Emily W's Staging Area

The production for this race was top notch. Organized flawlessly. Plenty of parking. Most notably was the lineup to the start. They ask that everyone is at the expo at least 1.5 hour prior to start, which initially gave me a little anxiety, but it ensured that everyone was where they needed to be for the start of the race. It made a big difference compared to other races I’ve been to.

The race started just as the sun was setting. Get your pictures there! The first 2ish miles have been described by other reviewers in the past as an incline, but I didn’t really feel it was that dramatic of an incline. It was a bit congested in the beginning and it is particularly sandy those first few miles. I think a lot of people either didn’t understand where they should be in the wave placement or underestimated their time. A lot of people started walking in the first mile and it really clogged things up. Personally I conserved my energy those first few miles rather than waste energy weaving around people and fighting the sand.

The trail opened up after those first few miles and I was able to find some relatively packed sand. But it’s all weather dependent where and when the sand will be packed so hard to predict.

Headlight is a must. I made the mistake of buying a crappy headlight and it ended up being my biggest regret. I had trouble running confidently because I couldn’t really see.

Speaking of headlights, there was definitely a strobe light effect from all of the headlights bouncing around and casting shadows everywhere. It was distracting and made it even harder to see at times but that’s part of the challenge.

Some people said you don’t need trail shoes but I would recommend them. Or at least some kind of hybrid shoe.

There’s about a mile of paved trail around mile 6. If you’re a road runner, this is your moment!! It was such a relief to run without dodging rocks and sinking into sand. I’m clearly not a trail runner.

The hardest part for me personally was the last 1/2 mile. The last part of the course (at least this year) was the sandiest and had two sharp right turns in a relative short distance to the finish. It was tough give a final push at the end when you’re slowing down to turn. I felt like it robbed me of that classic finish but whatever. I was just glad that I finished. It is truly an accomplished that challenges all of your senses!