It's a different winery now with different management. It runs over horrific non scenic gravel roads with multiple out and backs. If it's a destination race, the destination would be hell. The worst part is that they mismarked the course and the race ran 12.2 miles and they have yet to take responsibility for it. The race was over $100 and the swag sucked for that price. Everything was an absolute money grab. Access was terrible and cars got stuck in the muddy field getting out. Bad to the Bone events is the so called organizer. You should skip ALL of their races. Terrible company.

I have not written a review of a race in a while, but felt like I had to get this out there so folks know all about this race. I have run 43 half marathons to date and, with the exception of one race where they mismarked the course and missed a mile, this was the absolute worst race I have run. Just amateur hour. Here is what was wrong:

1. June races should never start at 8 AM, ever. This one did. You don't want to be out on the course when the temperature crosses 80 degrees which is what happened here.

2. This race started on the grass and easily had 1 1/2 miles on grass. The grass is wet and the change of terrain is bad for runners' knees.

3. We practically ran around in circles for two miles at the beginning of the race to fill distance.

4. The course is a terrible course for a hot June day, there are six miles straight where there is zero tree covers and runners are fully exposed to the blazing sun. Combine that with an 8 AM start and it is misery.

5. The course support was awful. The first water table was 3 1/2 miles in and the second was 6 1/2 miles in. On a hot June day, that is just plain wrong and dangerous.

6. Some dude pulled all of the mile markers from the course while the race was still going on. I don't run with a GPS so after mile 9, I had no idea where I was distance wise. At this point, I was so dispirited that I could not fight the heat anymore.

7. The start line was not publicized. I did not even realize until three minutes before the race that the start line was not the finish line.

8. There was only water and no gatorade on the course.

9. When they sent out the results, they stopped timing at 2:25. I did not finish before then and did not get to see my name on the results list. What a slap in the face to slower runners. I had to email them to get my results.

10. While the shirt was decent, the medal was generic and unimaginative.

I have never vented like this about a race. I love my half marathons, but I was steaming literally and figuratively during this race. When I saw the dude pulling the mile markers, I just gave up. I have almost never seen such a lack of competence among race organizers. If you can't do this right, don't do it at all. Don't just have an event to raise money when you do not know the first thing about running a race. This is a miserable race. If you have any other option, just skip this. I would rather spend twice as much on a race done right. I drove 90 minutes each way for this debacle. What a disappointment.

So I had read a bunch of reviews from previous years tanking this race and accordingly, I was not as excited for the race as I have been for others, but this race surprised me and I really enjoyed it. The first thing that I really liked about this race was the volunteers and fellow runners - the volunteers were uniformly cheerful and supportive as were many of the runners and they made this a great experience. The next thing that I liked was how easy it was to access, the garage was right next to the start and packet pickup - while it was not possible to get through to the garage at the first turn, if you just go around, you can access the garage. I also liked the t-shirt, it was on the heavier side, but I don't have a purple race shirt (although I fell asleep in the shirt and the logo stuck to my chest when I woke up). The race was very well run and it started on time (people had been complaining about that in prior years, but this race started at 730 precisely). The organizers communication was on point and timely and told us what we need to know.

As far as the course goes - I have run better, but it was not anywhere close to the disaster that others have said. It is challenging for the organizers to fit the course in Alexandria based on the starting point and they go to great lengths to make everything work. I did not think that the Eisenhower Ave part (which is about half the race) was all that bad and being able to run on the trail network was a treat and I for one enjoyed the twists and turns. Yes, there is about 3/4 of a mile through an industrial park, but that's the only meh part.

As for the race itself, it was as humid as it could possibly be (about 85%) and I struggled, but I took delight in the struggle. I was doing walking intervals by the time we hit the trails at mile 5 and knew this was going to be one of my slowest races ever. I have never sweated so much during a race. By mile 10, my Camelbak was empty (I usually drink about half of it during a race) and I was dumping cups of water over my head which I have never done before. Personally, I believe that anytime one crosses the finish line of a half marathon, it is a big win regardless of the time because 97 people out of 100 probably could not do so and I am glad I have that attitude because a 2:37 finish is not exactly covering myself in glory. But I feel much more ready for summer running now.

