Richmond was my first half marathon, and I don't think I could have picked a better half marathon to be my first. The race was well-organized, water/fuel/portipotti stops were plentiful and more than adequate, and the crowd support was phenomenal. The course had a couple small hills, but nothing significant (total elevation gain of 145), and it ran through a park and a beautiful neighborhood with big trees and lovely old homes (in addition to an industrial area and part of downtown). The easy course, the cheering along the entire course, the music, the excitement and energy, and my awesome running buddy all contributed to a great race for me. I beat my most optimistic goal time by 11 minutes, and really enjoyed myself along the way. The downhill finish was amazing with the crowd cheering, although it was a bit steeper than I (and my knees) would have liked after running almost 13 miles.

The swag was the best I've gotten yet: a unique stained-glass medal, a cozy fleece finisher's blanket, a finisher's hat which I wear regularly (so awesome to get swag you can actually use), and a high quality long-sleeved technical shirt.

Bag check went seamlessly, thanks to Sportbackers and UPS. The post-race food was better than usual with granola bars and trail mix in addition to the usual bananas and bagels. There were also food and beer trucks, and the post-race party on Brown's Island was nice, although the crowds and parking issues make it not easily accessible for those who might want to cheer you on at the finish.

As another reviewer has commented, the Expo can be a pain to get to, but once you're inside, they're very efficient. I tried to go when I thought it would be the least crowded, an hour before closing Thursday night, and that seemed to work well. I wanted to change my starting wave and once I found the right person, it was very easy to change waves.

Since I live in Richmond, I was able to have my husband drop me off relatively near the start of the race and I didn't have to worry about parking. Even so, it would be very tempting to get a hotel room downtown and not have to worry about race-day transportation at all. Finding parking and navigating the city with many of the roads closed isn't easy.

Although there were 3 races starting at different times, the 8K, half marathon, and marathon, Sportsbackers somehow managed to keep it all straight. At several points along the course, the marathon and half marathon share the same route, and i thought it would be confusing, but it wasn't a problem. It was amazing to see the front runners from the marathon (which started after the half) come up behind us and zoom by.

I've already signed up for next year, and I highly recommend the Richmond Half-Marathon for anyone - first-timers to seasoned half-marathoners.

The race itself was fabulous, and I intend to do it again despite the challenges and frustration. The view of the river and bridge at the starting location was gorgeous, and running along the bridge was beautiful. The course was very fast - the first two miles were uphill, but it was a very gradual uphill so wasn't too much of a struggle. The 3rd and 4th miles were downhill, but it wasn't very steep, so it was an easy run but without the jarring of steeper downhills. I found myself running faster than normal in the downhill part, and then was able to keep up the pace when it leveled out in miles 5 and 6. Both my husband and I PRed, despite having to dodge slower people and walkers when the running path narrowed near the end. Both my husband and I had that problem, and he started in a much faster wave than I, so they must not have done a very good job of policing the waves. It's great that they allow walkers, but they should require walkers to start at the back, and stay over to the right of the course so faster people can pass. And they should require proof of time to qualify for the faster waves, so you don't have 12 minute milers getting in the way of 7 minute milers.

The part that wasn't so fabulous was the logistics. We were lucky because we stayed in a hotel that was an easy walk to one of the parking areas where the shuttles picked up. But even early in the day (7:30), there was a long line of cars going into the parking area, and there clearly was not enough parking. If you're planning to drive and you don't allow A LOT of extra time to get to the parking lot, get parked, get through security, and catch the shuttle, I think you could easily miss the race. But for me the shuttle ride and everything else went smoothly until after the race, when I got to bag check and they couldn't find my bag. It was a chilly day, and the emergency blanket wasn't helping much, so without my dry clothes I was in a panic, knowing it would take a while to get back to the hotel. The post-race food was minimal, and there were really long lines at all of the food trucks. There were also very long lines at the porti-pottis and to catch the return shuttle buses. There was no way for me to get warm, and the return shuttle trip was over an hour. By the time I got back to the hotel I was cold, stiff, and miserable. (Eventually they found my bag, but by that time I had already gotten really cold and didn't want to wait in the long porti-potti line to change, so I went straight to the long shuttle bus line.)

This could be a great race if they would limit the number of entrants and work out some of the kinks, and do something about the bag check. The bag check people were clearly overwhelmed, and mine wasn't the only bag that was lost.

The Expo was small and poorly configured, with booths on both sides of a hallway in a stadium, so it was poorly equipped to deal with a crowd. Also it looked like a number of the booths had packed up and left by the time we got there late Saturday evening.

The swag was very good - a very large metal and a nice short-sleeved technical shirt with an attractive design (with the state of Maryland flag on one sleeve and the rest gray and black with a silhouette of the bridge and a runner). The metals are unique in that they're designed to interlock with each other, providing an incentive to do the race again and again.

The Monument Avenue 10K is more than just a race - it's a HUGE event for the entire Richmond community. It seems like everyone in the Richmond area is there either running, walking, or cheering someone on. Even people who don't run or walk often sign up for the 10K, and it gets them out training, and then they become fit and want to run or walk more. (It's kind of a gateway drug for runners in that respect.)

Although I'm not a big fan of crowds, and this is a HUGE race (30,000 people), I love the Monument Avenue 10K. The energy is amazing - the music, the crowds of people cheering, the bizarre and entertaining costumes. And then there's the reason we're running, to raise money for the Massey Cancer Center. Many run in honor of or in memory of loved ones, which gives the race special meaning. Last year they had photos of cancer survivors along the course.

The course is relatively flat and very scenic, running past historic homes and statues, but the best part about it is the enthusiastic cheering section lining the course. It's easy to feed off all that energy and run faster than you realize! It's a great course to PR if the crowds don't hold you back.

Sportsbackers does an excellent job of managing the crowds at the start, dividing people into 20 seeded waves (requiring proof of qualification) and 17 nonseeded waves, and having a starting corral for each wave. The finish area can be a bit of a mob scene, but that's to be expected when you have a race of that size. It can be difficult to find people in the crowd, so it's good to have a cell phone with you or arrange a meeting place beforehand.

Getting around Richmond the morning of the race can be challenging, and you're better off parking some distance from the start and walking.

Last year was the first year they provided a medal, something I hope they'll continue. You get a cotton t-shirt but can get a technical t-shirt if you pay extra. I paid for the technical t-shirt, which is a Brooks shirt, so very good quality.