This was my first half marathon in 2018! I picked it because I loved running in the dark and the race started about an hour before sunset. Leslie, MI gives … MORE
This was my first half marathon in 2018! I picked it because I loved running in the dark and the race started about an hour before sunset. Leslie, MI gives off a very small-town feel to me, which is very welcoming since I come from a small town. All the houses and downtown area are decked out in Halloween decorations and most of the runners had costumes on!
Packet pickup and the race start line was all around the same spot in their downtown area and easy to find. There wasn’t a HUGE amount of people racing the year I ran (I didn’t have much to compare it to at the time since it was my first half marathon!), so by the time everyone had spread out around mile 3 or 4 I didn’t have a lot of people running around me.
Most of the race goes out into the countryside with a few hills throughout. A lot of people who live in the area stand outside their houses to cheer you on and there are trucks parked along the course with little fueling stations every couple miles.
Along with a nice bright orange Halloween themed tech shirt (so festive!), they gave us blinking arm bands and reflective tape to wear during the race for when it got dark out. I thought that was super thoughtful and helpful for when cars were out on the course and couldn’t see you well otherwise.
My favorite part was running through the graveyard at the end! I really loved that they went all out for the Halloween theme, and ending the race with about 0.5 miles through a graveyard was a nice touch. They had a guy announcing everyone who finished at the end and lots of pizza/bananas/drinks to have afterwards as well. It was a perfect first half for me to run personally!
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Very festive!
This was my first half marathon in 2018! I picked it because I loved running in the dark and the race started about an hour before sunset. Leslie, MI gives … MORE
This was my first half marathon in 2018! I picked it because I loved running in the dark and the race started about an hour before sunset. Leslie, MI gives off a very small-town feel to me, which is very welcoming since I come from a small town. All the houses and downtown area are decked out in Halloween decorations and most of the runners had costumes on!
Packet pickup and the race start line was all around the same spot in their downtown area and easy to find. There wasn’t a HUGE amount of people racing the year I ran (I didn’t have much to compare it to at the time since it was my first half marathon!), so by the time everyone had spread out around mile 3 or 4 I didn’t have a lot of people running around me.
Most of the race goes out into the countryside with a few hills throughout. A lot of people who live in the area stand outside their houses to cheer you on and there are trucks parked along the course with little fueling stations every couple miles.
Along with a nice bright orange Halloween themed tech shirt (so festive!), they gave us blinking arm bands and reflective tape to wear during the race for when it got dark out. I thought that was super thoughtful and helpful for when cars were out on the course and couldn’t see you well otherwise.
My favorite part was running through the graveyard at the end! I really loved that they went all out for the Halloween theme, and ending the race with about 0.5 miles through a graveyard was a nice touch. They had a guy announcing everyone who finished at the end and lots of pizza/bananas/drinks to have afterwards as well. It was a perfect first half for me to run personally!