The Good: I love the mug. its a neat addition to race swag.
The Bad: There isn't anything 'bad', but if you're traveling for this race parking can be a pain.

Registration and Email Communication:
There isn't a whole lot to say about registration. It was simple and easy to accomplish. I have a lot of my information saved because enmotvive powered the registrations process and I have registered for many enmotive races in the past. *side note, when you go to look for results all results from enmotive races are shown which is helpful and interesting to see all together (but difficult to sort.)

Expo:
My wife and I were talking about how expos have change since 2020. I remember when the entire expo hall would have been filled, but in 2024, there seems to be the title sponsor (BMW), the standard "discount" race gear vendor. A few other booths (in case you wanted to convert to solar while you're picking up your race bib....you can?) Granted, I didn't go to the expo to buy shoes or shop for energy, but it would have been nice to see (or know that I could) a sock vendor.
Since the expo was at the convention center, I was able to take my cheer squad to the Reading Terminal Market. They have anything and everything you could possibly want!

Course and Support:
I have done the Love Run in the past but I don't remember running through Fairmont Park proper. Specifically through the Smith Memorial Arch. It was reminiscent of running through the Brandenburg Gate at the Berlin Marathon.
But most people are here to find out about hills... Yes, there are hills in Philadelphia.
The first hill is at mile 6 (ish?) and is coming off of Kelly Drive and onto Girard Ave. (if you're not familiar once you pass the museum on your left where the 7K splits from the Half that's Kelly Drive...when you get to the bottom, you will have to go up...)
There is another hill at the beginning of mile 11 to get up to Fairmont Park.
The course plays a little game with you during mile 12 where you have a down hill, an up hill, then a down hill again... lovely
The last mile coming up Kelly Drive to the finish line is up hill.

There is ample support on the course. I didn't need anything because I carried my own hydration (and the shorts I elected to wear didn't have a phone pocket...) The volunteers were very energetic despite being covered in water from the runners and the wind bringing a frosty chill.

Side note on the course.
I think all 'big banner' races start and end at the Art Museum. Its iconic... I get it.
Parking is a bit of a bear though.
This go around I elected to stay overnight, rather than driving down in the morning. Usually I pay for parking at one of the garages because its easier than trying to look for parking and running the risk of being late for the start. Finding parking at the start is generally not possible, so you will have to walk a bit.

Finish Line
Love Run did a great job with food vendors at the start/finish. There were food trucks, in addition to a beer garden.
The athlete food was well organized and east to get in and out of.
You can tell that finish line logistics are well planned for this race.
There was an after party about a half mile from the race which was really nice. I didn't go this year because I had other plans, but the after party (separate from the beer garden and athlete food tent) was at a local 'pub' and it looked fun.

Swag (Medal, Shirt, etc.)
I like the mug. I think its a neat addition to race goodie bags.
I would almost rather the mug than a t-shirt. The fact that you get both is a win!
The medal is about average. There isn't anything to 'write home about' but it had the date one it and read love run...

There isn't anything negative about the race. I would recommend this to anyone looking for a tune up race, your first half marathon, a long run with 1100 other people.

The good: It really is a well put together event.
The bad: miles 6 through 8, and 21 through 24.

Registration / Pre-race Communication:
Registration was super simple. Most of my information was saved from previous registrations.
I was not inundated with communication leading up to the event.
I do feel that the event could have promoted its shake out run a little better.

Packet pick up
I was really happy to see that 2023 had an 'expo' feel.
2022 packet pick up was in a running store which had impossible parking and it was not convenient to walk to. The Dorrance was interestingly elegant and was easy to get to (by foot or public transport.)

The Course:
So, 2023 was hot.
It certainly felt over 90 (my garmin read a max of 93)
I can't tell you 2024 will be any better, but 2022 was 73....
The topography (according to my garmin) looks flat and there is no topography on the website for reference. I remember from 2022 there is an interesting up hill at mile 3 and an uphill along the bike path at mile 5 but I completely forgot miles 6 through 8 is this bothersome uphill along a stretch of road. It was not closed to traffic (which I don't know how you would) but its just not great.
In 2022 we passed Rose Larrisa Park and went through this neat little community, but skipped it in 2023.
The loop around (the south side) of the country club is stunning and probably the best part of the run (plus its a nice down hill.)
I'm still not entirely sure why the last third of the race feels like the absolute worst. Its only 30 feet of climb, but it hurt.

Aid stations:
I love volunteers, because the race would be really difficult without them.
That being said, the race director should teach the volunteers how to man the aid stations.
Coolers / Jugs go next to the tables not on, to make more room for the cups.
Stack cups with some card stock between them to get more on the table.
Don't overfill the cups.
please and thank you.
(this is a personal preference, not a rule, put the Gatorade/electrolyte beverage first)

Post Race:
Wide finish area; thank you volunteers with the towels!
I read there would be food and a finish festival...there was a DJ (super polite and engaging) and a few beer tents, there were some food trucks (three) on Francis street.
It was nice to relax ins the grass after the race... I guess it was a festival?

