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Boulder Backroads Marathon Runner Comments
Back to Boulder Backroads Marathon Information & Reviews
Course 4.1 
Organization 3.5 
Spectators 3.3
Number of comments: 89 [displaying comments 11 to 21]
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K. H. from Colorado
(10/22/2012)
 "Expect Lots of Hills" (about: 2012)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 Boulder Backroads Marathon
COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 5 The race website describes this a relatively flat course, but there is over a 1000' in elevation gains. If you are going to run this race, you must integrate lots of hill training or you will end up with leg cramps from the steep grades, especially a long slow elevation gain from mile 18 to 21. The race was generally well organized except the finish was over uneven ground and the sharp elevation increase within the final 100 feet was a complete joke. | |
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C. B. from Littleton, CO
(10/22/2012)
 "Still haven't figured it out" (about: 2012)
11-50 previous marathons
| 2 Boulder Backroads Marathons
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 3 I want to like this race and have run the full and half marathon previously. I ran the full again this year and they have made some things better others are still poor. The Good: They started earlier (7 AM) to beat the heat (beautiful weather for October!). The bad: they ran out of timing chips days before the race so you had to pick up one on race morning after sitting in a line for an extremely long time. As always if you run the marathon and finish in the 4 hour range don't expect any food because the 5 mile and 1/2 marathoners got it all. I wish the organizers of this race would take lessons from the Bolder Boulder organizers because they just don't get it right. | |
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J. D. from Denver, Colorado
(9/19/2011)
 "Beautiful Boulder" (about: 2011)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Boulder Backroads Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 Wow! Great organization, awesome T, good course support and BEAUTIFUL scenery! Folks - this is a tiny one with lots of rolls and a great warm up for a later fall marathon. Didn't like the last quarter mile through a 'weedy' grassy section to the side of the parking lot. Oranges and bananas were gobbled up by the half marathon finishers so there were none left when I arrived and I was NINTH! Otherwise, Bravo, team. Good job. Thank you! | |
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V. A. from Colorado
(12/31/2010)
 "Skip this one. Still too many problems." (about: 2010)
3 previous marathons
| 1 Boulder Backroads Marathon
COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 1 Where to start? I decided to run this race because it was close and the Blue Sky Marathon in Ft. Collins was closed. Problems: timing system. You have to wear this archaic-looking band - either on your wrist or ankle. The director said he "invested in a system." Well... it's time to get a new one. It starts to feel really bulky after awhile and cuts into you. Also, there were only two checkpoints, and my time wasn't even recorded on one! AND they don't post results. It's way too expensive for what you get. I just didn't see it. There wasn't any food left for the back-of-the-packers. There was still an hour or so left on the course. I got brown bananas and the last orange piece. Fans were extremely sparse, but encouraging. The course certainly isn't friendly for your family seeing you throughout. Parking was odd - we were in one of the first cars but didn't get prime parking. The course isn't all that scenic, really. Bottom line: do yourself a favor and pick another race. You won't regret it. | |
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D. G. from Golden, CO
(8/7/2010)
"Disappointing race" (about: 2009)
4-5 previous marathons
| 2 Boulder Backroads Marathons
COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 1 This is a POOR race. Don't be fooled by the runner-crazy location - pick another race or you'll be disappointed. I ran this as a half in '08 and a full in '09. The organizers made a big deal about how good the food would be in '09. Wrong! I finished over 4 hours, and all they had were some white buns and weak bagels. 'Real' food? Pizzas you could BUY for $1. Are you kidding? For your $80+ fee you don't get food? I would have paid at that point, but DUH. I don't carry cash during a race and my car was parked too far away to go get it. VERY disappointing. Medical support looked good, however, as I saw at least a half-dozen people being treated, likely for heat-related injuries. They should start the marathon at 7, not 8. | |
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S. A. from Cincinnati, OH
(11/5/2009)
 "It's a HOT one!" (about: 2009)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Boulder Backroads Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 This was a good race, and there were definitely difficult parts that were to be expected in Colorado. The altitude and heat were a lot more challenging than I thought. The course, start time, and organization of the mile markers left much to be expected. | |
