The marathon is advertised as 'flat'. While it is flatter than others I have run, there were more 'hills' than I expected. The National Anthem performance was an embarrassment. It was screeched by a guitarist until almost not recognizable. This was after a lovely rendition of the Canadian National Anthem. There were plenty of water/Powerade stops and many volunteers manning them. (Thank you, volunteers - We could not do it without you.) That and the finish line with the huge screen were the best things about the race.

Fargo was well organized and pancake flat. Good chance for a PR. Marathon went well until running into the half marathon walkers starting at mile 18. Many of the walkers walked 3- and 4-wide and to the left, causing runners to zig-zag back and forth through them. I missed qualifying for Boston by 40 seconds and much of that was due to the walker situation. After the finish it was a difficult to get anything due to all the half marathoners ahead. This race is geared toward the halfers, but it's still a nice event.

This was my first time in ND, and what a great state! The marathon organization is top-notch, all the volunteers are super friendly, I loved hanging out in the Fargodome before the race (and no pottie lines!). Great call to have Matt Long as a speaker, and what a treat to try lefse. The post race party with bands Dirty Word and Hairball was simply awesome.

I went to college in Fargo and it was fun to come back and see all of the changes on the NDSU campus (including the FargoDome). The course was nostalgic for me, as it covered a lot of my old stomping grounds.

PROS:
* Bands at every mile was really fun
* Flat course
* Pace groups (I didn't use them, other than to make sure I was passing them and not being passed by them :) )
* Plenty of aid stations and porta-johns
* The most detailed online race results I've seen (mtecresults.com), including overall, gender, and division place at every chip mat (start, 10k, half, 20M, finish) and the number of people you passed and that passed you between each mat.
* Obviously trained course volunteers. Twice I happened to notice a runner having minor difficulties on the course and a nearby sentry went out of their way to ask if they were ok or needed help.
* Chocolate milk and pizza at finish
* Showers at the finish

CONS:
* The finish area was very crowded. Need to move people a little more efficiently.
* Difficulty in finding and getting to drop-bag pickup.

Overall a great race. The only thing keeping me from giving it all 5's was the finish area.

Fargo Marathon
Saturday, May 21, 2011
Fargo, ND
7:30 AM

I flew into Fargo, via Denver, on Thursday. I stayed in Red River Lodge, a nice and reasonably priced motel in West Acres business/shopping district. It provided a shuttle bus to and from the start/finish of the marathon in Fargodome. The continental breakfast was available to the runners as early as 5 AM on race morning.

This was the 7th edition of the marathon. We were told nearly 23,000 had signed up for the marathon, half marathon, relay marathon, 10K, and 5K races. The packet pick-up in Fargodome on Friday was very efficient. Ear runner received a long-sleeved technical shirt and a backpack. There was also a large expo. There were three sittings for the pre-race pasta dinner at 4:00, 5:30, and 7:00 pm. The food was quite good.

The race morning temperature ranged from low 60s to high 60s, overcast, humid, and a bit windy. It rained a little, which was actually helpful. The race was very well organized. The 10K started at 7:00 am, followed by the marathon at 7:30 AM, and the half marathon at 8:30 AM. There were aid stations every other mile, up to mile 21, then every mile. There were 3 GU stations. There were pace groups. Traffic control was very good. Crowd support was very good too, especially in residential neighborhoods. We were chip-timed at 10K, half marathon, 20-mile, and the finish. There were a large number of bands and individual musicians throughout the route. The finish was inside the Fargodome. The finishers medallion was very nice. There were plenty of recovery food items and drinks. There were massage therapists, as well as access to hot shower.

With the exception of a handful of short climbs, the course was flat. There were many turns. Be prepared to run on a mainly concrete surface. At about mile 3.5, we crossed the Red River and ran a 3.5-mile loop in Moorhead, MN, which included running through the campus of Concordia College, before returning to Fargo. From about mile 9 to about mile 17 was out and back. We shared the last few miles with half marathon walkers.

There were 2211 marathon finishers (1290 males and 921 females) in the average time of 4:25:06.

