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May 18, 2024

Nike 26.2 = Nike Women's Marathon Runner Comments

Back to Nike 26.2 = Nike Women's Marathon Information & Reviews

Course 4.1

Organization 3.5

Spectators 3.7

Number of comments: 347 [displaying comments 301 to 311]

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K. D. from Redding, California (10/29/2005) "Great Experience" (about: 2005) 1 previous marathon \| 1 Nike 26.2 = Nike Women's Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 What an experience for my first marathon. Beautiful course - a little difficult to do that long stretch at the end. The first 15 miles seemed to fly by. The bathroom availability at the beginning 5 or so miles was pretty slim, and it was disheartening watching hundreds of people go by while you were standing in line for 15 or so minutes. Nike did a great job pumping you up before hand with the expo and the fans were great.
C. M. from Sacramento, California (10/29/2005) "Better for half marathon" (about: 2005) 1 previous marathon \| 1 Nike 26.2 = Nike Women's Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 I ran the full marathon. The course was beautiful and well laid out. The hills were all very manageable and I beat my PR by a full 20 minutes. HOWEVER, having the walkers leave before the runners was a huge problem. I was left running in the street with traffic several times when I came upon walls of walkers blocking the road. I could not get near the water stations for the first three miles. Let's not talk about the bathroom situation. For those of us who are not fundraising it's a bit like being a ghost runner. The crowds and TNT coaches did not call out unless you were TNT, which was a little disappointing. When you train that hard, it's nice to hear some encouragement. I would definitely do the half next year since the necklace is the same for half and full, runners or walkers. Overall a nice run.
m. o. from akron, ohio (10/28/2005) "Disappointing and somewhat dangerous" (about: 2005) 3 previous marathons \| 1 Nike 26.2 = Nike Women's Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 2 The race is chock full with beginners and walkers. The race organizers did not have a separate start for the walkers which created tons of logjams. At mile two, I fell after trying to avoid a group who stopped abruptly right in front of me. At the first aid table there was a line of women who had also fallen waiting to be treated. It was almost impossible to get through the crowds since there were a lot of women running in groups. I was also severely disappointed by the expo.... The vendors consisted of one woman with a card table selling Gu. We were expected to do our shopping at NikeTown at above retail prices. The finish line was also crowded and difficult to get through the walkers who did the half. When you finished you were dumped into a crowd of people waiting in line to pick up t-shirts. The necklace was a nice touch. Everything else was lacking.
K. T. from New York, NY (10/27/2005) "Good course, TERRIBLE finish area" (about: 2005) 1 previous marathon \| 1 Nike 26.2 = Nike Women's Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 2 Very pretty course - some hills but not too bad for a flat-lander. However, the finish area was terrible - so bottlenecked and congested right at the finish line that you had to stand shoulder-to-shoulder in a big crowd, while people shoved to get their finisher's t-shirt, and the bag-check line was incredibly long (if you have friends who are meeting you at the finish, have them bring your stuff and skip the bag check). Just a terribly managed finish area overall. FYI, the 2005 necklace design was a silver cut-out of a woman runner with a tiny swoosh on her chest. Reminds me a little of the woman on the mudflaps, but it's ok.
T. M. from Austin, TX (10/27/2005) "A great overall experience." (about: 2005) 2 previous marathons \| 1 Nike 26.2 = Nike Women's Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 Overall I really enjoyed this marathon. The course was scenic and challenging, but not overwhelming. I was able to qualify for the Boston Marathon and PR'd by 40 minutes. I was disappointed in the expotique and the 'goodie bags.' The expo was way too crowded and there wasn't really anything there. My goodie bag consisted of a course map, a Nike coupon and a sample Luna Bar. Where were the goodies? The finish was too crowded as well and the line for the shuttle back to the start was so long that we walked a few blocks and took a trolly car instead. My $15 shuttle ticket was wasted. I really appreciated all the spectators out there who cheered for everyone. I traveled from Austin to run this race and only had my boyfriend there to support me, so having strangers cheer me on as well was really awesome. I did find it interesting that the TNT people only cheer for their kind and would completely stop cheering as non-TNT racers ran by. Don't get me wrong, I think TNT is a great organization and a great motivator for thousands of people who would typically be intimidated by a marathon, and the money they raise for cancer research is wonderful. But as a non-TNT runner, it was discouraging to run up to a group of TNT spectators who were cheering loudly, only to have the fall silent as I ran by. I may not have raised money to get to San Fran, but I have on more than one occasion donated to help friends reach their fundraising goals. Nike really goes out of its way to make this a marathon catered to women. This marathon is a must-do for every female runner. I love my finisher's necklace and finisher's shirt. The guys in tuxedos with little blue boxes at the finish was a nice touch. Considering the marathon is only 2 years old, I have to say the organizers did an awesome job. The few small kinks will work themselves out in the years to come and this truly will grow into a great race.
