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May 6, 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 31 to 41]

More Comments: [ < 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 .. 35 > ]

R. S. from Marblemount, WA, USA (10/24/2011) "Pretty course, good women's run, poorly organized" (about: 2011) 3 previous marathons \| 1 Nike 26.2 = Nike Women's Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 2 Agree with commentors below: 1. Web site is worst I've ever seen ( 3 marathons, dozen + halfs). Very little info, no spectator guide. 2. Expo fine, small, but they had 4 Olympic women runners; my favorite part for sure! 3. Awful start, had to dodge walkers and slower runners for first 9 miles! This is not rocket science, both passers and passees were annoyed. 4. Ran out of food at finish!! It is unacceptable to let half marathoners eat all the food. They were giving out coupons for a case of free water; as if that was of any use whatsoever!! Glad I ran, I set a PR and I love San Fran, but definitely don't recommend it and would never do it again.
C. F. from Orange County, NY (10/22/2011) "This is an event, not a race" (about: 2011) 3 previous marathons \| 1 Nike 26.2 = Nike Women's Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 4 This was my fourth full marathon. Even after reading all of the previous HORRIBLE reviews of this race, I still decided to run it because: (1) I liked the gimmick of the Tiffany's necklace finisher's medal (2) I had never been to California (3) I figured rarely does anyone take the time to write a good review, so of course all the reviews are going to be bad Well, I wrote a glowing review for the hotel that I stayed in (Petite Auberge) so I feel justified in writing a scathing review of this event. Because that's what it is; an event, not a race. Good: Immediate email upon acceptance in the lottery Immediate charge to my credit card for the race fee, proving I did secure an entry Searchable database for my name, to verify that I truly am registered Live person actually answered the phone at Nike and had an intelligent answer to my logistics questions one week before the race I could walk to the start from my hotel Volunteers & entertainment were fantastic and supportive Aid stations were about every 2 miles and had plenty of water Bad: NO personal communication after the initial email&.until about 2 weeks before the event, receiving a print this as proof of entry email telling you about bib pickup. That's crazy. No email. No snail mail. Nothing. The only form of communication was Facebook. The Nike website was terrible. I did not care for the format of posing questions on the NWM facebook wall, for 24,500 total strangers to see. I didn't need 24,500 people knowing I was going to be across the country from my home on race day. This is why I resorted to calling Nike on the phone looking for answers. Packet pickup had me confirm that I purchased a shuttle ticket when I registered, yet she forgot to give me a sticker for my bib, which would give me entry onto the shuttle bus. So I had to take public transportation. She also didn't explain that I was supposed to wear the Nike+ band for race day perks, which is moot since apparently other runners wore their bands and didn't get anything. Expo was horrible. I agree with previous reviewers: it was dark, loud, no flow, and a complete lack of vendors. One tiny stall outside selling Bodyglide for $9 doesn't count. Bib was round, which means race-belts don't work. I had to pin my number to my belt. Bag drop off had no clear signage race morning, and was a distance from the start. Start was ridiculously crowded. There is no reason why my husband should have been able to stand in the street with me. No spectators should have been anywhere in the corral areas. Racers were pushing through all the people to try to work their way into the desired corral; this was occurring even after the start gun. The corrals were honor-system, which didn't work for this event. I was still weaving through walkers up through mile 11, when the half-marathoners finally split off. How is that even possible to have so many walkers so far in front? I was off by a full minute every mile off of my race pace from the very start, because of so many walkers. I get it now; this is a charity event. I've run marathons for charity before, but that doesn't mean I'm second class because I don't happen to be running for the chosen Nike charity today. I think I agree with the reviewer who said they should just make this a TNT only event. It would solve a lot of the issues that the serious runners are experiencing. Don't underestimate the congestion; there were people 6 inches from me on all sides right up until the split. I suppose the bright side is I had a negative split. Nike must have cheaped out on the Brightroom photo contract. Brightroom has photographed all my other marathons, and took excellent close up candid photos. The Brightroom photos from this event that are supposed to be photos of me, showed a jumbled crowd of people! If it weren't for my neon green shirt, I would have trouble picking myself out of the crowd. No kidding. I was given the wrong finisher's shirt. I was given a half-marathon shirt, instead of the full. I finished in the full marathon chute, received my medal, and walked straight to the Full finisher's table. It never occurred to me to check that I received the correct shirt. Apparently, this happened to many, many full finishers. I received a partially frozen bagel and one bottle of water at the finish. That's it. I'm not going to suggest to Nike how to solve these problems for 2 reasons: (1) Many other people have offered viable solutions in their critiques of this event, and Nike chooses to ignore them, year after year. (2) Nike has enough money to hire race experts to fix their problems. I don't need to give them my advice for free. I suggest that you run this event to say you've run the hills of San Francisco (which honestly, weren't all that bad), and to say that you received a Tiffany's necklace from a tuxedoed firefighter. If that is your expectation, you won't be disappointed.
