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☰
Garmin Marathon (prev. Oz Marathon) Runner Comments
Back to Garmin Marathon (prev. Oz Marathon) Information & Reviews
Course 3.8 
Organization 4.1 
Spectators 3.1
Number of comments: 147 [displaying comments 41 to 51]
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J. B. from NJ
(4/23/2012)
 "Great mid-size marathon" (about: 2012)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Garmin Marathon (prev. Oz Marathon)
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 Great organization, nice course with great fans and support. Two suggestions, widen the area near the water stops (a must) and neighborhood roads during the first part of the race. They were unnecessary narrow-race is growing and runners need more space. | |
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J. H. from Liberty, Missouri
(4/23/2012)
 "Thanks for all of your hard work!" (about: 2012)
6-10 previous marathons
| 3 Garmin Marathon (prev. Oz Marathon)s
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This race has really come of age. Great commitment by City of Olathe and Garmin. Well organized in all aspects: packet pick up; expo; pre-race; course; aid stations; volunteers; and post race. No weaknesses. Out and back on paved trail through beautiful park made for a very good race. | |
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M. G. from Centerton, Arkansas
(4/22/2012)
 "Great smaller marathon, flat and easy access." (about: 2012)
3 previous marathons
| 1 Garmin Marathon (prev. Oz Marathon)
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 Lucked out and had awesome weather (38 degrees at start and NO WIND!) Good, relatively flat course. Good out and back section on a paved trail for most of last part of course with a few MINOR rolling hills. I was suffering from a calf injury but both my training partners PR'd. Very easy to get to and plenty of parking. A little short on porta-potties but that seems the norm. Not a lot of spectators but great volunteers (espectially the fluid station where all were dressed as OZ characters). | |
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J. S. from Nebraska
(4/22/2012)
 "Great Race for the Novice" (about: 2012)
2 previous marathons
| 1 Garmin Marathon (prev. Oz Marathon)
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 4 PROS: The course was beautiful, very flat, and very well marked. Never felt lost or uncertain of the course. Ended up with three shirts, a nice medal, and a great post-race party. Porta potties seemed adequate, could have had better line formation. While spectators were far apart, they were enthusiastic. CONS: If you have allergies to tree pollen, you may not like the second half. Although they listed three Gu stations, two of them ran out before I got there, and I was mid-pack. I also noticed that one of the watering stations was using fire hydrants & trash cans for water, which caused illness in the R&R in Las Vegas. All told, I would run this again in a heartbeat. It was a fun race & a beautiful day. | |
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C. C. from Overland Park, KS
(10/11/2011)
"Windy, but fun." (about: 2011)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Garmin Marathon (prev. Oz Marathon)
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 The race was very cold and windy (duh, it's April in Kansas), but overall flat and enjoyable. The first half was uneventful around the mall and on the streets of Olathe, with the second half having great scenery through the bike trail. The support staff was awesome and the aid stations were well spaced. The finisher tech shirts were good quality with a great front design, only bummer was by the time I finished there were no ladies fit left in my size. Massage tent was great and the food was good. Overall, great first marathon experience. Small race, but good atmosphere despite cold, windy conditions. | |
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M. R. from Woodward, Oklahoma
(5/31/2011)
"Awesome!" (about: 2011)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 Garmin Marathon (prev. Oz Marathon)
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 This race was billed as The Oz Marathon, and it was a very cool theme and a whole lot of fun. Quite a few runners were dressed as characters from The Wizard of Oz. There were ample portacans on the course. Aid stations were well spaced with a good variety of fluids and foods, and volunteers were friendly. The course is mostly flat. A few miles are run around a mall, but most of it is an out and back on a paved bike trail that is largely protected from wind. Logistcally it was an easy venue as the marathon starts and ends in the parking lot of Garmin World Headquarters in Olathe, KS. There was plenty of parking and we found a space only about 50 yds from the start line. The finish area was not far away either, just on the back side of the Garmin building. The finisher's medal is not fancy but it is unique. The shirt is a decent tech shirt with Oz Marathon graphics on the front and a blank back, a nice difference from the usual sponsor billboard back.... We stayed at a LaQuinta which was less than 2 miles from the start, just up the street on West 151st St and they were very accomodating, would stay there again. | |
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D. K. from Minneapolis, MN
(4/30/2011)
"Windy start - fun race" (about: 2011)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Garmin Marathon (prev. Oz Marathon)
