This was the first time for me to run this half and my first back from injury and it didn't disappoint!
The booking process was nice and straightforward and when I needed to check details the support was there over email too.
I arrived at the event at about 7am and parked in one of the designated car parks which cost a £3 donation to charity. The race village was really professional, lots of stalls and a really well organised bag drop - probably the best I've used. The toilets had relatively short queues too which was always welcome!
The race waves were well organised and it was nice to have Kelly Holmes speak on stage near the start line. The only bugbear was from the race start. It was a squeeze for the first 100m or so before opening out.
the course starts with a hill before what felt like almost continuous downhills for the next 5 miles. From then on there's a general flat or inclined route. The final 2-3k is a bit steeper than the rest with a painful hill at km 20, before a nice final 500m through the crowds in the park.
There were plenty of water stations on the course and although I always like to see at least one with some energy drink/gel it's never an issue if there isn't.
The support on the course is genuinely fantastic and really helps with motivation so thank you to everyone who did come out to cheer us on.
I was happy to see a lovely medal at the end and for the first race ever a snood!
what made the day even more special was getting to meet the #visorclub gang. Hopefully there'll be more opportunities to run with the gang again.
was it worth a 4am start and a drive from Bristol despite Bristol half being on the same day? Definitely!