Running with the Devil Marathon

This marathon is run in the desert outside of Las Vegas in late June, over the steep rolling hills of Lake Mead National Park. Needless to say, this marathon is a challenge for even the most experienced marathoner. I ran this race in 2012, and although the temperature was only in the high 90s and did not climb above 100 degrees as in previous years, it was still an extremely challenging race. With a very small field (less than 100 combined in the full marathon and ultra), this race was designed only for the experienced (and slightly insane) marathoner.
Even though this is a smaller event, it was very well-​organized. The packet pick-​up was easy. The race organizers require that all runners carry water, and they give you a cool Polar water bottle for that purpose (I elected to wear a Camelbak). The course support was AMAZING… the volunteers were the most friendly and helpful I’ve ever experienced in a race. They provided ice, water, and a generous amount of snacks at each stop. At one stop, the volunteer offered to fill my Camelbak with ice and water for me while I helped myself to snacks and cooling ice water for my hat. The T-​shirt and medal were very nice for a race this size.
Congratulations to the folks at Calico Racing for putting on a stellar event. I look forward to running more Calico Racing events in the future!