Packet pick up was in a field house and it was basically a cluster thanks to all the cars in one tiny area. Luckily we found a parking spot and headed inside. Most probably will not agree with me but I love expos. I like to see products in person and obtain some samples and just look around. This expo was extremely underwhelming and left us feeling slightly cheated. They did not even have fuel which put us in a bind since Brittney had planned on grabbing some gels. Packet pick up was efficient and the volunteers were very friendly. My Mom had decided to drop down to the 5k due to some knee issues and it was no problem. My big complaint was the shirts. At registration I was excited that they had sizes up to 3X because a lot of times women feel left out when they can’t order their size. However the shirts ran entirely too small. Brittney ordered a medium and ended up taking my 2X shirt while I bumped up and squeezed into my Momma’s shirt that she ordered. That was kind of a bummer so hopefully Divas will work on that issue for future races.

The 5k started right on time and we stood by the starting chute in an attempt to cheer on my Momma. This race used corrals but people sort of stood wherever which was kind of frustrating but it was all for fun so we didn’t really mind. I’m not sure if there was an actual gun start but everyone started running and we followed suit. The first couple of miles were on roads and had a few hills. The hills weren’t like the ones that we have in Knoxville but were more long inclines. We decided to run the first three miles and then switch to run/walk intervals after that. The humidity was out in full force but I’m glad that the race organizers were honest when they said that the course was shaded. The sun was rarely on us at any point in the race.

Around the three mile mark the course switched to a cart path. I honestly wasn’t looking forward to this section but I ended up LOVING it because you never knew what was going to come next and it felt like a casual run on the greenway instead of a half marathon. The only hard part was a few congestion issues but even that was rare. Water stops were plentiful. I read on the Divas Facebook page that some women were complaining about the lack of water stations but Brittney and I would both agree that were far more than any other race we have done. I believe we counted ten and two of them towards the end were only a half mile apart. Given how hot and humid it was, I was beyond thankful for plenty of hydration.

Finally we were within range of the finish line. Some local high school cheerleaders were handing us feather boas and tiaras so that we would look like true divas at the finish line. Brittney and I both passed on the boa but took a tiara. The finish was at the corner of a long incline. There was pink everywhere and so many people yelling and cheering for all finishers. The finish line chute was fantastic. Handsome fireman were there to hand out our medals and they had volunteers there to give us champagne and roses. We were truly pampered like Divas. The post race food selection didn’t have a lot of variety but it was nice to have volunteers to hand us our snacks.