Having just completed the Death Valley 10K, and with several friends who are BibRavers, I was surprised not to see any of them on our race, so I am submitting a review in hopes of helping others thinking about doing it.

So out of our group of 5, 3 of us ran the 10K and the other two were more ambitious in running the Half-Marathon so this review is a combination of both of those runs.

The first 1.5 miles are ran downhill (losing ~ 25 feet in elevation) on a bike path until you reach Mustard Canyon Dr, then you are directed to run on the west side (at all times) of Hwy 190 as the road is OPEN to vehicle traffic on both sides not much farther down. Up until that point, there is a pilot car guiding traffic from the start / finish to just past the first aid station.

With the race only having 500-600 runners and 10-15 minute staggered starts for the Marathon, Half-Marathon, and 10K, there is plenty of room for everybody on the road and on the bike path. The NPS is very strict in enforcing that all runners stay to the west side of the road at all times and also NO strollers or earbuds / headphones are allowed. Although I did see a female cross the finish line wearing earbuds, so no word on whether she was disqualified or not.

The course is rolling hills with multiple turns, at least for the 10K and Half-Marathon and the only complaint I heard from Half-Marathon runners was the lack of porta potties at the aid stations. Otherwise the stations were well portioned with a variety of liquids (water and gatorade), fruits, nuts, candy, power chews, and cliff bars. The course is USATF-Certifed Boston Qualifier for both the Marathon and Half-Marathon and was attended by runners from Canada, Mexico, Australia, Papua New Guinea, Italy, France, and Great Brittain!

Scenery is varied, w/ multi-colored rock formations, borax formations, salt flats, some desert bushes, gravel, and plenty of sunlight.

There is NO expo!! When you check into the Furnace Creek Lodge, tell them you are running the race and they provide you with some additional information about the start. The post-race party is held at 5:00 at one of the local restaurants (Corkscrew Saloon) where the Enviro Sports founder and race organizer Dave Horning presents the top 3 finishers in each category. Marathon and Half-Marathon runners receive a finisher medal and all runners receive a t-shirt (cotton) at the end. Winners receive their medals and ribbons not at the awards ceremony but rather in the mail several weeks later, personalized.

Temperature at the start was probably 45-50 F with PLENTY of sunshine and by mid-afternoon a nice balmly 68-70. Although it always felt warmer to me. If you start with multiple layers, they allow you to drop them at aid stations and you can pick them back up at the finish line or at the post-race party.

Registration is very easy but limited, and I was able to switch from the registered Half-Marathon to 10K on the morning of the race.

Travel to Furnace Creek is best achieved by flying into Las Vegas and driving approximately 2 - 2.5 hours. There is a private airport on site but does not offer any commercial services.

The Furnace Creek Resort is a great location for the race as it has plenty of cabins available for lodging, a gas station to fill up when leaving, a General Store for provisions, 3 restaurants to load up the night before and recover the night after, as well as a 85 degree pool to soothe your aches and pains.

Overall, our group really enjoyed the race, the location, and the organization and would gladly recommend anybody trying it for themselves.