A. R. from Kansas (10/21/2011) "I expected more from Nike" (about: 2011) 3 previous marathons \| 1 Nike 26.2 = Nike Women's Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 2 This was a very disappointing race. I love the Tiffany necklace, and that's why I ran it, but Nike could do SO much better if they'd take time to learn from the Rock n Roll, Chicago or New York people. The mistakes they made (jumbled start, crowded water stops, no-flow expo, poor website, not enough food, not enough shirts, etc.) would be easy to fix if they would be humble enough to admit the problems. They did a great job with marketing and merchandise, which are always Nike strengths. Props to Neutrogena and Safeway for making good use of their sponsorships! The course was hilly, as expected, but do-able. I did find the first half incredibly frustrating as I had to pick my way through walkers and slower runners (and I'm not fast at all). Better organization will do wonders. I won't run it again, though.
m. b. from CA (10/20/2011) "I will not be back" (about: 2011) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Nike 26.2 = Nike Women's Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 3 My issues- 1. There was no organization whatsoever at the start. Say, what you like about letting people line themselves up according to pace it never really works out well does it. It was obvious the NWM outgrew the Union Square start. People were packed in like sardines. My daughter was elbowed in the corral. Spectators do not belong in the corral either! 2. Not enough potra potties at the start and on the course come on with 22,000 participants you should have more waiting 10+ minutes to pee during a race is too long. 3.Too many walkers arm in arm blocking the course. They need to start at the back. I could only hope that the walkers would let us pass. That never happened. I tried asking, shouting runner on your left, clearing my throat, and even just being rude and brushing past them. With the course, being congested about 80% of the time and not being able to get past the walkers my daughter and I had no choice but to walk, it was beyond frustrating. 4.The expo my daughters name did not end up on the wall or the poster because of a misprint issue. It was crowded and other than taking free samples of Gatorade products anything else worth doing had too long of a wait. 5. The shirts mine is already falling apart I expect better quality from Nike. 6.Many women there openly admit only entering for the necklace and have no clue about race etiquette, hence the miserable experience.
T. P. from Seattle, WA (10/20/2011) "Agree with JC-wouldn't do again" (about: 2011) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Nike 26.2 = Nike Women's Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 3 1. Race start was appalling and no staff seemed to know how it was organized. NEED corrals by time (learn from RNR marathons) 2. Need signs and map for organization at start/finish for where to check-in bags, line up, pickup bags, etc. 3. Not much support for marathoners - mostly for 1/2 M's (little crowd support after 1/2 M finish) 4. Liked the cheer stations, pretty course. 5. Expo needs more vendors with more running gear (such as pouches, watches, etc.), NIKE shouldn't be only clothing vendor either!
L. B. from Tucson, AZ (10/19/2011) "Run for fun not for records" (about: 2011) 2 previous marathons \| 1 Nike 26.2 = Nike Women's Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 5 I have never reviewed a race but thought I would regarding Nike as I read so many of these reviews before I went to San Francisco. This race is exactly what you would expect from a Nike sponsored event. Huge, bling, lots of perks. If you are running for a quiet morning or a PR then you should probably reconsider running this race. I left my watch at home and enjoyed the last 13 miles but I will say that the first half was really exhausting. I had to slow and walk around people and basically kiss any kind of PR goodbye. I am very thankful I ran the full as I was able to see the Great Hwy and run along the ocean. Definitely go into this race to have fun and do your research; Don't let the first half upset you - it's VERY crowded.
