and recommend you run it at least once

1. packet pickup/Expo -- there was no expo -- packet pickup was at a hotel outside of Boise, ID --- by the way if you fly into boise for this race you have to rent a car or use uber to get around -- nothing is close to hotels --- pickup was easy and you pay extra for t-shirts -- which are not all that great -- we did not buy one.
2. race day -- race course is not far from downtown but you have to drive or uber --- parking is easy / they bus you to the top of the mountain to start the race -- If the buses show up --- this year there was a problem and no buses showed up -- the runners and other locals of boise (scraficed their run -- with compensation) with cars hauled all us out of towners up the the mountain to the start. they really stepped up!! otherwise the race would have been cancelled and I would have flown to Boise, ID for nothing --- Thank you runners of Boise, ID --
2. starting line -- top of the mountain --- had a little delay in the start due to the bus problem but only about 30 minutes
3. Course --- steep downhill -- on paved road -- scenery 2nd to none -- water stations about every 2-3 miles
open to traffic - they had a pilot car escorting cars up and down the mountain. There was a couple of steep uphill sections one short and one about 1/2 mile long --- otherwise ALL downhill

overall this was a great race --- though running the steep downhill did hurt my shins/knees

this is MM Independance series race for Maryland -- It is run at the Belle Hill Horse Race Track at Elkton, MD ---
1. pre-race/packet pickup -- as with all MM races -- you can pickup packet on raceday before the race if this is your first race -- if you are running the series you use the same number for the entire series
2. starting line --- there are 2 starts --- optional early at 5am for half/full marathon, and 50K -- or you can start at 6am -- with everyone else 5K/10K and everyone else that did not start at 5am usually several --
3. course -- a looped course -- little bit run on asphalt road and most on a poorly maintained carriage road -- alot of ruts/grass/rocks/dirt --- I had a problem with this course due to recent ankle and knee injury-- there are some uphills on this course -- as with all MM races -- there is only one water station -- it is great -- lots of food and water / coffee/soda/gatorade/chocolate milk you pass this water station with each lap ---
this course has great bathrooms -- no porta potties --
the mainly marathons people put on a great race ---
I personally did not like this course -- mostly due to fact that I was worried that I might re-injure my ankle/knee

this is a mainly marathon race in the Independance series -- Delaware --
this race takes place in the Lum's Pond State park in Bear, Delaware. A very beautiful park. there is plenty of parking.
1. pre-race/packet pickup --- the morning of the race -- there is a t-shirt for the first race, not each race in the series -- there are other series shirts and other merchandise you can buy -- a very mini expo
2. start -- there is an early 5am and regular 6am start -- the early start is for the half/full marathon and 50K -- although there is no time limit except for the 50K
3. course -- this is a looped course -- goes across a grass field, thru a wooded area on a dirt trail, down a closed asphalt road and back -- fairly flat -- there is only one water station but it is a doosy -- lots of food (candy, sandwiches, pancakes, french toast, pickles, olives, fruit, coffee) and water/coke/gatoraid/chocolate milk and they keep your water bottle full or a cup with your name on it at the table ready for you at the table

this is a good run and these people put on a great race --- they really know how to do it

MM race in Pennslyvania -- is in Birdsboro, PA - at the homestead park of Daniel Boone ----this is a beautiful area --
1. prerace/packet pickup -- raceday
2. start - 5am early start if you want == if not start at 6am
3 course -- looped course -- starts on a short stretch of asphalt road and then turns to dirt/gravel paths with a few uphills - there is only one water station but it is full of everything you need -- food/water/soda/gatorade/ -- keep you going -- I feel this was a tough couse --

as always the MM people know how to put on a race and do an excellent job --