I recently heard the news that Nike has discontinued the half marathon in DC so I feel fortunate to…read morehave ran the last one in April. The October before, I ran in the San Francisco 10-year anniversary so I was familiar of how smoothly these events run. Just in case you're unaware, the Nike Womens series is so popular that they hold a random drawing to get in. You can register as a group so it's all (in your group) or no one. I've never been to DC so it was a perfect opportunity to fly out and visit our nation's capital. At the expotique, the best part was seeing your name on the wall screen with motivational sayings as you entered the area. While I was there, I took a video analysis of my running. With that info, they suggested the best Nike shoe for me which I so happen to already own. I previously purchased a pair of Nike Lunarglides from the "DC" collection. They're special because it comes with a metallic piece on the shoelace near the tip of the shoe that has the date of the run on one side of it and the swoosh on the other. The course started with a view of the Capitol Building in the distance and took us on some touristy sights (that I took the liberty of visiting the day before). Drummers kept us up beat. It was neat that the WE RUN lit up sign was moved into the tunnel. Thank, DC! Because of your flat terrain, I was able to PR! Again, if you're unfamiliar, at the finish line, instead of getting a medal, you are rewarded with a Tiffany's Nike necklace. I learned one lesson though, to never take a long flight home the same day as running a half marathon.

For those of you who are wondering what am I doing in DC? well I bucket listed another Half…read moreMarathon with NIKE!!! My 6th half marathon with NWM. What can I say? It was the best out of all the half marathons I've ever done. What makes it spectacular? Hmmm 13.1 miles filled with historical scenery & beautiful weather but over all running with your BFF's beside you on your birthday weekend. Through the course, such a great support system and 15,000 runners right by your side. Mile 1-3 you run passed the US Capitol, the National Gallery of Art, National Archives, Freedom plaza and the White House. Mile 4-8 you run passed George Washington University, WaterGate, The Kennedy Center, Roosevelt Island, Arlington Cemetery, Vietnam Memorial, Lincoln Memorial, MLK Memorial, and 9-13 Washington Monument, The Holocaust Museum, Bureau of Engraving, Tidal Basin, Jefferson Memorial and George Mason Memorial. Such a memorable run, which I think I'll run all over again!! BTW I just love the little blue box See you next year DC!!!

As a brain tumor survivor I go to the Dc Race every year. It's he best. Entertainment. Always a…read moreton of tables with food and activities. The kids get a medal The wall of hope is awesome and who wouldn't want to warm up with an America idol! Stay in a hotel near freedom plaza so you don't have to worry about parking! The tribute to survivors in the beginning of the walk is beautiful!

Every year, over 10,000 registered runners participate at Race for Hope. It is a well organized…read morefund raising event for brain tumor research. Wall of Hope and survivor's tent always makes me choked up. The weather in the early morning has been crisp and fm refreshing every year. The kind spirits and the will to go on are contagious. At the finish line, there is water table, banana, bagel, and cold drinks for everyone. The area is well guarded and secure. Until next year.

I am surprised that there is no page for the NAF half-marathon when it is such a fabulous event…read more I ran the race today under the perfect weather conditions - mid 50s at the start and steady mid 60s during the race. My friend and I just ran the 1.5 miles to the start (but apparently the metro started at 6 am instead of 7) and we were plenty warmed up at the start. The wheelchair competitors and wounded warriors started at 7:15 and the rest of the runners began at 7:25. The course itself is FLAT. If you want to PR, this is the race to run. It is also along the Potomac which adds to the breezy race conditions; tall trees provide plenty of shade throughout the course. There was a 1 mile stretch where the road was slanted, however. It wasn't too severe and I've run on a freeway once that was much worse but if you have knee problems, I would watch out for this part. There are water stops at every 2 miles, starting at mile 1, as well as gatorade at some of these stations. Also, it was so inspiring to see the wounded warriors on the course and gave me continuous motivation to push harder. Finally, the finish was awesome. There were bubbles to celebrate the runners as we were coming in. A wonderful goodie bag with bananas, apples (first time receiving apples), and cookies. There was also a kind volunteer who was offering hand sanitizer. The suggestions I have to improve for next year are: 1) Please have wave starts. I was running a 8:29 pace but still so many runners were passing me and I am sure the faster runners would appreciate not having to weave through so many people. 2) There seemed to be a lack of porta-johns on the course. I usually see a couple every 2 miles but I think I saw them only twice during the course. 3) Is there any way to have the pins come with lanyards? I know that some races have the option to add to your cart at check-out so perhaps this can be considered for next year. Big thank you to all the volunteers who have come out bright and early to make the race so smooth and fun!

