Lynda Russell's Staging Area

Overall, I would say this event was very well run.
Expo: Packet pickup was quick and easy. The expo was cramped and under staffed, and the queue for some of stalls were probably about 10-15 mins. In the swag bag were disposable gloves and blanket which I thought was a nice touch.
Race Morning: Initially the half had been announced as bus only, but as the bus times got announced, they also introduced a self drive option. I opted for the self drive as I didn’t want to stand at the start for 1.5-2hrs. (Despite what people think, it’s cool in Vegas in Nov). It was easy to get to the start – parked the car in Target’s car park, and then an easy walk to the start. My husband then drove from the car park to the Fremont area to see me finish.

Adequate number of porta potties. Race was congested at the start, and would have benefited from a wave start. Took until mile 1 to thin out and get into my pace.

The course is gently downhill for the first 6.5 miles – enough to be quick but not that steep to make quads ache. Personally, I found this part a bit dull – not much scenery and the monotony of a downhill run. The route got more interesting as it turned up MLK, went around the Smith center, down Main St towards the Strat, up the Strip with a little wiggle to finish on Fremont St. It started to rain at about mile 10 which given how little rain we’ve had this year, made for slick roads.

The chute was short and efficient. Nice touch to have the race celebrations away from the finish to avoid congestion. I liked getting my results on a little card.

I was very impressed with course safety – all of the intersections on Charleston were blocked with coaches or trucks.

Overall, well run. Personally I would not do it again – I don’t think downhill courses are my thing.

This was my second VR race, and as with my previous experience, there was excellent pre race communications. Bib pickup was very easy and no queues. Small expo, but that’s fine by me.
Race day: I was lucky enough to have a B&B close to the start, so arrived 20 mins before the start. Thought I would do a last minute toilet stop before lining up. Serious lack of porta potties – many of us were still in the queue as the race started. I started 15 mins late and therefore was in the 3:30 wave, so got stuck behind walkers and slower runners. The initial part of the course is not suited for overtaking, and it took me until mile 3 to get some space to run at my own pace. From mile 3 to the left turn up Spring Gulch was good, as we were on a bike path, so lots of room, but Spring Gulch was tricky at times with too many people, and a very narrow running area and cars in both directions.

That said, the view was stunning and very enjoyable when there were no cars. Despite what the description said, the course was paved the whole way.

I reckon I lost 2 minutes due to congestion at the start, but was lucky enough to make 5th in my age group. Unlike the last event, there was no podium for the prizes, but heh, no big deal. Excellent post run snacks and lots of shuttles to get back to the start.

Definitely a course I will repeat.

This is the second time I have run the Lake Mead 10km, and 5 or 6th race with BBSC. Their events are always well run – easy signup and clear communications ahead of the race. Race day is very well organized – lots of porta potties, professional timing crew, and excellent post race snacks. The 10km course is gently undulating along a paved trail, so no worries about traffic and plenty of room to over take. There’s no steep hills, but it still makes for a slightly demanding course, particularly the small climb from mile 4.5 to the turnaround.

Will definitely do the HM course in the future.

Be aware that the race is inside Lake Mead National Park so you will need to pay the entrance fee. Also allow 5 mins extra for the amount of traffic at the entrance booth.

This was my first ever half marathon, and I have held off reviewing it until I have done another HM so I had something to compare it with.

Organization: Amazing. Excellent communications in the build up to race week. My only niggle would be the links to the hotels – the site massively overcharged for the tax, so I had to cancel my reservation and book directly. The expo was very well run – quick to pick up the bib and goodies. I am not a big shopper, so the vending side of the expo was not of interest, but I could see there was a lot of variety.

Race Day: Not enough toilets at the start line. Hence very difficult to get into the chute with the pace groups. Pretty close to a crush at the start. There were so many people that it was really hard to get into a rhythm for the first 0.5 miles. The first 3 miles are uphill – but that is known as the website had an excellent video fly over of the course. This helped to thin out the runners. The next 3 miles were downhill, back to the river, which was not too steep. From there the course undulates and winds threw Austin before a “killer” hill at mile 12. In reality it’s not that steep, but came as a shock. The course was well marked, but with the number of people, hard to overtake.

The aid/water stations were very frequent, but hugely messy as cups were dropped all over the road. I carry my own water, so I can’t comment on how well stocked they were, but care was required to avoid tripping over discarded cups or getting caught up in the people sipping.

Lots of crowd support, which was a blessing and a curse as it’s very hard to meet up after the race.

Conclusion: very professionally organized. For me, I would not do it again and instead will go for races with less people (so it’s easier to maintain my own slow pace) or races with a wave start. But that is personal preference!