Mike Mateja's Staging Area

This is a 1st class, small town run. Plenty of adjacent parking. Start and end in same general location, although this is not an “out and back” event. Excellent packet pick up option day before. SWAG is always 1st class. Route through BCS is always filled with cheering neighbors. Water and gatorade nearly every 2 miles. Run through campus is picturesque. Post race meal options are awesome.

Nice, well run event. Course begins in downtown and migrates out to a multi-use concrete trail, out and back. The volunteers and support stations were plentiful. I only saw 1 porta-potty stop on the course. The host hotel is conveniently located steps to the starting line. Pre-run gives full access to the convention center and numerous restrooms. No serious negatives. Like most races, only water and beer available which for non-drinkers is disappointing. Happy to do the event as a destination run but would probably go elsewhere in the future for a destination run.

Well organized run. Sufficient stops that are minimally supported. Just water. This could be an incredible first class event with additional resources. The route is incredible. The only downside is the extreme uphill for the last 300 yards.

Fine event in the Denver area. Well run production and communication. Pack PU at Mile high stadium was neat. The 1/2 marathon took you through the zoo for a mile (most animals were sleeping due to the heat), a fire station, downtown, and back to City Park. I thought the crowd support would be stronger, but maybe they petered out by the time I got there. The major issue for this event is the parking. Neither of the sponsor hotels offered transportation to the park. So, a 430 wake up was in order. Would I do this event again? Probably not due to the many other “beauty filled” half marathons in the area, especially the Colorado Marathon in Fort Collins just 2 weeks prior. However, I’m glad I participated.

Held in downtown Asheville this year. We signed up for the Biltmore location, but kept our registration. We flew in from Houston.
The Good: 1) Started on time 2) PPU well organized 3) Shuttles operated efficiently 4) Power gels widely available on course

The Bad: 1)Out of water at the 5-6 mile stop–major no no for any event–they resorted to serving cola 2) Limited traffic control for 1st 2 miles out of downtown–were running against moving cars 1/2 a mile into the race 3) 10 porta potties at start for 1,500 people 3) Brooks shirts were fitted–should have been noted at time of registration–did not have my size at finish line at end of race 4) Post race food consisted of water, granola, bars, and 1 beer (the line of which was 10 minutes long all afternoon). Unless held at the Biltmore I can’t imagine this run as a destination event again. 5) 72 degrees when we finished….but no one has control of that variable.

Mid size race which is well support with great swag. Parking is plentiful with the start and finish in the same general area without the route being an out and back. Great to run through Texas A&M. Well supported by the community.