One star goes to the course itself: relatively flat, even-keeled and wide enough for all…read moreparticipants. The other star goes to picking a wonderful time of year to host the event: perfect weather/clear blue sky and the inspiring service members competing in the race as well. Everything else was not worth the entry fee. - Packet pick-up was obnoxious: requiring participants to go to NATs stadium- completely out of the way for EVERYONE in the DMV area- the day before. Apparently lots of people had to wait in insane lines early in the day, and if you did show up after the lines died down, they were out of small shirts (even though they were pre-ordered). The biggest kicker was waking up the next morning to see the race organizers posted on facebook that you could still run if you didn't pick up your packet the day before... That would've been good info ahead of time. - The race started too early: The start line being at the Washington Monument required most people to metro. Race organizers announced metro was "open early" but that did impact train schedules. Just because the stations are open, that DOES NOT mean train are leaving frequently or at those early hours. Coming from Vienna my earliest train left at 6:20-ish, only 20 minutes before half-marathon runners were supposed to line up. Long story short, I got to the start line as the half was starting so I was not able to check my bag/use the porta potties (that were placed even further from the metro exit than the start line). -Not enough volunteers at water stations: It was dangerous when lots of runners were running up to the same volunteer to grab a cup of water. -Post race fail: After crossing the finish line, you had to walk wayyyyyyyyy passed the finish line and into the expo center to get water. At the very least there should have been volunteers passing water bottles at the finish line to runners immediately. Also a major promotion was chocolate milk would be at the finish and they ran out before runners who ran a 9 minute mile pace for the half were done. This run was organized, but not to accommodate runners in a way many other races seem to do just fine. I wont be running this race again in future years. Too much of a schlep into DC (two days in a row) for a tough start and finish that was hard to celebrate.

I signed up for the upcoming Marathon but recently found out, upon checking their website, that the…read moreMarathon is no longer available and they only now offer the half marathon.  This happened to me twice now, and neither changes were communicated to customers. The company changed the product and did not communicate this change and refused to refund or offer any other resolution to customers of any kind, due to a waiver we signed absolving us of any right to a refund or the right to dispute. I understand with COVID a lot of businesses are going through hardships, but at the very least communication and compromise would have been nice, but no. Lesson learned, please be careful when signing up for future races as they may be altered and you will not be refunded even though the change was no fault of your own.

This was a very poorly organized event. My friend and I ran the 5k, and they made all runners pick…read moreup their packets at the expo (DC Armory) on Thursday or Friday before the event. Not a minor inconvenience, as having to drive to DC on a weeknight is no fun. From the organizer's stand point, I can understand the logistical reasons for it. However, if making people come out to pick up packets, they should have been more thorough at giving instructions. First of all, the expo parking was horrible. The lot we were supposed to park at was not labeled clearly and was very difficult to find.. Not to mention extremely hard to even get to! How can you tell us to go this way to the lot, only to have us cross 3 lanes of high speed traffic to get to the other side within like 30 feet or we'll miss the entrance completely? It was super dangerous and nerve-wracking. Also, the lot had no lights so it was hard to see. Were we the only ones that didn't realize the DC Armory was the national guard building? Maybe I need to go into DC more.. But we didn't know that we couldn't take any food or drinks into the building until the bag check at the door. Apparently we weren't the only ones. The poor man in front of us had a bag full of girl scout cookies. He had to leave his whole bag there and pick it up later, but it wasn't secure at all. It was placed under the table along with other people's bags, and anyone could get to them. The participants should have been notified of this beforehand. The expo itself was okay. We got our packets quickly enough and the staff were friendly. We didn't stay long though because nothing at the expo really called to us. For the day of the race, I kind of felt like they shunted the 5k runners to the crappier part of the track. There was nothing to see except side roads and bridges overhead, and the road we ran on was full of potholes and bumps. Yes, I know our 5k is pittance compared to the half or full marathon, but we still paid our fees and came out to have a good time running. We did enjoy the bands that were placed along the track. After the race, all the road closures made it extremely difficult to get an Uber. We had to walk over half an hour in the cold to get somewhere near enough for an Uber driver to get us. While we knew about the closures, it did not make for a pleasant end to the race, and I can imagine it caused a ton of inconvenience to the folks who live there. Overall, not something I'll go for again. At least the medals were cool.

