Pros:
That band on the back and out stretch between AK and DHS. They were awesome! At first, I thought it was a DJ - but they were singing and playing live. They were great!
The number of porta potties at the start. Lines were reasonable.
The Osbourne Lights! Incredible. I saw them for Christmas a couple of years ago. The only thing that would have made it better would have been a little fake snow.
I thought that very same thing about the snow - would have been a wonderful little extra touch.
The medal. I like how substantial it is.
The way the snacks were pre-packaged and easy to grab after waiting on the long line.
The CONCEPT of the after-party.
Yes - the concept was awesome. The execution was horrendous. Even if my sister was feeling better, we likely wouldn't have stayed any longer - the lines were ridiculous. We didn't eat or drink anything - I have both sets of our vouchers in my suitcase.
Running through AK - cool vibe.
The home stretch with amazing crowd support.
Also, the cast members all along the route were awesome!
B]CONS: [/B]
The bag check line. Seriously? This isn't rocket science.
We actually didn't have a problem with this at all, but arrived fairly early. I think we were at the staging area by 7:45.
Bag pick up. See comment above. Absolutely awful!!!!!!!!
Agreed. We waited half an hour to get our bags back. The "system" (I use that term very loosely) was absolutely atrocious.
Waiting so long to get that medal. Dang...it's what I waited for and wanted it much sooner after crossing the finish line!
Agreed about the poor lighting in spots.
As much as I enjoy them, Shot Blocks are not "food". How about a Snickers? LOL!
Actually, Shot Blocks are my preferred training "fuel", so I was thrilled that that was what they were offering. Mine were cut open and easy to eat, too. I was not, however, thrilled with the mass quantities of them that I had to dig out of the soles of my shoes the next morning. Gross.