John Mallonee's Staging Area

It was exciting and rewarding to complete my third Vacation Races (VR) event out in the desert. I recommend VR races and recommend the Saguaro next year with some qualifications. I am glad that I was able to participate in this inaugural event.

VR worked relentlessly to to keep runners informed through difficult challenges to pull this one off. Local impacts from the pandemic threatened to cancel the race, but they were able to navigate an extremely difficult situation and still stage the event. The communication was excellent and effective.

The location for the race was picturesque and unique – where else can you run through a saguaro forest? That said, the course might not be for everyone. The roughly 6 miles of the course on a trail with plenty of rocks from small to large. As a road racer, the trail section was a definite challenge. I think it’s important to be prepared to step aside (carefully) to let others pass or possibly find ways to safely pass others yourself. The trail is generally only wide enough for one person and repeated passing is inevitable. I would also recommend taking time to enjoy the scenery and unless you’re a comfortable trail runner to have lower expectations for performance. The trail is a huge component of the race – both the draw for beauty as well as the biggest challenge. Personally, I would have preferred longer stretches of a packed dirt trail, but the desert is what it is. Lastly, being a run-walk racer doesn’t work as well on a narrow trail. It was disruptive to find places to allow others to pass safely.

The paved part was more comfortable for me, but it had its own challenges. The two biggest challenges were the rolling hills and the seams in the macadam. Some of the hills were steep. If you find hills a challenge, be prepared to adjust your pace and possible walk breaks accordingly. The seams made for less than comfortable footing for my personal stride. Trying to avoid the bumpy seam could make it difficult to maintain a consistent feel.

The production side of the race went smoothly for me. The bib drive-through was easy and there was plenty of volunteer support. I did get get there early which seemed to make the difference. Staging from the parking lot to start queues/corrals (due to county requirements) worked well with helpful announcing on a PA as well as on the radio in the car. All volunteers at the start and along the course were friendly and supportive. One production item that I either missed or misunderstood was the closing of a travel lane for the race. I knew that it would be closed for the race, but wasn’t aware how far ahead of race time it would be. Fortunately a road worker allowed me to thread the cones for the 2 tenths of a mile to get to the start area.

Race swag was first rate as always. The inaugural insignia on the front and the history of the name of Tucson on the back made it extra special. Post-race hydration and nutrition were also excellent.

I applaud Vacation Races for the series of races they offer, the race production, and their communication. I have two additional races scheduled with them as a result of their effort.

Regarding this race, I’m glad that I did it. It was a challenge for me and I felt like I accomplished something big. That being said, I don’t plan to run the race again due to the difficulty on the trail. I’m guessing that experienced trail runners are more likely to return.

Thanks for giving me the opportunity to participate in this inaugural event.

This was my second Vacation Races after doing RMNP earlier this year. Even with the current pandemic challenges, both VR races were well organized and executed. Drive through bib pickup was easy. As a hint, I would avoid picking up too close to the timing of the 5K. Participant communication prior to the race was top notch.
Shuttles to the start line were continuous with attention paid to providing space between runners. The staging are prior to the start was large providing plenty of personal space. Port-o-potties were also provided in appropriate numbers. Pre-race announcing was helpful and informative.
The course itself was scenic with rolling hills. No hill was specifically challenging, and the corresponding downhills helped keep the pace moving. The worst part of the race was the weather with very humid conditions and 70 degrees first thing in the morning. It definitely took its toll on my personal time as I could see it doing on others. It’s not attributable to the race producer, but I would suggest having the time a few weeks later.
The race swag is first rate with unique, high-quality, colorful medals. I would recommend better stock of for sale t-shirts with the race’s logo for purchase before and afterward. The XL’s were gone at 4:00pm the day before the race and I encountered the same challenge and disappointment at RMNP.
All in all, I’m glad that I did the race as it provided for a great experience to visit the Great Smoky Mountain National Park as well as chalk another state up in my list. I plan to do additional Vacation Races events and recommend them to others.

Heard good things about this race and had to try it. There were many positives with a few glitches in the experience.