J. c. from Bay Area (10/18/2011) "Been there, done that, won't do it again" (about: 2011) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Nike 26.2 = Nike Women's Marathon COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 2 This was marathon #13 for me, so I have experience in how marathons should be organized. This marathon, was by far, the most disorganized race. I would not recommend this marathon and will not be running it again. Here is my list of reasons why it ranks so low: *Please note, these are the same complaints runners have each year and Nike has done very little to improve upon them. Recommendation to Nike: Get rid of the full marathon, you really put no effort into it anyway. Turn this race into a 100% TNT race. Don't let non-TNT persons in as very little is done to accommodate them. And for goodness sake, HAVE ENFORCED START CORRAL TIMES!!! 1. Expensive race 2. Race website hard to navigate. Lacked important information. 3. Expo was small, no vendors, dark, noisy. 4. No safety pins given with the bib 5. Big bulky chip on the back of the bib 6. Start line was pure chaos (most poorly managed start line I have experienced). I cannot believe Nike has done nothing about this. It is the #1 complaint from runners. 7. The online tracking failed miserably 8. The water/Gatorade cups at the aid stations contained only a few tablespoons of water in each cup (at least for me). I had to grab 2-3 cups just to get a mouthful. 9. Spectators were non existent in miles 18-22 10. TNT spectators only cheered for TNT runners (were is the running etiquette?) 11. They ran out of food! How does that even happen? I finished the full marathon in 4 hours and they had run out of food. 12. The bottled water they handed out was lukewarm. ALWAYS keep the finish line beverages cold please. 13. From most reports I have read or heard, the volunteer staff was well undereducated on the FAQs for this race 14. They do not have official times up within 24hrs post-race (most races have that within 24 hours) 15. The finish area was chaos. They did nothing to keep spectators out. No places to really sit. For anyone wanting to do this race, PLEASE, walk on the right, do not line up in the front if you are a walker or slower runner. No excuse for that. With how much this race cost, this race was almost embarrassing from an organization stand point.
A. T. from Washington DC area (10/18/2011) "Wonderful race/race weekend from beginning to end." (about: 2011) 11-50 previous marathons \| 6+ Nike 26.2 = Nike Women's Marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 Great cause, city, course, volunteers, necklace, etc. etc. This is my eighth Nike Women's Marathon - I'm a legacy participant and have raised over $200,000 for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society through this Nike event. One concern - my name can not be found when I search the results! Something must have gone wrong with the timing device. My time isn't important; that I'm on record as completing the 26.2 miles is!
J. S. from USA (10/18/2011) "Mass confusion at the start" (about: 2011) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Nike 26.2 = Nike Women's Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 4 Disorganized start, signs in the wrong area. I am not listed at all in the results.
l. P. from California (10/17/2011) "Horrible man in charge of bib pickup" (about: 2011) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Nike 26.2 = Nike Women's Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 I arrived at the bib pickup table at 6:35 on Saturday after being stuck in Half Moon Bay traffic for 1.5 hours. Because I was not going to make it by 6PM, I called and was advised not to worry since they would be there until 7PM. At 6:30 as I ran to a table where I saw a small pile of bibs, including mine, a tall man approached. He said I was too late to pick up my bib and there was nothing I could do, the table was closed and I had no recourse, I was out of luck. I was crushed. Months of training, friends watching, a hotel room in SF, shoes ready, hundreds of dollars in bib fees, transportation fees, training fees, not to mention Nike gear and I would not be running. I appealed to his sense of fairness but he just repeated I was out of luck. A woman at the table tried to give me my bib but he vetoed her generosity. She quietly advised I try returning at 5AM when he was not around but could offer no guarantees. I did not sleep well, to say the least. The next morning at 5AM another woman simply handed me my bib. She said of course I could have it and apologized for the tall guy's nasty attitude. I have to wonder about a guy who obviously took such pleasure in hurting me. It took no more than 15 seconds to hand me the bib. Seems like it would have been so much faster and easier to let me have it rather than stonily and smugly refusing. I hope he loses his job. Cons: The start was a mess, actually dangerous it was so crowded. Many folks were getting rude and pushy as others got worried. We had no control over our movement as the mosh-pit like crowd began shoving. Hate to think what would have happened had someone tripped. Pros: Gorgeous course, lots of well stocked aid and water stations and the finish was really fun with the as-promised studly firemen in Tuxedos and volunteers everywhere handing out yummy stuff.

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