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Mercedes Marathon Runner Comments
Back to Mercedes Marathon Information & Reviews
Course 4.1 
Organization 4.6 
Spectators 3.9
Number of comments: 267 [displaying comments 211 to 221]
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j. l. from Bruswick Ga.
(2/10/2004)
 "Flat-landers beware" (about: 2004)
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 I must start by saying I loved this race. I totaly bombed and ran the worst race of my life, but loved it anyway. The course was A KILLER for us flat-landers but that was my fault, should have ran more hills. 27 degrees at the start, but no one seemed cold. The course was will marked and had split clocks all over the place. The aid stations were manned and stocked even for us back-of-the-packers. The police did a great job with traffic control and even added a little support. The medals are first-rate and I am very proud of mine. I think the course is great. If your not a fan of hill training, it will make a believer out of you. There is very little negative I have to say. First, a better map for spectators would be nice, and allowing them to see the finish would be a nice thing too. The finish line was only accessable if you were with the press. My girlfriend came with me and was not able to see the end of the race. A seven-hour car ride after four months of supporting me and my running, and she was told she could only wait at the exit. The runners' expo was great, but needed a lot more room, and cash registers. Post-race party ran short on food, but was long on BEER. All in all, I think the race organizers did a great job and deserve a huge pat on the back. I'll be back. | |
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E. W. from Okemos, Michigan
(2/10/2004)
 "Hmmmmmmm... like hills?" (about: 2003)
COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 2 This was my sixth marathon and most challenging one to date. Very windy and cold running conditions... race started at 27 degrees and warmed up to a 38 at the finish. The mountain at 17 was a major race stopper... this race is not a good gauge of how one's winter training is going. This was not the same course that the Olympic Trials used. Too cold for any crowds support. Nice city for an early morning jog... too hard to race this one. | |
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D. S. from Western North Carolina
(2/9/2004)
 "Tale of 2 courses" (about: 2004)
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 First 17 miles of the course were flat to gently rolling. After 17 miles, course became hilly, especially 18-20 miles with a series of progressive harder climbs that beat up my quads causing cramps the rest of the way. I ran the 2nd half 20 minutes slower than the 1st half. The organization was first-rate, along with medals, t-shirts (2), expo, and spectators. The Trials the day before were awesome and worth the trip. Recommend making the Mercedes Marathon course more like the trials course (flat and fast). | |
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James Skibo from Dallas, Texas
(2/9/2004)
"Torture... but fun!" (about: 2004)
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 The pros: The organization for this marathon is superb... nothing is left to chance and runner support is there every step of the way. The locals are rather nice as well, most seem naively amazed that anyone would come to their city to run a marathon. It is actually nice. The medal is a jaw-dropper. Last year it was a pewter finished disk with a Mercedes Benz emblem on it. This year it still had the Mercedes Benz logo, but was slightly larger (about 2.75 inches) and 3/8' thick... and chrome plated! I wore it on the plane coming home (Dallas) and got deluged with questions from anyone who saw it... even the stoic TSA guards at the airport. You want to run this one just to get the finisher's medal!! The course is also scenically beautiful most of the way and certainly interesting all of the way. There is no long boring straight line to any part of it. The con: Boy the course is tough. I do like to run it, but I?m a 4+ hour guy who?s happy finishing respectably and healthy. But if you are going for any kind of PR here, forget it. If you are very competitive, I would strongly suggest you drive the course before you run it so you can get your strategies down pat. The new course this year (2004) has basically the same net elevation changes as the 2003 course, but there are a LOT of sharp up-down hills between miles 17-19. They gradually are taking you ever higher to the top of a mountain. In total, you ascend 1,122 feet during the entire course. The first is a 255-foot hill at miles 5-7 and this is a gradual incline along a 4-lane paved highway. After an equally gradual descent you?re relatively level with a few small ups and down through mile 16. Then you begin a series of sharp ascents and descents that take you up to the top of a hill that?s 350 feet above thew course?s starting point. BUT, you have more descents and ascents all the way through mile 21. So between mile 16 and 21, you?ve climbed about 900 feet!!! Yeah, you go down 900 feet too, but it?s the ?UP? part that late in the race that is the ?agony and the ecstasy? of the race. So after whining about that, I?ll say this was my second time for this marathon and I?ll probably do it again just for the challenge it presents because, folks, this one is not an easy one. | |
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S. H. from Alabama
(2/9/2004)
 "Gets better every year" (about: 2004)