This was a well-organized event for a great cause! Everyone was so nice and the energy was amazing…read more Before the official start, the DC mayor spoke and we had the Zumba pump-up dance class right in freedom plaza, the energy was contagious! I felt so pumped up for the 5k!

For those of you running the national marathon or national half marathon on March 29 - the biggest…read morehill (over 200 ft elevation) is on Connecticut Avenue. It's a burner - but run this a few times before the race and you're set. A good 5 mile training run follows: Start at 21 & N Take 21st to L Street NW Down L St NW to 16th Street NW Turn left up on to 16th Street NW Turn left up on to M Street NW Turn right up on to 18th Street Take 18th to Connecticut Avenue (base of hill) Connecticut Ave to Columbia Street (ascending the hill) Columbia until Biltmore (Goes through Woodley) From there turn back down 18th Street NW (Goes through Adams Morgan - rolling hills) Stay on 18th for a while - then jog back on to Connecticut Ave. Take Connecticut Ave/18th Street NW to M Street NW M Street NW until 16th Street NW (Right turn) Turn Right on to L Street NW Turn Right on to 21st Go up 21st until N. DONE

The expo was located at the Armory. It was very conveniently accessible by the Metro. It was…read morehowever not very convenient if you're headed there straight from the airport with your luggage. You have to go through security check before entering the building where the expo was held. If at all possible, I would recommended checking into your hotel first and dropping off your stuff before headed there. There was plenty of exhibitors selling last minute race items and souvenirs. If you've forgotten anything, you'll find it here. The starting line was at 14th St NW and Constitution Ave NW. Gear check was just South on Madison Dr. RnR Races usually use UPS trucks for checking in gear bags, but this was the first time that I've seen them use yellow School Buses. The entrance to the buses were small and the volunteers were unable to accept bags as quickly as they normally do at other RnR races. So there were long lines just to check your bag. Portpotties were a plenty, however they placed most of them in the starting corrals. This caused problems with lines because people are still trying to use them when the race started. The course was deceptively challenging. Almost after every turn, you're faced with a steady climb. I loved all of the sights and the areas that we covered over the 26.2 miles. Marathoners run about the first 12 miles with the half marathoners. Both races finished at the RFK Stadium.

