The Bermuda Half Marathon is part of the Bermuda Marathon Weekend. The first race is on Friday night and is the Front Street Mile right through the heart of Hamilton. The runners were split into 5 different waves that started about 4 minutes apart. After the amateurs, then the organizers had some elite runners run the same course. Finally, and probably the best part, local school kids ran the course after qualifying. It was a fun evening with huge crowd support.

Saturday morning saw the second race, a 10K. The loop course started and finished at the Bermuda National Stadium. The course has lots of rolling hills, not bad, until the mile 5 marker which starts a significant hill. Save some gas for the final mile. Crowd support was nice and there were a couple of water stations on the course. I liked finishing on the track of the national stadium. The announcer calls out the name of each runner as s/he approaches the finish line.

Sunday is the big day: the full and half marathons. The races starts and finishes on Front Street in Hamilton. The loop is 13.1 miles with the full marathoners running 2 loops. The pre-race atmosphere is festive with a DJ laying up tempo dance music. There are no pace setters or corals. You line up based on where you think you should start.

The course has some rolling hills, but nothing too bad. The biggest hill is right at the mile 1 marker but is doable. There are enough water stations, but I recommend carrying a water bottle, especially if it is sunny and warm. It was about 68F and sunny when I ran in 2019. The scenery is just wonderful with great views of the ocean all along the course.

Crowd support is good for most of the race especially in the residential areas. The final 1.5 miles or so goes through the commercial part of Hamilton until the very end.

The announcer tries to call out the runners' names as each crosses the finish line. That is pretty cool. Post-race food included oranges, water, sports drink, sweet breads, and pea soup. Results were put up quickly. The DJ played music and the finish area was upbeat in general.

There are plenty of toilets but plan for a line just before the start.

If you complete the mile, 10K and either half or full marathon, then you get a special fourth medal showing that you completed the Bermuda Triangle Challenge.

I ran the Ellicottville Half Marathon as my first marathon. Ellicottville is a nice little community in the ski country of western New York. Buffalo is the closest large city and is about an hour away. Between the half marathon and the 5K race, there were about 1,200 runners. Many of the 5K runners wore costumes due to Halloween being only 4 days away. The whole atmosphere from pre-race to post-race was fun.

The weather did not cooperate at all. It was rainy and in the upper 30s for the entire race. It would have been nice to have a heated area for the pre and post-race activities. (The average high in Ellicottville is in the mid-50s in late October. I hope next year’s weather is more seasonable.)

Packet pickup went smoothly at the Ellicottville Brewing Company restaurant. There were plenty of volunteers to distribute packets/bibs and give directions to the starting area. The DJ played a good mix of up-tempo songs to help the runners stay energized.

The race started on time with plenty of pace setters throughout the crowd. There was no elite division and people mostly lined up with the pace setters. The first mile or so went through Ellicottville and then quickly ran into the country.

Most of the race took place on rural roads. Sheriff’s deputies helped at the major intersections and volunteers at the other smaller intersections. All of the vehicles that I saw were respectful and safe. There were plenty of aid stations with water and Gatorade. I carried my own water bottle and did not use the aid stations. A few stations also had port-a-potties.

There are rolling hills throughout the entire course but no real mountains. You, however, should have some hill work in your training. Several folks set up small cheering sections throughout the course. My favorites were the bagpipe & drummer in full kilts. Another kind soul was handing out free beer to runners. I stuck to water during the race.

Post-race was a little chaotic with many people trying to warm up in the over-crowded Ellicottville Brewing Company. I was soaked, cold, and close to hypothermia once I stopped running. Luckily, my wife had parked near the EBC and I ended up changing in my car. This presented some interesting privacy issues, but modesty took a back seat.

There were fruit, snacks, and warm chili for runners, as well as water. I thank the race organizers and the EBC for the warm food.

The finisher’s medal was huge and cool. I enjoyed wearing it all afternoon and evening. My family, friends, and I went to a restaurant down the street from EBC. The EBC had a 1 hour wait for a table while the other restaurant sat us immediately. I think the weather forced everyone inside which slammed the EBC. A warmer, sunnier, day would have eased the pressure on the EBC.

I will cheerfully run the EVL half marathon again so long as the weather is better. The race organizers did a fine job under the circumstances and the course is quite picturesque with lovely mid-autumn panoramas.