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May 6, 2024

Eugene Marathon Runner Comments

Back to Eugene Marathon Information & Reviews

Course 4.6

Organization 4.5

Spectators 4.3

Number of comments: 159 [displaying comments 41 to 51]

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M. G. from Scottsdale, AZ (4/30/2012) "Solid racejust needs a few tweaks..." (about: 2012) 50+ previous marathons \| 1 Eugene Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 This is a northwest gem with a lot going for itjust needs some details worked out. Pros: Priced well. Bib has your name on it. Eco-friendlyno wasteful brochures, etc, recycle bins at all events. Simple expo; easy packet pick-up. Able to exchange shirt if stock allows. Host hotel has convenient shuttle to start. Race starts on time. Weather was PERFECTcloudy skies, 55 degrees for 2/3 of the race. Mile markers very visible. Post-race food abundantincluding pancakes. Great medal. Course has breath-taking beauty and scenery. Route mostly flat with some downhill stretches and one relatively good-sized hill at mile 7. Friendly water stops. Many Gu and banana stops. Impossible to take a wrong turn on the course. Great spectators but not a ton of them. Results posted quickly. Great restaurants, brew pubs all around. Saturday Market nearby. Very friendly and hospitable folk throughout the area. Cons: Corral entry points hard to find. Restrooms plentiful in start area but set up so lines to use them couldn't que up. Bag drop in odd placewell behind corrals. No clock at the start. Only one clock on the course (half-way point). No consistency in water stopssome had Gatorade first, water secondothers vice versa. Some volunteers had gloves, others not. MAJOR LAPSE: mile 16 ran out of cupsthere was no water for 4.5 miles (last water stop was at mile 14no cups/water until 18+). Some camber to watch out for mid-race. No signs in post-race area to reunion area, to shuttles, to amenities. Most all of these things easily fixable. The course is beautiful. The vast majority of runners are fast/faster than mostgood place to run among some talent in the 'rank and file'. Finish times for most were very good. Weather was outstanding. Finishing on Hayward Field a treata lot of history, running lore, and Nike abound. Would like to run this one again.
Mike Flicker from Hickory NC (4/29/2012) "awesome place to run" (about: 2011) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Eugene Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 This place is my new favorite marathon....too much to talk about between Pres Rock and the race but absolutely an unforgetable experience - my PR but a great race run by people who understand running
L. F. from Hopkinton, MA (4/29/2012) "Great Town-Great Race" (about: 2012) 2 previous marathons \| 1 Eugene Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 The course is scenic and mostly flat. There were fans along the entire course, and they were enthusiastic. The organization was good, but not perfect.
A. T. from Portland, Oregon (4/28/2012) "perfect memory" (about: 2011) First Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 When I decided I want to run Boston, I had to pick an qualifying marathon. I decided on Eugene for many reasons - location, flat course, timing and Eugene being a mecca for running. It was a perfect experience. I qualified for Boston by 17 minutes and this was my first marathon. The Clif pacer was amazing. The post race area with instant results printed out for me was nice. The field size is big enough to have a big race feel, but small enough to make things manageable. Finishing on Hayward Field was awesome.
J. L. from Vancouver, BC, Canada (5/12/2011) "Absolutely Amazing!" (about: 2011) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Eugene Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 Everything about this marathon is first-class. It has many of the things that big marathons have, perhaps with the exception of the expo. There is nothing bad about the expo. The size of it is about right, but if you want to spend the whole day walking and checking out the expo and buying merchandise, maybe this doesn't fit the bill completely for you. But if you are there to run a race, the size of it is just right. There is plenty of free parking. Meter parking on Sunday is also free. I parked just right on the street right by the Hilton, the host hotel, on race day. The Course: Beautiful, scenic and fast. There is only one noticeable hill around mile 7. Some other small and short inclines. But if you have trained for hills, there are doable, if not easy. Quite a few gradual declines as well. You run cross the beautiful Willamette River. The nine miles of bike paths across different parks, sometimes with trees on both sides, are just as invigorating and welcoming. You finish in the track at Historical Hayward Field, where you family and friends can watch on the stand and/or the big screen. Organization: Every mile is well marked with big and tall blue mile flag marker; you just can't miss it. If my memory serves me correctly, they have clocks and mats at 10K, the