Latest reviews by Courtney

(2016)
"Holy Rain, Bridges, & H U M I D I T Y Batman. "
Overall
T-Shirts/SWAG
Aid Stations
Course Scenery
Expo Quality
Elevation Difficulty
Parking/Access
Race Management

This was my first year running the Pittsburgh Half Marathon & my first time running a "big" race. With close to 30,000 Marathon/Relay/Half participants it was quite large for me. There were a few kinks along the way for me that I associate mostly with it being such a large race and me not being used to that, but would 100% do this race again knowing what I know now. This year it rained for about the first hour (thirty mins of running for me and thirty waiting to start), and then was unbelievably HUMID for the rest and we were begging for it to rain again.

Swag: Long sleeve, female cut, tech shirt that ISN'T sized for a Barbie doll: WIN. There is nothing more frustrating than getting a woman's shirt and having to order three sizes up to get it on. Thanks to Under Armour for having great sizing. There were also lots of coupons in the bag and a virtual goodie bag.

Aid Stations: The frequency was PERFECT. I always carry water with me, just in case, but I believe I only used mine once because the stations were so frequent. Only downside, by the time I reached the nutrition station for the half there was nothing left. I don't use this normally since I carry my own, but I imagine there were a couple thousand people behind me that were disappointed.

Course Scenery: You get to run through many of Pittsburgh's neighborhoods and over 5, I think, bridges during the half, which was amazing and beautiful. Better part? All the people from those neighborhoods come out and line the streets and cheer you on. I've never seen so much crowd support at a race and I LOVE it.

Expo: Due to my flight, I was unable to attend the expo, but I heard amazing things. Downside, I didn't learn that there was no race day packet up until the last minute. I'm VERY confident that this policy wasn't posted until well after I registered. I had to find someone to pick up my bib for me or it would have cost me $20 AND I wouldn't have gotten my shirt. This was probably the most frustrating things for me.

Elevation: It's hilly. Aside from Mile 11.5, it's mostly rolling, long hills. Mile 11.5 was a doozie; but doable.

Parking: The race starts in Downtown and parking is ample, but expensive. It takes some research to get around the road blocks and park near the start/finish area. I ended up paying $20, but I was parked > .1 miles from my corral start area.

Bonuses: This year, MilestonePod sponsored the race and they gave away many pods- I got one- and now it's my favorite running accessory. MilestonePod did challenges to help with training and chose winners as well; I won the challenge one week and came away with a $100 DICKS gift card. They also did applications for state reps for the race, I applied, didn't get chosen, but got mailed a pretty cool jacket as a consolation prize.

Overall: Great race! #GameOnPGH

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(2016)
"Cowz, Biscuitz, and Hillz"
Overall
T-Shirts/SWAG
Aid Stations
Course Scenery
Expo Quality
Elevation Difficulty
Parking/Access
Race Management

This was was second time running the CFA Half. In 2014, this was my first half marathon. The race benefits Habitat for Humanity in Athens, GA and is helping Habitat build their 86th house. The hopes of the race is to get large enough that each year they can fully fund building a new house.

T-shirts/SWAG: Main reason for 4 stars, yellow shirts! YIKES. Apparently there had been complaints about the continued "UGA" colors of shirts, red/gray, so they switched to yellow. Personally, I'm not a fan of yellow, but especially not NEON yellow. It'll come in handy for when I run at dark:30 and need reflective clothing! Runners were able to catch parachuting cows at mile 6, drink some frosted lemonade at mile 9, eat some nuggets at mile 10, and get a chicken biscuit at the finish as well.

Aid Stations: This is the only thing that I felt did not improve from 2014. There were plenty of aid stations and plenty of liquids, but I wish there had been some type of nutrition outside of GU gels. There were chicken nuggets at mile 10- but most people didn't take these. The frequency of the aid stations was perfect! Just about every mile and half.

