Rock n Roll Half Marathon Tips, Insights?

I've competed in the RnR New Orleans a few times. I believe in the last year or so Competitor series has stepped up their game. There were many, many complaints in years past, abandoned water stations, first aid stations, etc. But this past year's race was much better, still room for improvement, but much better. Actually the price isn't bad. I think you could sign up again for next year's race for $35 for either the full or the half. You can't beat that! Plus for RnR New Orleans, they teamed up with the Louisiana Marathon and gave a challenge medal and all marathon finisher's got an awesome Brook's jacket. Nice swag.

They all pale in comparison to Disney races, but overall, this one isn't bad. In fact I'm doing RnR Nashville in two weeks. I hear this is a nice one. Good luck.

I've done New Orleans a few times plus one Philly half and a DC and I actually find the RnR very comparable to Disney. They are great for newbies because there is more entertainment/distraction then a typical race and they tend to be generally well organized (packet pick up, bag check, course management). But I also have found, they can often advertise more than you get (when it comes to both quality and quantity of bands especially) and there seems to have been some recent business side issues (the volunteer lawsuit and the Cleveland cancellation). That being said I think they're a solid bet for the more established ones (NOLA, AZ, VA Beach, Nashville, DC, Vegas) and avoid the newest ones.

The inaugural RNR in Savannah was my first half, back in 2011. It was run really poorly, but apparently has been much improved since then. I do agree with others that you can only hear the bands for a small fraction of the course. But I would definitely do a RNR event again, just not at full price. There are enough local half marathons in Atlanta that I haven't traveled for another race yet.

Curious if anyone has done the "tour pass" or "global pass" packages where it includes either 4 race registrations or the global pass includes ALL of the race registrations and fees?
Seems like a pretty good deal if you are able to travel quite a bit.

There's been a bit of bad press lately regarding Rock N Roll Raleigh:

http://fittish.deadspin.com/whos-actually-doing-the-donating-at-your-local-charity-1697522978

http://fittish.deadspin.com/oops-competitor-group-did-it-again-1698885485

Thanks Chalmers3716 for posting the story. I've also heard mixed reviews about RnR SAV.
Hopefully the majority of their races are, excuse the pun, better run.

I did the RnR San Antonio December of last year and thought it was fine. When I think about it I can’t think of any issues with the organization and flow of the race. I don’t like the course, but I can’t blame RnR for that as the parts of the course I dislike have more to do with SA and less to do with anything in RnR’s control.

It very much had a large race feel. Big Expo, lots of runners, most of whom did the half, and overall very good support. A much smaller percentage of runners do the full so the second half of the course is not as well supported and at some spots there were large gaps between water stations (probably my only complaint). Pre and Post race staging area was fine, as always I wish there were more porta potties, but that seems to be the case in any race. The staging area is in the Alamodome parking lot and it reminded me of the staging area for Disney (Epcot parking lot).

San Antonio is a destination city so overall SA is good at putting on and coordinating large events. Like I said, overall I thought the experience was very good and I would recommend it. I’m planning on running this years in December.

FFigawi said:

I highly recommend Virginia Beach. Great organization, fun course, and you can go soak your tired legs in the ocean with a beer in your hand right after you cross the line.

Click to expand...

All true, but the year I ran this event, 2012, the weather was brutal - 80F+ at the start, and 80% humidity. Stupidly, I didn't really factor in the weather and I crashed and burned big-time on that course. It's still summer in the South, and it can be rough.

This was my 3rd year for RnR Portland with my 3rd RnR Seattle coming up next month. Portland 2013 was my first half marathon but had done Disney races and several locally based races. I was SUPER impressed in 2013. Organization was top notch, volunteers ROCKED, the Expos were great, gear check with the UPS trucks was awesome and felt secure and the finish line was amazing with everything a tired runner might want.

But the biggest thing was the MUSIC. Portland really did have music almost every mile, though some of it was more acoustic in nature, it was still appreciated. The Seattle course doesn't allow for that because of the freeway stretches, but still, the music was adequate.

2014 races were also well organized and great events.

