Randy Turk's Staging Area

Ran the 2022 War Eagle half marathon. The course started and finished on Auburn’s campus. I expected the course to be hilly having run around the campus, but wasn’t prepared for the hills on the first 6 miles which seemed to be endless. The 2nd half was on and around the Auburn campus. Ran past “Fraternity row”, ran a lap at the Track and Field venue and then finished on the 50 yd line of Jordan-Hare stadium. Although it was definitely challenging course, it was a well organized event and well worth the pain and suffering, lol. The post race party outside the stadium was nice and it helped that we had perfect weather for the race. All in all a great event and one I highly recommend!

Ran the Heartland Half Marathon in Omaha, NE. The course was mostly flat, but did include an over and back across the pedestrian bridge over the Missouri River. The race started and finished on the Nebraska side of the river, but the majority of the course was on the Iowa side. Custom race face masks were provided to all runners, which was a nice touch. Overall race organization was very professional. Race shirt was very nice, but the finisher medal was nothing special. Overall was happy I traveled from Ohio to run in the race and will likely return in the future,

This was a very well organized race, with easy race logistics and a very good course. The race started early (6am) with fireworks to send us on our way. The first half of the race was very scenic, with a number of downhill portions. Along the way we were serenaded by a number of unique musicians, including a piano player, wearing a tux and playing piano in his front yard, very cool! The 2nd half of the race went through the surrounding neighborhoods until we headed downtown for a very noisy finish. Plenty of volunteer support throughout the race and good spectator support over the 2nd half and, in particular, the last 0.1 mile to the finish. The weather was absolutely perfect for running. Plenty to do in the area before and after the race, including Glacier National Park about 2 1/2 hrs away but well worth the trip. This is one I plan on repeating!!

This was my first time in Tuscaloosa and I had great time. The Tuscaloosa Half was an enjoyable race and with the exception of one downhill near the start and one uphill around mile 5 it was a mostly flat course. The course ran parallel to the Riverwalk along the Black Warrior River before heading to the Alabama campus enroute to the finish at Government Plaza in downtown Tuscaloosa. There was plenty of free parking adjacent to the start line at Government Plaza, so early morning race logistics were very easy. Post race food was very good (bbq pork sliders and thin crust pizza) and beer was available as well. Weather in Tuscaloosa this time of year is very pleasant and with flowers blooming, the area was pretty scenic.

Ran the 2018 Rehoboth Beach half marathon for my 100th lifetime half. Cold and clear morning with a slight breeze. Nice course that was mostly flat and included some city streets and ~5-6 miles through a park before heading back to the race finish. The post race party was amazing… the best I’ve experienced in all my races.

Very unique race that was held at night and run entirely on the Las Vegas strip. As always for RnR races, the race was very well organized. The course was very flat, but with so many runners, the first mile or so was pretty congested. The post race food was average-. With the race run on the strip, there was plenty of fan support along the majority of the course.

First off, weather was nice and cool for a half marathon in August. Scenery was amazing and varied. Buses used to transport us to the start were very comfortable. Course was challenging with a nice long uphill during the first half of the race and a nice flat finish. Very nice age group awards and even though it wasn’t a huge field, the age groups were every 5 years. Post race food was good and we were given a coupon for a free huckleberry milkshake…it was AWESOME!!