Durham Women’s Half Marathon & 8K
Durham, NC
- Half Marathon, 8K
- Road (Paved)
- Official race website
North Carolina will host the inaugural Durham Women’s Half Marathon and 8K, finishing in the family-friendly atmosphere at the American Tobacco Center in the heart of the community. This women’s only half marathon and 8K event will showcase a $1,000.00 prize purse for the top finishers in the half marathon. … MORE
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Late start, great course
This year was the inaugural year of this race. I ADORED the course and ran my personal best time here - the course had so much variety and a great … MORE
This year was the inaugural year of this race. I ADORED the course and ran my personal best time here – the course had so much variety and a great combo of slight uphills and downhills, and then ventured through the woods and on the bike path. I would highly recommend to anyone who likes the scenery to be mixed up a little bit.
As much as I loved racing this course, the inaugural race was really poorly facilitated. 5-10 minutes before the scheduled start time, there were still no runners lined up! Perhaps because it was cold and many people were huddled inside. The shortcoming was the announcer. It was hard to hear, and the announcer did not share much information or direct people to get lined up for the start. We were all lined up and ready to go when he announced that we would be delayed for a few minutes due to a truck blocking the route about 2 miles in. Then he provided an update that there was another hazard. This continued every couple of minutes, until the race began about 30 minutes late. The announcer was rather unprofessional about it, and kept “shushing” the crowd with phrases like, “Ladies, quiet down!”. It was almost comical for a women’s race.
At the end of the race, I went to the medical tent to find some ice for my leg that was bothering me. I stood there for a few minutes and came back a couple times, but there was no one manning the tent and no clear area for assistance. I ended up going without ice, which was fine… but was surprised that there was not more assistance available.
Despite the few strange hiccups with this inaugural race, I am definitely hoping to run it again. I really enjoyed the course, the medal and shirts were very nice, and there were plenty of photos taken and shared!
Decent scenery, not so great production
Pros: - Affordable entry fee. Registration opens at $1 and increases as slots are filled. I caught it at $40, which was considerably cheaper than the other two half marathons … MORE
Pros:
– Affordable entry fee. Registration opens at $1 and increases as slots are filled. I caught it at $40, which was considerably cheaper than the other two half marathons I’ve run.
– Beautiful location. This was my first time in Durham and I was impressed by how clean the city is, how much there is to do there, and how friendly the people are.
– Being an event for women, it was truly inspiring to see women cheering each other on and encouraging each other throughout the event.
Cons:
– I received very little communication from the race organizer prior to the event. This may not be a huge concern for locals, but considering I had to travel there, it was a little unnerving.
– The morning of the race, we started 22 minutes late. This was due to construction happening on the course. We had to wait for a crane and two semi trucks to move. I’ve never encountered this before; it seems as if these kinks could be worked out prior to race day.
– With about a quarter mile to go before crossing the finish line, a police officer instructed me and the runners around me to halt because a train was coming through. This was extremely frustrating and added at least a minute to our times. Again, I’m assuming this could have been avoided with better planning by the organizers.
The course took us through the downtown area, some residential neighborhoods, and a nature path. I enjoyed the changes in scenery. However, this course was extremely hilly. I do not train on hills, as my hometown happens to be exceptionally flat. I therefore assumed that maybe I was the only one struggling on the hills. I did hear some locals commenting on how hilly the course was. It seemed that even for NC natives it was more elevation than would be ideal.
Inaugural Race
This was the first time Durham, NC hosted a National Women's Running Series event. The first 3 miles were along streets, the next 5 miles were on a greenway, then … MORE
This was the first time Durham, NC hosted a National Women’s Running Series event. The first 3 miles were along streets, the next 5 miles were on a greenway, then the final 5 miles were back along the streets. The greenway was mostly flat while the streets had several hills. Overall, it was a decent event.