North Olympic Discovery Marathon

I really liked this course. It is a bit hilly, but I trained for that so it was good. A lot of it is through wooded areas which I liked the most - shaded, quiet, pretty. There are a couple of very hilly portions that you should scope out and be prepared for (either run/walk the course beforehand if you can, or look at an elevation map) which can be tough on quads on the down and even tougher on the up. But the last 3 miles are flat and cool along the shoreline. There are some parts where you run through suburbs, but it's all clear and any traffic crossings are well marked and they have staff to make sure you are OK.

I REALLY liked the spectators as there were plenty and they would cheer for you as you ran past. My favorite thing to do was to repeatedly raise my arms (raise the roof style) when I would approach a group of spectators and they would seem to appreciate my appreciation and would go nuts! Lots of high fives from kids which was great.

Most trail portions are easily acceptable so if there are certain parts you want to scope out before you run, it's mostly easy to access. It was also very good for a support team. So I had my wife and a couple of friends meet me about every 10K to hand off/drop off water, fuel, etc. and also keep me posted on how I was placed and where my top competitors were (how far ahead/behind, etc.). This was really nice to see familiar faces multiple times throughout the race and parking for them was easy (at around 6.3, 13.1, 20 and the finish). In spite of the somewhat challenging course, I placed second in my age group and got my BQ.

Organizers were great, packet pickup was easy, plenty of bathroom spots along the way and small enough event to where I never saw any lines or people waiting. After party was fun and medical staff was very attentive.

I would suggest getting a pace plan for elevation changes. Map out the course on Garmin and then get a Pace Pro for elevation changes and STICK TO IT! You are going to feel really good at the start, but the hills between 16 and 21 are going to wreck you if you don't stick to your race plan. Train for hills so you are not totally surprised. Fuel and hydrate.

Weather was perfect for me this year, and everything went really smooth (but the hills at the end really took it out of me, more than I had anticipated.

We stayed at the hotel at the start which was really nice because I could just walk downstairs, do my warm-ups and start the race without having to use a gear bag or have my wife hold my stuff. This was really nice, BUT... after the race I really wanted to take a shower, change clothes and feel normal again. My friends got a hotel at the finish line which I was able to use to grab a shower and change. Since this is a point to point, I'm not sure if it is better to stay at the start (like I did) or at the finish (so you can grab a shower and change). If you are lucky and have friends coming with you, get both, lol!

This was an incredible small town race with beautiful scenery throughout much of the course. I was very impressed with the planning and organization of it-the race organizers know what they are doing. Volunteers were absolutely fantastic and there are supporters that cheer you on through many of the accessible sections.

Race day weather was perfect in my opinion. Overcast and high 40's at the start and maybe only a few degrees hotter by the finish. Before the start of the race it was raining just a little bit, but having the casino to hang out indoors before the start was absolutely ideal. Also, real bathroom and plenty of them!

Most of the course is on a single well-paved track, although some sections of the path are a little run down (gravel and cracked). There is also a small section in the first half (maybe 2-3 miles) run through a town, but plenty of cones set up and volunteers to stop cars as you cross the city streets. The first half of the course has some subtle elevation gain and loss and you may not even notice much if you have trained on hills. Miles 16-22 in the second half are more noticeable. I felt like I was going up and down and up and down, some quite steep (I remember 3 separate hill sections that were quite steep during these miles) but definitely doable if you have some hill training as their durations are fairly quick. Mile 21-22 has quite a steep downhill that might pound your quads and feet a little, but then it is flat after that along the water into the finish. So come prepared for some elevation gain/loss, but don't stress too much about it as the most difficult hills are all fairly short.

Aid stations were set up about every two miles (not on the dot so like mile 3.2 or 5.6 etc). Very organized with plenty of friendly and enthusiastic volunteers cheering you on. Water and Gatorade at each aid station, and sometimes some gels as well. There were also several porta potties set up along the course.

Something I struggled a bit with was the mile markers. My watch died early so it was my own fault, but I only a noticed small flags on the side of the course maybe every 2-3 miles and only knew I had made it halfway because of the chip timer. Also, I didn't notice any mile markers at the aid stations, so sometimes I had a hard time keeping track of when I needed water from a station and when it was time for a gatorade, according to my fueling plan.

Finish was fantastic. So beautiful running along the water and the finish line had tons of people cheering. After race snacks were awesome. Great variety and tons of it.

I travelled from California, so logistically this race was a bit difficult to get to for me. It took me about 9 hours total to get there from start to finish! It is about 2 1/2 hours from Sea-Tac airport and a beautiful drive, but took a bit longer because of traffic and construction. Sea-Tac was very crowded and apparently is always crowded according to the employees I talked with-plan at least an hour just to rent a car. I stayed at the Olympic Lodge which was nice but a little pricey. Also there was a Safeway and Walmart, and plenty of restaurants to choose from. If you don't mind the travel time and you don't have a quick turn around time and can stay a couple days, then this is definitely part of the country that is worth visiting and definitely a race I would recommend!

The race is in a beautiful area of the country, and gives a perfect opportunity to visit incredible Olympic National Park if you are from out of town like we were. The course is 2/3 spectacular, with wooded trails, multiple river crossings, views of the snow capped mountains on the left and water on the right. There is a middle section of roughly miles 5-11 through Sequim that is just ok. The weather was near ideal. This is a small race, but has really great local support. Indoor pre-race staging at the casino to keep warm and have real bathrooms, which is a huge perk. The water stops have different themes with enthusiastic volunteers. There was a drumming circle near the top of the hardest hill to help you keep driving hard. They add and extra "First Marathon" bib for new runners, which leads to extra encouragement and makes a nice keepsake. The medal is by a local artist and really nice. The post race food/beer on the pier is great. They use Racejoy app, which is really cool. Free race photos, available same day!

Hills are mostly gradual, with a few steeper hills that are mostly short. There is a tough steep downhill to a river and back up between miles 20-21. Drummers at the top, which is cool. Then a nice downhill between 21-22 to the edge of the water and flat in from there. You can see the finish from a long ways out as you run along the bay- almost too far!

Staying at the Red Lion (which hosts the expo and is at the finish line) is very convenient. Michael's restaurant a few blocks away is a nice, cozy dinner with very good seafood and service.

There is time (barely) for someone to watch the marathon start, get back to the finish area, and take the shuttle to the 10K start to run.

Best small town race ever! Best volunteers, best finish line and best community spirit.