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K. M. from Broomfield, CO
(11/2/2009)
 "Don't do it! Suggestions for better CO Marathons" (about: 2009)
6-10 previous marathons
| 2 Boulder Backroads Marathons
COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 3 I was fooled by the hype about the new race director, new sponsors, new traffic flow, etc. Unfortunately its the same miserable race with the worst organizers imaginable. Why? First of all, they have not given promised medals to many of the winners for several years now - including 2009! Need more? How about running out of water, only filling the cups 1/4 full, and running out of food. I still have three scars on my ankle from the chip timer that cut me - that's never happened to me after over 50 races. Need more? The late start in a hot September under dusty conditions can really compound the lack-of-water problem. Several dozen finishers actually refused to accept the medal at the finish out of protest. The race director never even showed his face the day of the event. | |
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c. m. from Boulder
(10/6/2009)
"Poor organization" (about: 2009)
2 previous marathons
| 1 Boulder Backroads Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 2 I have been racing for 25+ years (second marathon, lots of halfs, etc.), and this was by far the most poorly organized race I've run. The heat was a factor, and not the fault of the organizers, but they were unprepared. An email was sent out claiming that it was much hotter than predicted, but that is not the case. I watched the weather all week and it was clear that it was going to be very hot for a marathon. With that knowledge, I went equipped with water, and I'm glad I did. But racers should not have to carry their own water and/or have family meet them along the way for more water in order to complete a race. We have paid a substantial entry fee. Running out of water, which happened at several stations, is just not acceptable. The relay race also introduced some problems: Vans carrying runners to their transition points kicked up dirt, slowed down right in front of runners, and blew their horns at marathoners (!) and the relay racers stood in the middle of the road waiting for their teammates, forcing marathoners to literally push through the crowd. Cresting the last big climb, just after 20 miles, I had to shoulder my way through runners just standing in the way. Please, start the race earlier (I'd rather deal with parking in the dark then running in the heat), make sure you have adequate supplies (hey, aim for having too much water, and food at the finish), and nix the relay - it's a menace. The shirt and hat are nice, but that's pretty much all that was good. | |
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C. S. from Fort Collins, Colorado
(10/5/2009)
"Not Coming Back" (about: 2009)
4-5 previous marathons
| 3 Boulder Backroads Marathons
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 3 Even though this year was my best time for the three Boulder Marathons I have run, the experience was the worst. Moving the start from 7 a.m. to 8 a.m. makes no sense at this time of year in Colorado. It gets too hot and there were more ambulances leaving with sirens on than I have ever seen. Some of the aid stations were out of water or Gatorade in heat that hit the mid-80s. We stood around and waited for the delayed start while they put together the start/finish line apparatus, all while the temperature rose. The Velcro band with the timing chip for your ankle ended up leaving me with a cut just above my shoe line so I switched ankles mid-race. I saw others who just removed theirs entirely. Then, the run up to the finish line was really poor, through a parking lot in a field, not on a path, trail or road, with three 90-degree turns, and you could not see the finish line until you were right on top of it. The finish line chute has been different all three years that I have run. Can't they get this figured out? There was very little to eat at the finish but I did find enough water there. The course is beautiful and the Buffalo Gold beer tasted great at the finish, but the organization and logistics are poor and I won't be doing the Boulder Marathon again. | |
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T. W. from Lakewood, CO, USA
(9/26/2009)
"Sorely disappointed" (about: 2009)
11-50 previous marathons
| 2 Boulder Backroads Marathons
COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 3 Parking was pretty far from the start. The start line wasn't obvious until only a couple of minutes before the race, and it was delayed since they didn't even have the start/finish line up. The weather was hot, and they RAN OUT OF WATER! And some stations ran out of cups. Absolutely no excuse! I saw the hardcore runners walking a lot more than usual. With the relay situation, it meant a lot of traffic on the dirt roads, which kicked up rocks and dust and was an extra pain in the butt. To add insult to injury, for the slower runners the post-race food was PITIFUL! Green bananas, sliced bread, cold cereal, and some oranges. Beer was packed up. There were no chairs or places to sit other than the ground. |
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