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This race is really coming into it's own as a national-class event (maybe on day a world-class event). Of course there were tons of out-of-towners here for the Olympic Trials, and most of them stayed over and ran either the full or half marathon on Sunday. Crowd support was excellent for a bitter cold Sunday morning. The course is still not the easiest, but this is Birmingham... a fairly hilly area. The only way to avoid hills altogether would to have this race run entirely downtown and in boring industrial areas. Every aspect of the race this year went smoothly for me and my family. The kids' marathon on Saturday was a cluster... but what do you expect, with 2,300 kids running a 1-mile race. Too many people in too short of a race... especially with each one of the kids was kept in a 'holding pen' after they finished until a parent/guardian showed the proper ID to pick their kids up. This is actually a great thing... but your kids run for 10 minutes and it takes you 45 minutes to pick them up. Post-race on Sunday was great... tons of barbecue from Jim and Nick's, good bands, and a Mercedes M class was given away. I really think that having the trials here on Saturday and the marathon on Sunday was a big shot in the arm for this community. Now people from all over the country will look at this race as a must-do. | |
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ben kell from McDonough,GA
(2/9/2004)
"Great Course, Expo Needs Work" (about: 2003)
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 This was my first marathon and I thoroughly enjoyed it, running it in 3:53:54, though there were some trouble issues. But I'll share the good stuff first. The course was for the most part easy until the 2 sections of hills, first being around mile 17.5 (a series of semi-short, steep hills through some beautiful neighborhoods) and mile 21 which was a long mile or mile and half of steady uphill followed by a steep downhill (tough on the knees). It was a beautiful course, a lot of old-style million-dollar neighborhood roads. The fan support was spread out in clumps of people, but they were very encouraging and screamed a lot. LOTS of water/Powerade stations (every mile or so). Lots of oranges being handed out by spectators. OK, the stuff that could be changed. The expo was one of the worst I've been to. They needed a lot more room, for starters. There was only one apparel vendor and it was in a corner of the room and very small and crowded. There were people pushing and shoving just trying to look at the clothing. Only 2 shoe vendors, one of which only brought 2 types of shoes. The line to get your t-shirt/timing chip was crowded and it was very difficult to get your shirt, having to cut through a line of people waiting to scan their chip. The marathon merchandise area was impossible to browse because of the limited space and long lines, no prices on items and no one to ask. As for the race, there were very few negatives. The first 2 water stations really needed to be wider, as there was bottlenecking. But after that when we were spread out more, it wasn't a problem. WHERE WERE THE CHEERLEADERS? There were supposed to be cheerleaders at mile 24-25, but they weren't there when they really could've been a pick-me-up. Maybe they left before I got there?? Other than that the race was GREAT! The post-race was ok. There needed to be some kind of Powerbar or supplements, along with more fruit and snacks. The meal was nice. It was extremely boring having to sit around for 2 1/2 hours listening to annoying, loud music just to see if my name was called to win the Mercedes. OK, I'm done griping. The race was great, the temp, though cold before the race, was perfect at race time and throughout the race. The fans, though few, were great. I enjoyed the personal aspect of it knowing they were cheering for me, not just a crowd, and I could talk to them as well. Fluids and gels were plentiful. And it was beautiful! Nice medal too. I would definitely run it again! | |
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Scott 'Ick' Myrick from Birmingham, Alabama, USA
(2/9/2004)
"Getting better and better!" (about: 2004)
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 This is the third time I have run this course, I've run it each year. They still have hills, but they have downsized them. The course has changed. Great expo, support, after-run party. This marathon coupled with the men's marathon trials is great. The weather was cold, 25 degrees, at the start. I can see this marathon eventually become one of the premier runs in the country. | |
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w. a. from Atlanta,GA
(2/9/2004)
"Liked the old course better" (about: 2004)
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 Once again Valerie McLean, Lynne Russell & their amazing team of volunteers put on an impressive party in Birmingham for 2004. Although I would really only give this course 2-1/2 stars, the marathon itself - from registration to packet pick-up to a fantastic finish line party are first-class, & not to be missed. I ran the inaugural race in 2002 & liked that course much, much better than the 2004 course - mountain at mile 9 & all!! This year's course seemd much tougher to me & more sections of it not very attractive. I did not like running on the expressway or through the mall parking lot. The last 8 miles were very tough. All of that said, this is still the premier marathon event in the South. | |
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Curly McKenney from Atlanta Georgia
(2/9/2004)
"Great Race, Tougher Course" (about: 2004)
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 They took the mountain out to make it more runner friendly? What about the last part of the new course? From mile 18 it was tough. This is a great marathon, but needs to be tweaked again. PUT THE MOUNTAIN BACK IN. This course was not easier than last year. Again, I can't stress how great the race oranizers are. I only wish Atlanta had such a great marathon. | |
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e. v. from uh what is today? OKc I think
(2/3/2004)
"THE HILL" (about: 2003)
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 They should keep the hill @ mile 9; it makes a more difficult course. There are plenty of marathons to run, but only this course has THAT HILL. The people are great and there is ample crowd support throughout most of the distance. The event is terrific; I just hope it stays small and undiscovered. I repeat: 'KEEP THE HILL'. Just as Marine Corps finishes uphill, the hill is one of the things that make this course unique. |
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