By the time I crossed the finish line, I was a tired dripping mess and did not even check out the post race food. The one thing I wish the organizers would do better is have a bigger medal - the one I got was disappointing. But what I will remember most is the enthusiasm of the volunteers and police and the communal spirit of sweltering runners. Please don't hesitate to give this race a try and don't let previous bad reviews stop you from registering next year.

I write this not to criticize the race director (he seems like a really nice guy), but to give my thoughts on where this race can improve so the race director can grow his business.

First, I will start with the pros because there were a bunch of pros. 1. It is great to be able to run a race on a weekday where I am off from work. I keep a very busy race schedule and the timing really helped 2. The course is pleasant, not exceedingly difficult and the mix of surfaces was nice and I enjoyed the scenery 3. There are lots of friendly runners and people cheer each other on as they pass by 4. The race was well organized. 5. Parking and access to the race was super easy. Overall, with some improvement, this would be a great race.

My issue was that it felt like a low budget race even though I didn't pay a low budget price. The race bib had no mention of the race (I like to frame them after each year and this one may as well have been hand written on an index card). The t-shirt was not technical and it was drab - it's way too heavy and about the only use is to wear it around the house. The medal looked great from the e-mail, it had a cool design, but when I got it, it was very flimsy and I was disappointed. I really like the swag - it's the best part about running and if the organizer spent a few dollars more, there would be more of a buzz around this race. I ran Annapolis this weekend and for roughly the same price I got a zipped jacket, a great medal and post race beer and food. I am not asking this much from a smaller scale race, but just a little more attention to the giveaways would make me come away happier. I would consider running this race again, but would hope there would be better attention to the swag so i don't feel like I paid $65 for a race that could have been run for $30.

There are some days where it is an absolute joy to be a runner. This was one of them. I haven't reviewed my last two races because they just sucked (not the races, me, including one race where I took Sudafed before running and ended up in the ER), but this race was awesome.

The race is called the Battlefield Half, but it is a bit of a misnomer because it just starts and ends in a small battlefield, but the course was very nice. Access was very very easy and parking was right at the starting line and very smooth to get to. The swag was wonderful - the long sleeve t-shirt was on point and they threw in a nice running hat too which was a nice surprise. The weather was the best running weather ever - low 40s and it only warmed up a few degrees - it does not get any better than that. The race was a smallish race (maybe 350 runners?) and people were all friendly.

The race started on time, just as the sun was coming up. The first 11/2 miles goes is an out and back through a residential neighborhood - I guess they need to fill some mileage in. I got to see the leaders and the Kenyan All-star team showed up - those dudes were flying! Then the race goes back through the battlefield and then off road through a farm and meadow. The course is a lollipop after the out and back with the last mile going back through the meadow and the battlefield.

The first handful of miles were moderate hills - nothing too bad. The hills were pretty constant, but barely noticeable. There is a more substantial hill that last most of mile 5, but it is a steady gradual climb. The course scenery was nice. It was a nice run through farmland and down country roads on a beautiful day. My one issue on the course was that there were not many aid stations (maybe three or four, and no GUs) - it didn't kill me because I run with my own water, but make sure you aren't relying on course hydration.

My race was as great as I have ever run - not bad for someone who has had two leg procedures and a heart scare in the last three months. I ran steady 10:10-10:15 miles for the first six miles and was feeling great. Then after I finished the uphill at mile 5, my body just wanted to go. I normally start getting slower after mile six, but my splits started going down and I was running 9:30 miles - this kept going for almost the entire the rest of the race. I finished in 2:11:02 which is my second fastest time ever, but this race checked in on my GPS at 13.25 miles so I will count it as a PR.

The post-race wasn't great. I read a prior review which said they had great food, but either it wasn't there or I didn't see it. Instead, I had a slice of the worst pizza possible. It's ok because I would rather them spend the money on the swag and they came through there.

All in all, a great race on a great day. If it wasn't two hours away, I would run it regularly. One tip - they did not email for the first time until the week of the race - they should start contacting earlier with instructions and pre-race matters