Vince DeFabii's Staging Area

Words cannot express how beautiful this race is. There were so many aspects that I was in awe of and just wanted to stop and take in and give glory to God for his creation. But I’ll begin with just how wonderful this experience was from start to finish. The expo was smooth with lots to do. But also very open with space to move. Everyone was incredibly nice, helpful, and efficient with what they did (except for the really rude lady who worked at the merchandise tent, but that’s ok). The merchandise line moved quickly and there was lots to choose from.
Race day, I love that marathoners got a charter bus with a restroom. As they stated on the website it took over an hour to arrive at the start. Not a lot of dry places to sit, so that was a downer but something to prepare for if you run this race. Race went off without a hitch despite the rain starting just before the gun went off.
The race….just wow. Coming out of mile 8 into 9 you open to the ocean and my jaw dropped. Then it is so much you cannot take it all in. The hill at miles 10-12 is no joke. However, we were gifted with little to no wind (I hear the wind is very bad there). I would warn the runners that most of the road in those middle, winding miles is sloped. I am still a bit sore in my ankle from running on it. It’s tough to find a flat portion of the road to cruise. You get a nice downhill after mile 12 then a lot of rollers. I didn’t mind the rollers at all but you need to prepare for it. Even mile 25-26 has a nice roller as you run by the Carmelite Monastery. Race to the finish is downhill with lots of spectators. As I said, they underreport how scenic this race is.
One problem for me was that aid stations had electrolyte first and water second (petty sure, but I like water first, not awful). However, a bigger problem was how small the cups were. Most of them were barely filled so I had to stop and fill 2 cups to get one full cup. That was frustrating.
Overall, I certainly hope to run this race again. It was my first negative split marathon…EVER and easily the most beautiful. If you can….you should….
I guess one other eh was the swag, or lack there of. The shirt is very feminine and following the race you are handed a box with a banana, chocolate milk, chips, and maybe a cookie. Eh….

This was my first time doing ANY 10k. However, I have done multiple half marathons, full marathons, and 5ks.

Course is more difficult than they let on. Gradual climb that gets steeper from miles 2-5.
Mile markers were a mess, none at mile 1, and mile 5 was about a half mile off.
Water was also interesting, miles 1,2 and then nothing till 5.
At about mile 4.5 there was a huge mess with the incoming runners having to cross right into the outgoing runners. Huge potential for damage.
At the end they made you leave immediately and there was a sign for “Finish line festival”. However I only saw one and figured that it was a way to get people to leave. However, about a half mile away there was one. They need to be better about allowing runners to know where the festival is. Plus when you finish they immediatly move you AWAY from the beach with is the scenery you want at that point.

I love this race and have run it every year with the exception of when I was injured from a cycling accident. The production is well put on. Don’t let them fool you, there are a lot of hills and this is a challenging race. The middle portion is anything but flat, there are a lot of hills and at least 4 90 degree turn arounds, 3 of which come at the bottom of a downhill requiring you to run back up the same hill. Miles 10-13 are particularly boring as you loop around the golf course. However, running downtown is fantastic and the crowd support is consistent. There is nothing like running through a tunnel and onto the 50 yard line. Plenty of food at the finish line and sitting on the grass to stretch and reconnect with friends is amazing. I’ll continue to run this race every year and have already signed up for 2026.

I’m gonna start with the bad….
– 24,000 runners and only one entrance to the start. Give yourself plenty of time because the start is a fiasco. (Took me nearly 20 minutes to get to my corral)
– Restrooms are lacking on the course. For people with GI issues, this isn’t good.
– Early miles, the street is torn up.
– Nothing is together, start is nearly 3 miles from expo and I hear 5k is in a different area as well. Getting around Vegas is tough enough.
– Post race swag/nutrition is almost non existent. They gave me a bag with 1 energy bar, mini bag of fruit chews, and a mini slim Jim. Outside of that I got a water, banana, and they have an alcohol tent.
The eh….
– Not a huge fan of the t-shirt but that isn’t a deal breaker
– The medal glows…that’s nice but eh…
– Most of the course is during sunset.
The good….
– I know I complained about getting to your corral but once you get there it set up well. They are roped off and have their own restrooms.
– The course is mainly flat and almost exclusively out and back almost no turns.
– I have done over 100 races and this finish line is best. It truly is a party atmosphere. I’m not a “party person”, but I truly enjoyed it.
– They have the finish line on a great part of the strip. Right by the Bellagio, bright lights, fire shooting up as you approach the finish. It was great!!