2015 Portland - not so much. Expo was small and the music was boring. (I volunteered -which was fun! -but we had to listen to generic DJ music for 4 hours.) No UPS trucks, but the gear check was still well organized. But not nearly as many cheer groups on the course as years past, the med stations were not provided with biofreeze, tylenol or ibuprofen (I was hurting during this run), nor was there biofreeze at the finish med tent. I finished in the last 25% of the pack for the half; there was still good support on the course for water and fuel and I was grateful to be greeted by smiling volunteers at the finish line with my medal, water and chocolate milk. But I would have liked a banana or a bagel, and they were out. I found out later that earlier runners also had Jimmy John sandwiches at the finish - which I don't think I could have eaten! - but it still would have been nice for some of the last finishers as we are out on the course for a long time.

There was a new course this year, which was great in some aspects, but we also ran by some really nasty areas with lots of trash and strong smells of urine. But the biggest problem with the course this year was the LACK OF MUSIC. We ran by 3 bands and 2 DJ's. That was it. Over 13.1 miles. More music was provided by the awesome spectators in the neighborhoods where we ran.

I was going to get a tour pass for 2016, but if Seattle 2015 has the same lack of music on the course, I won't be doing RnR races in 2016. I'll do another Disney race or other destination type race, such as Yellowstone, Honolulu, etc. I used to enthusiastically tell people that they should think of RnR as the perfect first distance race; I'm withholding that comment for now.

I'm doing the 8K on Saturday, and today's expo was just about the nicest expo experience I've had. Close second was the Seattle Half expo. There was a long line to get in right at noon, but that would have been better if I'd gotten off the bus where I meant to get off (Royal Brougham way) instead of where I ended up (King Street Station), which required us to walk alllll the way around the stadium and past the line to get into the line.

Hoping the 8K is as well organized as the expo was!


Only thing I was sad about is that they didn't have a sticker for that distance. DS told me to get the Half and "pretend"... I've done that mileage and I have a sticker. I've done a 10K and have that sticker. I've done a 10 miler and have THAT sticker! I haven't done an 8K race, and I wanted that sticker. Oh well, apart from the running shorts from Sweet Spot, I made it out of there cheaply!



ETA: if there's one thing I regret it's not doing the Portland 10K! Doing that, plus Seattle, plus the Vancouver 10K would have gotten me the Cascadia medal (yes, even those distances). I thought that it couldn't be THAT great a medal, but I was so wrong. That's an awesome medal. Their challenge medals are VERY nice. Lesson learned!

Has anyone run or heard anything about the RnR Half Marathon in Montreal? I'm considering that one in conjunction with a family trip to Montreal this fall. I'm mostly curious about the following:

--How hilly/flat is the half marathon course? I read a review of the full marathon course that mentioned the first half of the course was pretty flat. It looks like the first half of the marathon course is also the half marathon course, but I'm not sure if the course has changed.

--Is this one of the "well-managed" races? I read some reviews online saying the 10k a couple of years ago was a bit of a disaster, but it looks like the half marathon has been overall well managed.

--Are race signs/announcements only in french? I don't speak french (but I do speak other languages); I can normally stumble through reading basic instructions in french, but I'm curious if this will be a real challenge at this race.

I wouldn't worry too much about the signs being in French. It's hard to miss the big banners for the start and finish lines. Kidding aside, you'll be fine. I ran the full in Madrid a few years ago, and it wasn't hard to figure out what was happening or where to go. The nice thing about non-US races is the course markers being in kilometers. They tick off much faster than miles do.

FFigawi said:

I wouldn't worry too much about the signs being in French. It's hard to miss the big banners for the start and finish lines. Kidding aside, you'll be fine. I ran the full in Madrid a few years ago, and it wasn't hard to figure out what was happening or where to go. The nice thing about non-US races is the course markers being in kilometers. They tick off much faster than miles do.

Click to expand...

All excellent points

Anyone running Vancouver?

Re-read through the thread....

almacdonald said:

The finish line was chaotic but pretty efficient. They gave you your medal, mylar, banana, power bar, chocolate milk, peanut butter, pretzels etc. then shooed you out the end of the secure zone. (There was pretty much nothing left by the time the last marathoners came through.) I got my time engraved on my medal for an extra $20. There was no family and friends meet-up area. So have a plan beforehand.

Click to expand...