Course Scenery: This course takes runners all through the highlights of Athens. In 2015 runners went through Sanford Stadium, in 2014 and 2016 runners ran around it instead, which I thought was better. There was also a "mile" contest where different groups sponsored a mile and encouraged runners. It was amazing. Mile 2, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, and 11 had groups lined up with signs, confetti, costumes, music, cheerleaders, etc. and it was fabulous. At the end of the race, runners got to vote on the best mile. Mile 5 and 6 were not voted on as they were the UGA cheerleaders & the Chick-fil-A race team. This concept made the race FLY by. Honestly, mile 4 was the worst mile of the race for me, just missing out on the extra people and encouragement.

Expo: It's not a large expo, but there are two running stores that bring plenty of sale and clearance items (SHOES!) and that is all I need at an expo.

Elevation: It's Athens. If you haven't run in Athens, it's hilly. There's no way around it. But the race crew did a great job at improving the course to lessen the severity of the hills and make them more manageable. Most of the hills were in the first 7 miles, which made it a lot better for me. But don't go into this race expecting it to be flat, or easy, because it isn't.

Parking: The race starts at the Classic Center where there is a parking deck. Parking is not included, but there is also free parking nearby if you don't mind walking an extra quarter mile.

Race Management: Best improvement from 2014? Keeping stuff going for those 2:30+ finishers. When I finished in 2014, I came in at 2:47 and felt like everyone was gone and nothing was happening. This year I hung around while some friends finished at 3:00+ and it was nice for the party and celebration to still be going, for there still to be food and drinks, etc.

Note: I've also volunteered for Packet Pick Up every year and it is a great volunteering experience! Highly Recommend!

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(2016)
"All the humidity, none of the race support or medical."
Overall
T-Shirts/SWAG
Aid Stations
Course Scenery
Expo Quality
Elevation Difficulty
Parking/Access
Race Management

Let me start by saying, I had very high hopes for this race from all the wonderful reviews I heard from 2015. I signed up because 5 ladies from my running group were running it & I had a free place to stay next to the start line (plus a beach weekend!) Leading up to the race it looked highly likely the race would be stormed out- and the race directors did an excellent job of keeping us well informed about the weather. THANKFULLY the storms rolled out at 6:45AM and the race started at 7:30 with 99.9% humidity and not a drop of rain or lightening in sight.

The Swag: You don't get a shirt, which is fine with me, I don't need another shirt. Runner instead receive a tote bag, which is nice, but the duffel bag from 2015 is much nicer so it was kind of disappointing this year. The medal is great! Excellent quality and it's got a spinner. Downside, the race description made it seem like runner received something after crossing the finish line, but that wasn't the case.

Aid Stations: Probably the worst I've ever seen- with the exception of the one time I ran a 5K and 8K and they accidentally set up the water stop for the 8K course first and the 5Kers didn't have any water. The aid stations were not where they said they would be on the course map and therefore were not nearly as frequent, and given the incredible out and back and turning around of this course, they could have been laid out infinitely better to provide more frequent access to them. There was one nutrition station, at mile 7ish, and all they had was chocolate Gu. Nothing else, not even water at that stop. I carry nutrition with me, but I felt really bad for the large number of people that can't handle the Gu consistency. Before the race I couldn't find anywhere to get water, super frustrating as well. With the humidity and temps it was quite a struggle to make it stop to stop. I was so dehydrated that drinking anything made me feel sick and I had to decide to just press on through the last 4 miles.

The course is beautiful, all through historic Savannah and the Squares/Parks. It is VERY outback and turns a lot. Makes it hard to get and maintain a pace for me. I feel like they could make it a little less of a contorted course, but that's just my preference.

The expo was nice, very small, and very "BUY NEW BALANCE" focused. Fleet Feet, a premier race sponsor, wasn't even allowed at the expo, which was kind of disappointing considering I wanted a new pair of non New Balance shoes!