Expo was good – be careful to watch for volunteers directing traffic to parking across the street. This was challenging for a first timer. There are no real choices for hotels near course start, but many hotels are locations with shuttle service. It is an early race so shuttles are earlier. Be prepared and set expectations accordingly.

There are two options for the Half, and I chose the South course. Route is mostly flat through quaint homes along the River with decent support from locals for our and back course. Watch for faster runners in left lane on their return. Some runner bunching can occur as a result. Gatorade and water stations every mile to mile and a half which was welcome. Temps warmed as the sun came up, but December can be variable.

The medal was heavy and unique with space theme which is big part of the draw. Finishers also got space themed beach towel. Appreciated the post race food including bananas and hot pizza!

Path back to buses was not very clear and it was hard to find them for me. When I did find them, runners were waiting for about a half an hour until several showed up to return to the host hotels. Still not sure what happened there.

Overall was a fun race with great bling and support, but had logistical challenges with transportation. I know some folks who love the race, so I’ll temper my opinion on those challenges. The race shirt, finisher medal, and beach towel are all great mementos of the race.

This was my first time running this race – the Half Marathon. I enthusiastically recommend it to others who are looking for an enjoyable and fulfilling experience.

Large expo held the day before – be prepared to walk through the expo to get to registration. Registration ran smoothly as did the race itself.
Course is very flat with just some graded inclines. Be prepared for large crowds when walking to the corrals as there are around 17,000 runners as the Half and Full Marathon start together using the same corrals. There were A thru E corrals, but they went off fairly quickly – maybe 5 minutes between each with some fireworks.
On course support was very good with lots of hydration stands and huge trash cans to catch the cups of both Gatorade and water. The Half Marathon course managed to stay within the confines of the city of Columbus with lots of spectators.
The end of the race featured lots of food and drink options (water, banana, protein bar, goldfish, chocolate milk, apples, chips, Doritos, and bagel). Heavy colorful medal was worthy as race bling.
One caution after the race is the crowds leaving the city. If you’re running the Half, there will still be hours of marathon runners still blocking streets. I stayed at the Courtyard Marriott on Spring Street which was surrounded by runners and it took about 30 minutes to get out of the city through clogged streets. You might consider parking in a lot that is outside of the race routes, but you will have lots of company for a number of hours after the Half.
All in all, I greatly enjoyed the race experience and achieved a time I haven’t had in 5 years.

I had no plans to run a half marathon this day and never registered until the day before. However, when I saw that this was close to home and my training plan called for 10 miles, I decided to get another race under my belt.

US Road Running organizes countless virtual runs, but also holds a number of physical runs in my region. They have a wide variety of unique medals and their race fees are small. This race cost just $35.00 which included a finisher hat, a quality medal, hydration on course, and snacks.

The conditions for the race (beyond control of the race directors) were terrible – 74 degrees at race start to 84 degrees when I finished and high humidity. The course was an out and back loop that was run 8 times along the shore of the lake and on a narrow trail through the woods. The field of runners was very small, so the width of the path was more than adequate. It was technically a trial race, but relatively flat with only minor obstacles (wooden bridge, drainage pipe, occasional rock or root).

Runners were given 8 rubber bands to track each lap and the race team was very helpful with refilling water bottles at the start/finish line for each lap. Even though I had registered the day before, the crew had my info when I checked in before the race.

Overall, while I hated the heat and humidity, the availability of a local race and race support was a good value for the small price. As I said earlier, the bling, while not customized with the date, was unique and appealing. Oh, and with a small runner field, I will receive an award for placing in the top 3 of my age group in the form of a time sticker to place on the back of the medal.

I’m glad that I included the Caesar Rodney Half in my quest to get to as many states as I can.

Course: The first 6 miles of the course are flat and the route through town was scenic and enjoyable. The tough part was miles 7 to 9 which was a gradual incline for about 250 feet of elevation. However, there is a payoff at mile 9 as the course works back downhill. There is an interesting park and tower at the top and overall there is plenty of room to run in the size of the field of runners. Do be prepared for the final .2 miles which is a fairly steep hill to the finish. There was an out and back between miles 2 and 4 that got tight with two-way running traffic as the elite runners came back. This is my only gripe about the overall course.

