I have participated in this race 4 times since 2013. This is my favorite course and half marathon. It is rural and small (1,100 or so) and only a half marathon.

My profile- I am a male, early fifties, 5'11" about 180 lbs. I can hold about an 8 MM pace for a half marathon.

Favorite parts-
The course. It is all on rural roads in central Tennessee and in the spring when things are just starting to green up. There is traffic on most parts of the course, but it is light traffic. The last 2 miles one lane is coned off for the runners. After about the first 1/2 mile, the road is never crowded with runners, so it is easy to go at your own pace.

Elevation- The course has slight rolls in the first 3 miles. Starting at mile 4 is the ascent up Whisky Hill. It is about a mile long and gets very steep at the top. You stay on top of that ridge with another tough hill at about 6.5 miles. Finally after another uphill at mile 8, the rest of the course is a gradual downhill. This allows for a strong finish.

This year they added a nice wrinkle and timed the mile long ascent up Whisky Hill for a "King of the Mountains" competition.
Weather- All the years I have run, the weather has been exactly what I like. Race starts at 8 am. The morning low has been about 35-40 deg, warming up to about 50 by the end.
Swag- The event is sponsored by Jack Daniels, so the swag is excellent (no whisky, unfortunately). There is a hat or visor, long sleeve tech shirt, and SwiftWick socks that have the event embroidered. The "medal" is engraved wood, which is unique.

Organization- The information before the race is communicated quite well. The parking is limited and there are just a few hotels close by. I am about 90 minutes away, so I drive in race morning. The event starts in the local park, which hosts most of the parking. There is an overflow lot, about 1/2 to 3/4 mile away. I have not used it, so I am not sure about the transportation.
Packet pickup is easy to do the morning of the event. There are lots of volunteers to it moves quickly. You get your bib and the long sleeve shirt then. Remaining swag you pick up after completing the half.
The start line is on a narrow 2 lane street, so that helps to spread out the start.
They use chip timing, so no need to rush to the front.
On-course- The course is well marked.It is all on blacktop roads that are reasonably maintained. The aid stations are well manned. Only water and gatorade. I believe there are 5 or 6 water stations, so that is a reasonable interval.
There are not many spectators on the route. The last 0.1 miles to the finish line have a loud crowd for that final kick.

I ran my 2nd fastest half marathon this year on this course at 1:46! All miles were sub 8 except for mile 5, which was close to 10 minutes.

Overall, it is my most memorable half marathon experience. When my wife asked afterward how my run was, I said "freakin awesome".

A few statements to qualify my review. I have run 2 full marathons and several half marathons. I enjoy going to Vegas 1-2 times a year. I really enjoy my morning runs along The Strip when I am in Vegas.

I had already met my 2 main running goals for 2016 (sub 4 hour marathon and a sub 1:45 half) when I ran the half marathon in Rock n Roll Vegas in Nov 2016. So I ran this event to celebrate my running season. I was not disappointed with my celebration! If you like Las Vegas and running, this is a must do event.

Course- The course is the Vegas Strip. The event starts just south of The Strip on Las Vegas Blvd. You start off South for a mile or so, then head back north on the west side of Las Vegas Blvd. Soon you are running on The Strip. The event starts in the evening (My corral was about 4:30 pm), so you have the The Strip, closed to traffic to run on . Their were spectators lining both sides of the street. If you like the neon of Vegas, this is a wonderful experience.

The street lights provided enough light enough to avoid potholes, which there were very few. The course does get much quieter between The Strip and Freemont street. Miles 7-10 did not have the neon to keep you pumped up.

About mile 9, you make a brief run through the Freemont Street area. You don't get to see much of it, but the brief crowd and high-fives are just enough to keep you motivated for the home stretch back down Las Vegas Blvd to the finish line. The finish line was great!! it is right in front of the Mirage. They Mirage Volcano was very active as I was approaching. How could you keep from finishing strong?

The course if very flat. I live at about 900 ft elevation and the 2,000 ft Vegas elevation did not seem to affect me.

My only compliant about the course is that the runners were congested for the first 1.5 miles and was in corral 5. If you are going for a time, get in a very early corral or plan on a slower pace for the first mile or so.

People- = I spent a lot of the run chatting with my fellow runners. I talked to people from all over the world- Canada, England, Denmark, many US States. One man in his 30s was a great inspiration. He started running after having a heart attack. He realized he needed to get in shape to see his kids grow up. He has since completed 6 marathons. That has really stuck with me.

There were many people in costumes. There were several Elvises (Elvi?). One great costume was a runner I passed. He had a full Captain America costume, holding a full shield in one hand, and a large American flag with a 4-5 foot staff in the other. There is a "run through wedding" at Ceasar's PAllace (About mile 4)

Weather- The weather was unusually warm for Vegas that time of year. It was in the mids 70s at the start. This affected everyone. I ran a little slower than I planned and I had just gotten through along Alabama summer.. The Canadians I saw in the course were really struggling.

Organization- It is a Rock n Roll event, so the organization is very good for such a big event. Imagine the logistics of closing down the strip Sunday afternoon in time for a Sunday evening race with 30,000 runners.

The pre-race information and expo were good. I don't shop at the expos, so I am always a little put out by having to walk through all the vendors after I pick up my packet. I also waited in line to get an armband to show I was 21 for the post race beer. This is only necessary if you do not bring your ID with you when you run. I always keep my license and medical card when I run, so I could have saved the few minutes in that line.

Getting to the start line was a little tricky and at times I wondered if I would make it on time. I left from Treasure Island about an hour before my start time. I rode the monorail down to MGM near the start line. The monorail line was long. The bottleneck was buying tickets for the monorail. After purchasing the ticket, the city did a good job of loading the trains to get people to the start line. It is a bit of walking from the monorail station to the starting area.

They have a concert/holding area for the start. They have 2 classifications to stretch out the start times: color, then corral. They did a good job of announcing this system and the start times for each corral. I was later than I wanted to be getting to the starting area, so I did not hear any of the concert. Snoop Dog is not my type of artist, so I was not rushing to get there early.

I did not use the gear check system.

On course, the aid stations were excellent. These were well stocked and well manned. I heard from other runners after the event that some stations ran low on water, probably because of the unusually warm weather.

The finish line process was well organized. They cleared the finish line with a long (1/2 mile) chute to get medals, snacks, beer, Just be aware that they route you exit on the southeast corner of Ceasar's Place. I was close enough to walk back to my hotel at Treasure Island.

I became a believer i a post run lite beer. The Mic Ultra they passed out at the finish line relaxed my leg cramps and helped with recover.

Overall, a great experience. This was a one time experience for me and one that I will remember fondly.

This was my first marathon. The course was nice, but has changed to be even better. It now takes you through all the sites that Huntsville is known for, including the Space & Rocket Center. The finish is now inside the Von Braun Center Arena, which is a great finishing touch. The course is not too hilly.
Not all the streets are closed to traffic, but they generally have cones to mark off lanes for the runners.

This is a marathon only event with about 1,000 - 1,200 runners.

I also worked as a finish line volunteer for the 2016 race. The medals were spinners this year, which were quite cool.

Parking is no problem. You will be able to park within a few blocks.

The weather is generally cool. The 2013 edition that I ran was about 50 degrees. Rain cleared up just before the run,so it was a little humid. I overdressed so I was hot by the end.

2016 was quite cool, about 30 degrees at the start. But there was little wind and sunny skies, so it was not too bad.

All-in-all, it is a great destination race and you will be treated to warm southern hospitality.