Would I recommend this.
In short, yes.
All in all this is a well put together race.
If the race director can review that section by Silver Spring Elementary school i think everyone would be happier!

The good:

No one brings a crowd like New York. There is something about the energy these spectators bring to an event.
The race directors put athlete safety at the forefront of their decision making.
The bad: I personally had some logistics challenges. All in all though, everything was resolved; BUT, unless you are in the metro area, its not logistically convenient to get to the ‘places’ (Keep reading if you thought ‘the bad’ was going to be about the Hudson.)
The Rest:
I wanted to love this race, and it was a really good race, but I think I had higher expectations that the race could deliver.
I was fortunate enough to have VIP entry, but I didn’t feel VIP until finish.
Packet pick up was not faster (for me) than if I were a regular P.

Race Communication:
On point!
Very communicative and informative (seriously useful, not just advertising!)
Kudos to the race team for appropriate use of communication vehicles.
The race was also very active on social, and responsive!

Expo:
YAY! An actual expo. Well, 8 vendors in a conference hall of a NYC hotel, but I’ll take it.
Free coffee! (YAY!)
There were race sponsors and some last minute essentials. I think gone are the days of wall to wall vendors, but this was nice.
The athlete briefing (which was necessary) could have been completed through a Facebook live (or similar) video, rather than requiring everyone to sit in a briefing hall for 30 – 60 min.
I understand that two things are true:

Not everyone has ‘Facebook’ so an in person option makes race information accessible for all.
By requiring the in person briefing, the race can ‘ensure’ that everyone hears the same message.
I’ve heard the briefing and participated in a lot of races. I don’t feel that I learned anything new, but I appreciate that the event staff want to ensure they are ensuring athlete safety.

Pre-Race thoughts:
Similar to IM races, NYC Tri does not permit morning of bike docking.
They permit you into transition so that you can drop off any last minute items.
I personally found this a bit stressful. They hydrogel I use shouldn’t be made in advance… and it was 103 degrees, SO I opted to bring everything in the morning.
During the briefing it was communicated that only a clear bag can be brought to transition, which was additionally stressful because I have everything in my race bag, then making sure I transfer it tot he clear bag.
I appreciate the safety aspect, but I also have a system lol.
The nice part about all of this was I could have spent all day walking back and forth to transition to make sure everything was ‘just right’

Race Morning thoughts:
The window to enter and be in transition was a bit narrow, but at the same time appropriate. I was able to set up everything, fill my bottles, double check, get a picture etc.

The Solutions tent was near the start line which makes and abundance of logistical sense. I would have LOVED a solutions tent near transition, or the athlete village. I needed the solutions tent which is why I am so passionate about placement, but I’ve also been part of setting up races, and where it was located made sense.

The swim was in the Hudson. The Hudson is a river in a MAJOR metropolitan area. THE metropolitan area (if I may be so bold.) THAT being said, the water wasn’t as bad as you would think.
Yes there were things floating in the water.
Yes my white tri suit was brown.
No I wouldn’t do it again.
Yes, if you’ve never done it before, just do it.

There was so much support in the water. It was actually impressive. This, alone, is a reason to opt in for this race in the future.

The athlete village layout and the distance from the start was interesting. I would like to see 2 things:

Athlete Village / restrooms closer to start
IF the whole village isn’t able to move, there should be a VIP area closer to the race start.
DISCLAIMER there was really only a short distance between athlete village and start; however, I feel that if they were closer, I would have felt more at ease has I not needed to walk back and forth…
Transition was no issue.
Bike course was no issue, no hydration stops, but that was expressly communicated.

The run course started on a hill, which didn’t feel like it stopped until the finish line.
Great support (water stops).
Its NYC, great support from the crowd.

As indicated earlier, I was a VIP, and the finish area for VIPS was really nice.
Private bathrooms (the kind that look like a trailer and are really similar to a real potty…not the blue ones you see at construction sites or race starts….)
Free coffee (thank you ladies)
wonderful spread of food.

Most definitely a step up from a traditional ‘finish festival’
I was tempted to walk over to the regular finish line festival, but at the same time I was happy in my not crowded VIP area.

Getting back to transition to get my bike was the next obstacle I needed to tackle.
The race advertised shuttles and one person seemed to know where they were.
No one else.
The volunteers (while enthusiastic and generally helpful) pointed in a random direction which lead out of the park.

By the time I was able to get the website up and see that the shuttles were on 67th street I was on 77th and closer to the subway (which worked out because the ‘C’ train left me closer to where I parked my car.)

Another recommendation, have signs which read “transition shuttles’ so the athletes can locate them easier. Or (if possible) have a dedicated VIP one?

Collecting my things and exiting transition was no sweat, and they were validating wrist bands with bike numbers, so all was good there also.

In summery, I would recommend doing this race at least once.
If you’re local, do it every year.