Experience: I liked the fact that the race didn’t start until 9:30am which gave the temperatures time to rise from a low of 32 to around 40 at race time. Caesar Rodney Square was a nice location for the event start and finish. The challenge with the time is completing the race and getting checked out of a local hotel as a traveler. I stayed at the Doubletree downtown and although they had no availability for late checkout, they did allow me an extra half hour from 12 noon to 12:30 to cleanup and depart.

The race shirt and medal are both nice, although nothing special. However, they are a good balance to keep race costs reasonable. They had extra perks for drinks and food afterward, but I wasn’t staying long enough to partake.

This race was hampered by some unexpected complications (including the weather), but it had some strong, redeeming points.

I signed up only about a week or so prior to the race date. Signup was easy and the price was appealing, especially since my plan was to use it as a final long training run prior to a Half Marathon planned 3 weeks afterward.

I had participated in one previous US Road Running race a few years back, and like their local nature and smaller fields. The course was appealing because it’s mostly flat and runs along the Susquehanna River in Harrisburg (more on that later). They are also known for a wide variety of themed medals and this one didn’t disappoint (Halloween themed).

A week before the race, there was a change to the course due to multiple construction difficulties in the city and changed to a .88 mile loop to be run 15 times. This was apparently unavoidable and disappointing, but I normally do a 1.3 mile loop at home. The race director was communicative so we knew ahead of time and they provided rubber bands to help us keep count.

The second difficulty came with an all day rain (light to moderate). The reassuring part was that the race team had volunteers at multiple points on the course to encourage the racers. These volunteers were much appreciated and helped make a positive experience under the race conditions.

I liked the small field and had my fastest race in 3 to 4 years. The registration and interaction with the race team was seamless and I’m glad that I ran the race. The runners seemed to respond very positively as well. I managed to place in my age group, and it was an added extra to receive a division placement plastic label for the back of the medal including exact finish time. This arrived within a week, so it was quite prompt and happened automatically.

They also provided free pictures of the racers as they lapped the finish line (multiple pictures per runner). The pictures weren’t super high fidelity, but they were a nice extra.

All in all, if you’re looking for a small local race with an interesting medal, I’d recommend you give it a try.

Race is on the grounds of the Greenbrier Resort which is an upscale, unique location in WV and part of Resort Races. Limited to 1000 participants total for 5K, 10K, and Half Marathon. Races overlap at the start with 5-10 minutes between groups. Course is completely on property with nice scenery this time of year. Much is run on golf cart paths, but was well marked and had volunteers directing runners. Drink stops were adequate, but nothing special. Mile 8-9 of the Half loops past the main entrance of the iconic building. 2 tougher hills at miles 9 and 10, but lots of even ground overall. Champagne brunch (part continental, part hot food) served at the pool afterward and included with all registrations. The resort rooms can be pricey, but there was a substantial discount to runners. Highly recommend staying here for a splurge, but be aware that dining is on the expensive side. Overall, very glad to have done the race and things went very smoothly.

The marathon has some great scenery, a fantastic run past the front of Biltmore House, and great race support. The first half is through the extremely picturesque grounds of Biltmore Estate with rolling hills and wonderfully wooded areas. The loop in front of the house is unique among all races and quite memorable. There are two steepish inclines in the first half, but there are also some rewarding downhills. The second half is on the west side of the estate which is generally inaccessible to visitors without embarking on certain paid tours. This second half of the marathon is primarily dirt and stone roads which combined with some hills makes it challenging. The scenery is more farmland, but still picturesque. A few spots are out and back stretches, so the paths are narrow with runner traffic going in both directions. If you don’t like stones on dirt roads, then you might consider going with the Half with is primarily paved.

Run through Magic Kingdom and EPCOT, well spaced characters, starts in the dark so need to be careful in some spots. One section is narrow with orange pylon cones.