This was my first time at the Milton Keynes marathon weekend and my second marathon. Registration and pre-race setup was straightforward. We drove down on the day and paid for parking at the National Bowl which is about 25 minute walk away (in the morning, after the races in the afternoon it was a different story). Once at the stadium there were plenty of toilets and space around to sort yourself out and bag drop was easy and smooth.

As we all lined up in our pens I struggled to find the marathon pacers, the half marathon pacers were easier to find with their flags. Other than that the race was great, there was local support almost all the way along the route and it is quite picturesque. The elevation isn't huge by any stretch of the imagination but those short, sharp rises and falls around the underpasses started to hurt the legs. There is an incline towards the end but I personally didn't find it too bad, everything hurt by that point so flat, uphill or downhill it was all pretty painful. The stadium finish is pretty cool as you run around the pitch. It was all well organised once you crossed the finish line as well to collect your medal, water, t-shirt and finally your bag. A special mention to the lady who handed me my medal and gave me a big hug as I was in tears.

Overall it was a well organised evernt that took us on a nice route around Milton Keynes with lovely local support. Definitely a race I would consider entering again both for the full or the half and maybe even take part in the 5k to get the additional medal.