I made ALL the newbie mistakes, y'all. Mostly it was a lack of attention to details on my part…read morebecause residency is kicking my butt so hard right now, but a lot of this could have been better. I got rushed into registering because of price increases but then there was this super incredible sale in December. Missing a deal is always so devastating. Then I forgot about the marathon until almost March. Turns out that weight lifting does not prepare one for a marathon. I failed to ask if my friend was allowed to bring my waiver and collect my bib (the answer is yes). I also failed to clarify whether we could pick up our packet on race day (the answer is also yes). I subsequently spent almost three hours in traffic roundtrip with the sole purpose of collecting my bib during the health expo and jetting home. I failed to check the start times of street closures and had the Uber drop me off 2 miles from the start line at o'really early in the morning. I failed to bring sunglasses. I failed to eat enough breakfast or the provided pre-race bananas and became hungry as soon as I crossed the start line. I slept fitfully for about 4 hours and woke up thinking about work so I arrived at the race already feeling super lousy. I failed to bring an extra listening device in case of limited battery on my phone, which happened even though I had it on battery saver, and this enabled me to brood in silence for like, 14 miles, on the bane of my existence that is residency. The weather was 33 and sunny: still cold enough to freeze your sweat but sunny enough to give you a sunburn. With a start time of 0700, my corral (4) crossed at 0703. My friend did the half, but her corral (17) didn't cross until almost 0900 with a start time of 0830. We spread out super quickly and I imagine this is why so many people are able to PR on this course. Very limited sideways running. Can't say the same for the half marathon. There were definitely more people and a hell of a lot more walkers. Minor hills here and there. The pot-holed pavement route wasn't ideal, even for pavement runners. There were positives: There was so much food from the neighborhood cheering squads! I had cinnamon rolls, donut holes, and candy upon candy. There were also offerings of adult beverages and other food goodies. The signs and encouragements were great! My favorite was a lady on a megaphone: "You guys are sooo fast! You're faster than everybody behind you!" And two things I did right: Bringing a checked bag with warm clothes (which also helped hold my post-race goodies) and grabbing a free slice of pizza (might only be for marathoners). Next time: Pick up water and bananas pre-race. Look at street closures and times they close and reopen. Pick up bib on race day. Consider gloves (my hands never warmed up the entire race). Bring a light jacket in case it gets cold during the run (which it did wherever there was shade). I don't have a habit of training mostly due to lack of willpower and exponential hunger after four miles but since this is a near ideal course to PR or qualify for Boston, I'd consider it. Get dropped off or park closer to the start (I'm still not a fan of having to shuttle from the finish line parking by 0530, which leaves an hour and a half of waiting before start time). Have no work obligations and stay for the concert. I really wanted to poo-poo this race. The medal was not a stunner, the organizers took out the finisher jackets, and there were many stretches of silence. But overall it was very well organized, the spectators were phenomenal, and the optimal chance of PRing alone deserves stars.

This was my first triathlon, and I had a blast. I'm tempted to give it 5 stars because I had such a…read moregreat time, but there were definitely a few things that I thought could be improved. This review will probably be some combination of race report and review. The swim portion is first, and instead of the usual mass start, they did a time trial start, where about 8 people jumped off the dock every few seconds. I thought this was a much better system because it helped alleviate some of the kicking and elbowing that inevitably happens when you have waves of 100 people starting together. I just wish they had done a better job of communicating what a time trial start was for newbies; we basically knew that they were changing the swim entrance, but had no idea until we got there exactly how it would work. I ultimately found this method better though, so no real complaints. Plus, my swim time was faster than I had ever been able to swim that distance before, and faster than I've been able to swim it since, so that was definitely good for the ego. The bicycle portion was up next, and this was by far my least favorite part of the race. The course was very technical, with four 180 degree turns for the sprint distance, and eight 180 degree turns for the olympic distance (olympic distance participants just did two loops of the sprint bike course). I'll admit that my bike handling skills leave a bit to be desired which definitely contributed to my not liking the course, but even some more experienced athletes I talked to thought 8 180 degree turns in 25 miles was a bit excessive. Another complaint about the bike course was potholes. Lots and lots of potholes, including in the tunnel they had us go through, where you could easily not spot one if you were riding fast and wearing sun glasses. I don't think anyone got seriously injured, but there were some tumbles, and I passed several people who were either changing flats or riding on rims. Best part about the bike course was riding along streets closed to traffic. It felt really awesome to cruise down the Whitehurst Freeway on my bicycle, without a car in sight. Last portion was the run, 10K for olympic distance and 7.5K for sprint distance, significantly longer than the typical sprint distance of 5K. The sprint distance was increased a couple days before the race from 6.7K to the 7.5K. Running is easily my strongest of the sports, so I had no problem with the longer run; I saw it as giving me more of a chance to make up for what I knew would be a crappy bike time. For people who don't love running though, finding out the week of the race that they have to do an extra half mile was a pretty unpleasant surprise. Also, the race organizers never emailed the participants to notify them of this change; only people who checked the website regularly would have found out. Seems like it wouldn't have been to hard to send a mass email out. The run was relatively flat though, and took us past some fun DC sights, so I enjoyed it. One other random complaint is that although the expo and packet pickup started at 10AM the day before the race, bike racking didn't open until 1PM. I found that kind of annoying, and of course forgot that bike racking started so late, went there right after getting my packet...oops. Packet pickup was a breeze though, with no lines and helpful volunteers. Overall, I thought this was a great first triathlon, and I look forward to doing it again next year!