Megan Fischbach's Staging Area

This was my first time visiting the state of Alabama and we stayed at The Lodge at Gulf State Park, which I highly recommend! We got a discount for the race and it was in a perfect location, in the park and on the beach, perfect for cooling down tired feet in the cool gulf water. We wanted to play it as safe as possible with COVID, so decided to dine mostly here as well and really enjoyed the restaurant’s food (although a bit expensive but understandable at a Hilton). The staff here was fantastic. We also enjoyed renting the free bikes and touring the park a little more!

It’s tough to comment on the race party/production due to COVID. This is the 3rd race I have run during the pandemic and they are all pretty similar with social distancing, little/no expo, etc. I did enjoy the corrals. They gave out full water bottles at aid stations and no sports drinks (is this normal?) and I didn’t like that they only offered GU energy gels – I prefer more natural brands such as Honey Stinger. However, with the flat course and humidity, I didn’t feel like I needed much supplementation during the race.

I loved running through the park – it was beautiful! I heard a few people comment that this course was not flat but I think that is relative to your individual training. Being from Colorado, this is the flattest course I have ever run to be honest. There were some minor elevation increases but not what I would call a hill, and I ran one of my fastest times at this race despite having some foot pain at mile 8-10.

The medal was gorgeous and I love my long sleeve tech shirt! I would run this race again!

I ran this race to kick off my 50 states quest (have only run halves in my home state up until this one) and I loved the scenery of running up Mitchell pass and around the Scottsbluff national monument. Course support was excellent with many aid stations and toilets, and very organized waves and social-distancing for COVID, with the Western State Basketball team leading each corral and cheering us on! I loved the neck gaiter they handed out, which I have now used while running and in other races too. Much better than trying to handle a mask. This was my first race back since the start of the pandemic and I was super grateful to be racing! The swag bag included a bag of white beans for chili, a cotton t-shirt (I would always prefer tech so that I can run and play tennis in it) and the finisher medal was a nice cut-out of the state. I plan on making a display for them all. Being from Colorado, I love changes in elevation and scenery, so I highly recommend this Nebraska race for that reason. I loved that it was also some trail and some road. Toward the end you run through a stunning tree-lined and American flag-lined road! The only thing I would change about this race is that there were no professional photographers on course, and I always love to buy or download race photos.