The Course elevation is practically zero gain/loss. But at the same time, this course didn't hurt my legs/feet like Charleston did (which was super flat). So there might have been some mild elevation change that I didn't notice, but kept my feet from aching like they have in the past.

I stayed next to the start/finish so we didn't have an issue parking. Metered spots are free on the weekend in Savannah, so parking shouldn't cost you anything, just might take you a minute to find it.

Race Management- I'm giving them a 3 star because they did amazing from when I signed until the moment I stepped on the race course for race day. No one would help me find water before the race, the corrals were a mess and there wasn't enough room for people to line up. Pacers showed up at three minutes to race start and just walked into the crowd. The race didn't start on time, with really no reason to start late given the weather changes. The course support was lacking. The finish line area was very crowded and people were standing on the other side of the finish instead of being told to move out. AND NO MEDICAL. I did not see a single ambulance or medical professional before, during, or after the race. No first aid kits at aid stations or a first aid tent after. Completely uncalled for.

*Side note: My mom ran the 5K and had the same experience that I had with lack of aid stations. She finished over an hour and a half before me and also never saw medical (and sadly witnessed people trying to find medical that couldn't)

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(2016)
"An Afternoon on the Trail (& Road)"
Overall
T-Shirts/SWAG
Aid Stations
Course Scenery
Expo Quality
Elevation Difficulty
Parking/Access
Race Management

Raccoon Mountain (Half) Marathon was my first trail race experience- and what an entry into trail racing it was! In 2016 they began to offer a morning and afternoon half (or double half). We chose the afternoon race due to the frequency of rain in the mornings on the mountain. The course was absolutely beautiful & difficult. Upside: the trails, for the most part, were not technically difficult (roots, rocks, etc.). The aid stations were the best I've ever seen at an aid station. They had everything a runner could want...except ice cream...and I hear that's now in the works for 2017. Score! Seriously, sport's drinks to water to soda and crackers to cookies and candy to gu and gels. The course support is excellent, but in a different way than I'm used to experiencing. There are not people lining the roads, but there are signs everywhere! And somewhere in the course there is a sign with your name on it- literally.

There is no "expo" and they are very upfront with that information. However; there is a post race cookout. This was my only downside to this race, and I know how I'll fix it next year. The morning half/marathoners had fresh burgers off the grill and plenty of snacks, etc. waiting for them. As we were getting ready to start our race we made notes of how we couldn't wait for a burger and cupcake upon crossing the finish line...well, when we finished there were only a few, very cold, burgers, no sweets or drinks, and the chip bags were on the pavement. Not exactly a welcoming environment. I know and understand that this problem was the result of not having enough volunteers for the PM, and if I do this race again I will do the morning race to avoid this problem entirely.

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(2016)
"Scenic to scarce"
Overall
T-Shirts/SWAG
Aid Stations
Course Scenery
Expo Quality
Elevation Difficulty
Parking/Access
Race Management

I should start by saying I would potentially recommend this race, though it entirely depends on who the racer is. The race is very well put together and, depending on your interests, has a great post race experience as well. Overall, the race wasn't terrible, but it wasn't for me and I won't be doing it again.

The swag included a long sleeve tech shirt, always a plus for me. The aid stations were adequate and frequent enough, but nothing exceptional. The course scenery is my second biggest draw back to this race. It starts SO WELL. The race begins in downtown Charleston with lots of people and support and then treks into the middle of NOWHERE with no people and support for 7.5 miles. That's a rough transition. If you like the run alone and look at fields- this is the race for you. I would have preferred being in downtown the entire (or more) time. The expo was nice, but it doubles as a music festival and is VERY loud as it's in a high school gym. The elevation is virtually non existent. I think the greatest elevation change we experienced was crossing a rail road track. Parking is always rough, it's a downtown start, so arrive extra early. The post race is beer & shrimp...I don't drink and I'm allergic to shrimp. Yes, I knew this going into the race, but I expected there would be other things, there weren't.

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