Berlin is of course a large and popular event but it wasn’t my favourite. The atmosphere of the participants was quite different from other races that I’ve done, from being pushed and shoved out of the way by runners and pacers to bad attitudes at the expo. I didn’t experience the same camaraderie I have at other races.

The information sent out before the Race was contradictory and confusing- you can only bring items into the start area if they fit in your bag check bag however you may not have received a bag check bag if you selected a poncho instead.

There was not much of a crowd spectating but that could have been due to weather and elections. The water stations were chaos and I will never forget the sound of crunching cups. I was definitely happy I brought my hydration vest to bypass the drink stations and not rely on them and just run my own race.

The logistics were smooth and picking up numbers at the expo was quick and the start/finish area was well managed and not too crowded. 

It was a great experience being part of a Major but not my favourite race.