City2Surf is an iconic fun run. It has been running since 1971 and attracts over 80,000 entrants (67,527 finishers this year). For the vast majority it is not a serious race because the course is difficult, it is a non-standard distance and it is too crowded to run full speed if you do not qualify for one of the front groups. There is a huge hill in the middle of the course called Heartbreak Hill but if you survive that you are treated with fantastic views of Sydney Harbour and a fast run down to Bondi Beach at the end. For most people it is a chance to dress up and/or have fun with friends. Most of the runners hang out at Bondi Beach afterwards.

This was my third year running the SMH half. There were around 10,000 entrants so it is a popular race. They are divided into start groups based on qualifying times so the faster runners can break away without too much trouble. It is a very competitive field with over 1000 runners finishing in under 97 minutes.

The start area is pretty crowded, there is not much parking nearby and a lot of the surrounding roads are closed so most people travel by public transport.

The race starts (& finishes) on the road between Hyde Park & the iconic St Mary's Cathedral. We then ran past the NSW state parliament and down to the Rocks tourist area. The course goes around the harbour and under the Sydney Harbour Bridge before crossing into Pyrmont. The start of the course is mostly downhill so it is very easy at first but it gets harder as you go along. Coming back we run over the Cahill Expressway which gives a great view of Circular Quay, the Harbour and the Sydney Opera House but the incline to that point is a bit of a challenge for most runners. We then ran around Mrs Macquarie's chair before the finish inside the entrance to Hyde Park. The finish is much harder than the start so you need to save some energy for running uphill.

I thoroughly enjoyed this race. It has a brutal reputation because of the 3 large hills you have to run over (2 near the start and 1 near the end) but for 7 miles in the middle of the race it is downhill or flat. The last mile is downhill as well so you can run fast to the finish. I did a PB by more than 2 minutes despite running slowly in the first 4 miles to get onto the Golden Gate Bridge. The only disappointment is that I was too busy running to stop and take a photo.