T. M. from Tampa, FL (10/26/2005) "Nice, but lots of room for improvement" (about: 2005) 1 previous marathon \| 1 Nike 26.2 = Nike Women's Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 Pros: Nice scenery. Hills weren't too daunting considering it is San Francisco. Pretty sterling silver necklace from Tiffany. Enjoyed the refreshments (I really like Luna bars!). DJ stations were good for the most part. Wasn't quite feeling the DJ playing 'Slipping Into Darkness' at mile 23, but it was great to have music! Appreciated the free socks. Finisher's shirt was nice also. Cons: Shuttle information inconsistent. Initially told we could get a shuttle from finish back to the start and then told it wasn't available at the expo. Also told there would be pace groups and this was also not available. Long lines at the expo. Nothing other than Nike gear and apparel available. (Although I thought this would be the case; it would have been nice to be wrong!) Expo overall was somewhat disappointing. Finish area was congested. Agree with a previous comment that support wasn't great if you weren't with TNT. This wasn't a problem for me but I know others that were bothered by it. Ending stretch was rather monotonous but knowing that you're close to the end keeps you going. Overall it was a good experience but I wouldn't do it again.
D. R. from Bellingham, WA (10/26/2005) "Expected better organization" (about: 2005) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Nike 26.2 = Nike Women's Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 3 This was my 26th marathon, and this was my perspective: 1. It's a good thing they call it an 'expotique' and not an expo. Not at all what I expected. 2. The start was pure chaos. Two separate bag checks with 10,000+ people in between. I ended up at the one without a box for my bib # range. Thankfully, a race worker was there to take the bags for those of us who were at the 'wrong' bag check. There was no prior information on how bag check was set up! 3. I didn't run it last year so I can't compare the course. Everyone said this one was easier. I did enjoy the course, and the hills, though challenging, weren't impossible. 4. a) Mile markers did not seem accurate, and others around me noticed it as well. b) Not all miles had clocks, or had clocks that weren't working. c) I think I saw two clocks, two miles apart, with the same time. One clock was off by ~1 hour (reading 2:xx instead of 3:xx). 5. I thought the oxygen bar was useless. Maybe you have to breathe it for more than 1-2 minutes? The biggest break was that it was downhill after the 'oxygen.' 6. I would rather get a well-designed finisher's medal than the necklace. 7. I'm still waiting to see if they have my results. At packet pick-up I switched to use my own chip. I have emailed the timing company but as of today, I still don't appear in the results. Ironically, the switch was done at the 'Solutions' desk. Now I have a 'problem'. :-) Somehow, with Nike as the title sponsor, I expected better. Perhaps that isn't fair? This race raised a lot of money for TNT and that's wonderful (I've never seen so much purple in a race before), but I think I prefer regular, mixed-gender marathons.
J. c. from San Diego, CA (10/26/2005) "Great race - would have had more potties" (about: 2005) First Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 I would have liked to have seen 4-5 potties in a group instead of 1 - some girls don't know how to go in 30 seconds. P.S. I ran the half.
a. s. from Sacramento (10/26/2005) "Fun Race!" (about: 2005) 4-5 previous marathons \| 2 Nike 26.2 = Nike Women's Marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 This was my second time running the half marathon portion of this race. I thought the course was MUCH better this year. It was still a bit hilly but not as bad as last year. If the course hadn't been changed I most likely would not have done it again. I was also hoping that few other things would be changed from last year. The expotique is horrible. It is too small and there aren't any vendors there. I know Nike doesn't want the competition there and that's understandable, but at least sell things like fuel belts, gels and other things that they don't carry. There were not enough port-a-potties a long the way. I noticed at some stops there was one port-a-potty and the lines were extremely long. The finish area was chaos. The bag check at the start and at the finish line were a mess. I picked up my bag and walked out. There wasn't anyone there checking to see if the bag I picked up was mine or not. I could have taken anyone's bag and left. I also think that they should spread out all the tents in the finish line area. It was packed in there and you could barely get through the crowd. The lines were extremely long for everything especially getting your gear bag. I think that this is a great race, good views of the city, the course is MUCH better and they have some great giveaways, especially the Tiffany's necklace. I do think though that Nike still has a lot of work to do so that this race runs smoothly from beginning to end.
T. S. from Minneapolis, MN (10/26/2005) "Happy that I ran, but won't come back" (about: 2005) 3 previous marathons \| 1 Nike 26.2 = Nike Women's Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 The course was challenging but not extreme. The scenery would have been beautiful if the fog wasn't so thick. I was passing loads of people during the first miles which was frustrating because that wouldnt happen if people lined up correctly. I thought that the race was geared towards the walkers more than runners. I think I ran an extra mile because of all the walkers 3-wide on the path I had to go around. Why start them at 5:30 and not tell anyone. The finish area was so congested you couldn't move. I couldn't believe you had to buy your own food, unless you felt like more Luna bars or you were with TNT. I think it was great that people raised so much money for cancer research but for those of us that just came to RUN the marathon it was disappointing.

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