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 Hearing the wind howl outside when I woke up race morning made me question what I had gotten myself into! Bucking a 20 to 30 mph wind from the parking garage to the start line at Garmin HQ re-inforced the feeling that this might not really be want I want to do today! Running into the wind through a mall parking lot and jumping over rabbit roadkill made me wonder why Dorothy ever wanted to come back to Kansas!! But then we moved on to the residential streets of Olathe and onto the bike path along a pretty stream, sheltered from the wind and the run became more and more enjoyable. The out-and-back on the path allowed you to encourage others and receive the same encouragement in return. Just to make sure that I wouldn't forget the wind, the last half mile to the finish was out in the open and left me with a reminder of what Kansas is all about. It was a fun race - well organized, small, friendly - and I would recommend it. There are plenty of hotels in the area and the Microtel I stayed at was more than accommodating for a late checkout. I guess I missed out on the finisher's shirt, so it would be nice if they were near where the medals were handed out - or maybe they were and I just missed them, in which case, oh well! | |
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J. F. from Beatrice, NE
(4/29/2011)
"Good Marathon with potential" (about: 2011)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Garmin Marathon (prev. Oz Marathon)
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 Good stuff: Volunteers were some of the best I've seen even with the cold, windy weather. Plenty of water stations/Gatorade - even gummy bears, Twizzlers, and pretzels. The course: although the first part was really windy, the second half was on a scenic bike trail out and back - well protected and relatively flat. The last mile was a little tough, with headwind and small uphill. Fun to see all of the Wizard of Oz costumes! Plenty of places to stay and eat in Olathe. Potential: course seemed to measure long on my Garmin Forerunner (and others), but not a huge deal. By the way: where was Garmin? They would have been a popular booth at the expo. I agree with other comments that it would have been nice to use their facilities before the race, especially with the chilly weather, but maybe it's a security issue. This isn't a big-time marathon with a huge number of spectators... but if you're looking for a well organized, friendly, and fairly flat course in Kansas, this marathon is the one! I'll be back, and maybe with Toto too. | |
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J. M. from Springfield, Missouri
(4/24/2011)
"A Nice Marathon Experience" (about: 2011)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Garmin Marathon (prev. Oz Marathon)
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 I'll divide my comments into the three ratings categories: Course: The course is relatively flat, with just enough ups and downs to keep it interesting. I really enjoyed the miles on the running trail... very relaxing and scenic, if you like running in the woods with parks and streets every so often. The first several miles, though, are exposed if it is windy (as it was in 2011... gusts in the high 20 mph range). More notably, though, is that the course is quite crowded until the full and half split. This would be an area for improvement. Organization: Olathe is well organized and offers a good value for the entry fee. We received both a cotton race shirt and a nice, tech, finisher shirt. The medal is quite nice, too. More importantly, perhaps, is that the race is well supported, with ample and well-stocked aid stations. If you are used to big races, though, keep in mind that the stations are shorter. More than once I skipped the first table, only to find that I had missed the water and was left with Gatorade. My mistake, of course. One thing I wondered is why Garmin, the title sponsor, didn't allow access to their HQ building before the race. That would have opened up some restrooms as well as a place to warm up a bit. (On that note... they do need more port-a-pots at the start.) Fans: Although Olathe is a Kansas City suburb, this felt a lot like a rural or small-town race. As such, you won't see big crowds of fans. The path, in fact, is sparse except for the aid stations. However, those who turn out are energetic and friendly. Some residents in the neighborhoods had stuff like water and pretzels for the runners. That is always cool to see. All in all, Olathe is a fun, enjoyable race... well worth the trip to the Kansas City area. | |
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Jonathan Hanbury from Reno, NV
(4/22/2011)
 "Good marathon but it could be better." (about: 2011)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Garmin Marathon (prev. Oz Marathon)
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 2 Even though it was very cold, the marathon course was enjoyable and the 3:40 pacers were good. The packet pick up should have had a table for buying throw-away gloves due to the cold weather. Also, we should have been given space blankets at the finish. And, it would have been nice if Garmin would have been present before or after the race. I think the Oz theme is fun and more can be done with it. I am glad I ran it even though I was so cold that I didn't stick around to pick up my third-place age group award. |
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