I ran the Fargo Marathon this year b/c it was a reunion race for the 50 States Marathon Club. I have run quite a few marathons and I have to say that Fargo ranks up there in terms of excellent organization. I can think of only a couple of pieces of constructive feedback. Overall, everything was GREAT and I highly recommend this marathon.

The biggest piece of positive feedback is that as a slower runner I still got the same support on the course (GU packets, fluids, spectators) as well as the same finish line food as the faster runners. At many marathons (especially ones that include shorter distance races like Fargo) the on-course support and/or finish line food run out. Not in Fargo! I still felt well-supported. Thanks, Fargo!

One of the best parts of the marathon was the finish in the Fargodome; one of the best marathon finish lines I've ever experienced!!!

Other positive aspects included: easy parking; nice expo with plenty of space; great 'swag' for price paid; no long bathroom lines before race; being able to stay inside before race; excellent spectator support (tissues, cheering, hoses, signs, etc.); music on the course; excellent pre-race communication via Facebook and email; nice shirt and medal; easy baggage check; shuttle service from West Acres area; general support by the city of Fargo.

Just a few things to work on:

by far the biggest area for improvement is the long line for pasta dinner tickets and entry. Even if you purchased your tickets online ahead of time (like I did) you had to wait in a really long line just before dinner started to get your tickets. They should have a separate table at the expo at which you can pick up your pasta dinner tickets during any time that the expo is open. Or, better yet, you should be able to use your receipt from online purchase for entry. Or have the ability to print out tickets online. Lots of ideas; bottom line is that this needs to be addressed.

water stops were not always where advertised

music was AWESOME but there weren't as many bands as advertised. The weather might have had something to do with that.

it was GREAT to have a shuttle from the West Acres mall but they should specify EXACTLY where the shuttle pick-up is (identify a store). There are a lot of entrances/areas to the West Acres Mall and it really was hard to find.

road was rough in areas and there was a lot of concrete

Run Fargo if you can! It's a gem.

This was my third running of the Scheels Fargo Marathon, and it just keeps getting better.

The course is flat, fast, and offers a good variety of the Fargo-Morehead scenery. I will say that it got a bit congested - a result of the rapid growth of the race - and organizers are working on a remedy for next year. This was especially true for the first few miles. Some added portapotties would be nice. And, there is an abundance of concrete, though this didn't become a problem for me. The finish at the Dome is great, especially because of the numerous fans in the stands. It was a great venue for my family, since Fargo is my home town.

Organization is practically flawless, and offers a good value for the price. Love the race shirt and bag, and I also found the aid stations to be well stocked. The expo ran efficiently and made packet pickup a quick and pleasant experience. I would not mind seeing more booths, though the ones there were good, and Scheels had a good setup for shopping.

There are, in my opinion, no better spectators than the folks in Fargo. There were very few lulls in the support, and many of the homeowners set up their own aid stations, including water (bottles sometimes), gummy bears, oranges, bananas, and other items.

The organization, community support, and fast, interesting course make this one of the best marathons you'll ever run.

Fargo is #49 in my ongoing quest for 50 states + DC. Great Organization !!! Great Amenities !!! Enthusiastic spectators all along the course. It seemed that every house on the course new someone in the race and came out to cheer them on !!! Fargo is a nice clean city and there appears to be no area that was off limits to the marathon. Many Thanks to all of the WONDERFUL Volunteers that manned the plentiful water stops. I will always recommend this race for its hospitality and value.

Overall, the Fargo marathon is a great race. Well organized, flat and fast course. Lots of turns on the course, which I loved. Crowd support is great and the town really supports this event. My only negative comment is the post race massages. After finishing the full I was excited to get a short massage. Turns out there was an hour wait and when I saw all the half marathoners on the massage tables, I was a bit annoyed. I certainly don't think full marathoners 'deserve' a massage more than the halfers, but logistically it would be better to maybe have two separate massage areas, one for half, one for full. Obviously, the half marathoners are going to finish first, leaving the full racers with a long wait.

This race was detailed to the max. I give hats off to all the volunteers/spectators everywhere. This was the 11th state in which I've run a half marathon. I especially felt inspired as we ran into the Fargodome to cross the finish and saw ourselves on a large screen video overhead!