Since Seattle had the start and finish for all races in the same places (and starts at the same time), I can agree that the finish is chaos! By the end (and I didn't take everything) I had no more hands for anything! Overloaded with stuff!

Seattle had alphabetical meet-up areas, so it depends on city.

VAfamily1998 said:

Corrals were a mess. No strict enforcement, it's self reported, plus they were not stopping anyone from going into a corral higher than their bib anyway.

Click to expand...

Definitely.

Seattle had 40, I believe, corrals. My bib said 37. As the time approached I noticed that there were NO other 8K people in 37. Asked someone, and it turned out that the funky little sticker that said 27 on my bib (and had not been mentioned let alone explained) meant that they wanted 8K people in 27. So I went. And they gave the corral flags to regular people who didn't walk at the same speeds so even though I was up with #27, by the start 28 was next to 27 and I was almost behind 29. Sigh. So that was crazy.

bellrae said:

I would like to do RnR Las Vegas this year. Does anyone here have any insight on how fast that race sells out? (I suspect it is one of the more popular RnR races).

Click to expand...

Hi,

I did the RnR Las Vegas in 2012,2013 and 2014. I think the 2014 HM actually sold out ( maybe 2-3months before) whilst the 2012 & 2013 HMs did not. It certainly became busier in 2014 compared to 2012/2013 ( 48 corrals IIRC in 2014) .However running the strip at night was very cool ( once north of the stratosphere there is less bling until approaching downtown.) The assembly area is across the strip from the Luxor with the start line south of mandalay bay and the finish line is at the mirage

Regards

TBS

I am really not a fan of RnR as an organization and prefer to find local races put on by the locals for charity as opposed to for-profit national organizations. That being said I have had both good and bad experiences with RnR in general.

I have signed up for two races that were canceled (Pittsburgh and Cleveland) and one that changed dates (Cleveland a different year). They really need to stick to their commitments and not announce races they apparently don't have permits for.

I ran Chicago and it was not good. The course wasn't spectacular, there was very little music, and the organization was terrible.

I ran Nashville, VA Beach, and Philadelphia and all three were good races. I really like the Philadelphia course and running in the shade along the river.

My biggest issue with RnR is their corporate entity and how they distribute the money we (over) pay for registration. I have decided to only run their events if they happen to line up with trips I already have planned for other reasons. If there is an alternative race in a city I want to run that is the race I'm aiming for.

Since you have a free entry I'll echo what everyone else said and say to choose one of the established races like VA Beach, Philadelphia, Nashville, San Diego, or San Jose. If there is a city you really want to visit that happens to have an RnR race go for it but be prepared for it to have some issues...like the race being moved or cancelled or having the race stopped to allow a train to pass.

Anyone participating in Vancouver this weekend?

My son and I are running the 10K together, and I will be doing the Half as well. My first back to back event.




ETA: Managed it! Don't want to do that again any time soon, but I survived. The courses were lovely.

For the Half, the last corral (16) with a long time estimate got to start half hour before the official start time. It was awesome for me, but I felt bad for the runners who only looked at THEIR info and were mystified as to how all of us 16ers got so far into the course and were walking or jogging slower than them so they had to pass us. Then again, if they aren't going to read all course/race info, I'm not going to feel TOO sorry for them. The info was there!

Man the elites are so FAST! The truck went by us about 35 minutes into our run, telling us to move to the right, and not too long after the men just went zooming by. Then another minute or two, and the women started. Amazing.

I only want to run in Canada now. Someone cuts you off or you bump? There are instant "sorrys" exchanged. That doesn't happen that often in other courses I've run! Apparently I'm a latent Canadian b/c I say it, but I rarely hear it back... But not today!

Although I didn't get a banana on either day (stinkin' faster people, taking more than their fair share), I *did* get a space blanket, and that was LOVELY. I think I've gotten ONE of them at rundisney events (the other one that I have I stole from the First Aid tent while volunteering for the January 5K and hiding from the cold before the start in that tent). So that was exciting.

Stanley Park Brewery beer after the finish was great!

Their communication about the shuttles to the 10K start (the whole course was changed not too long before the weekend) could have been MUCH better but I decided to not freak out like I usually do, and guess that it would all work out (or I could just grab a cab LOL), and it did. Yay.