halfway point, and the 20M mark. Plenty of porta-potties and water stations, with Gatorade and water on both sides manned by kind and enthusiastic volunteers. Clif Shot was offered on course, though only at a couple of stations. The bus rides to and from hotels are frequent. Bag drop-off and pick-up are easy. Everyone is so friendly. Your name is printed on your bib. Though there aren't as many varieties as some other marathons when it comes to post-race refreshments, they have plenty of the items they do have on offer. They even have people making fresh pancakes! You can go and obtain a printout of your individual preliminary results - your net time, 10K, half and 20M splits right after your race pretty much right away. You can even have your picture taken and put into a plastic ID-type of neck-hanging batch and take home with you FREE. Spectators: There are plenty of spectators for this size of marathons, and they are all extremely friendly. Be prepared for them to call out your name and give your high-fives and encouragement along the way. Make sure your book your accommodation early, at least two months or earlier in advance, or else you are going find that most of the hotels and B&Bs are solidly booked, even with over a month before the event. I have done eight marathons. This one has been the best! Well done, Eugene!
K. B. from Tacoma, WA USA (7/20/2010) "Great course, finish, and post-race food!" (about: 2010) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Eugene Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 I grew up in Eugene, so I've really wanted to run this for awhile now, but 2010 was my first year. My sister and I both ran the half. While the expo made you feel a bit like a hamster in a habitrail, everything else was exceptional. This was my 6th half in two years. Great, flat course. I, too, PR'd. I thought the water stations were fine, and I liked the bananas at mile 9. The post-race food was the best! Subway, pancakes, and lots of snacks - yum. I've run much larger races (too crowded) and smaller races (too little swag and not chip-timed), but this one was just right! This Goldilocks will definitely be signing up for 2011.
Jeff Dillon from Memphis, TN (5/19/2010) "A scenic run with an historic finish line" (about: 2010) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Eugene Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 I traveled to Eugene anticipating a fantastic finish but not realizing how enjoyable the entire week would be. Pros: - Finish on Hayward Field - Beautiful course - Good support - Friendly volunteers and organizers - Frequent and well-supplied water stops - Frequent and plentiful port-a-potties - Feather banners for mile markers - Welcoming city residents pleased to have a marathon there (How many times have you seen retirement home residents sit outside in the cold to cheer runners?) - Free tickets to the Oregon Relays before the race Cons: - Small/crowded expo (not a big deal to me) - Split for full/half needs better marking - More concrete on the route than I expected - Race has grown to the point where it could use more than two corrals Adding Pre's trail to the route would be a nice addition, but may be difficult given the number of runners. I have to say that I ran this one injured and did not come near my goal. But the finish was so exhilarating that it was easy to forget any disappointment and enjoy the moment. A great run!
D. K. from Chicago, IL (5/19/2010) "Cool Race But Growing Pains" (about: 2010) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Eugene Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 Good race overall, but there are a few things that need attention (mostly due to growing pains, I'm sure). Cons: 1) Desperately need a longer starting corral and possibly a seeded start. It was really (almost dangerously) crowded for the first 4 miles or so. 2) There were no mainstream gels at expo; I had to drive to a running store to get some. Also, people aren't going to all of a sudden chance it and start using Liquid Gold the day of the race. What was that stuff? 3) Expo was too big for the area provided and VERY disorganized. 4) Water stations need a lot of work. Keep them on straightaways instead of turns, make them longer, and work on the organization (water first or Gatorade first, or always on the same side). 5) In the city races that I've done in the past, owners of cars are notified not to park on the course or they would be towed. There were cars everywhere, including people trying to pull out into the crowd. This was made worse because it was so crowded at the beginning. 6) Would like to see more timing sensors. This is a little nit-picky, I realize. I just like to analyze my results, and this race had the fewest of any CITY races I've done in the past. It also seemed like it would be really easy for people to cheat, because there were no chip sensors at the end of the first out-and-back. Pros: 1) Finishing on Hayward Field (enough to make me forget most of the cons I mentioned). 2) Shuttles were really efficient. 3) It was cool that they kept a video of the finish line so you can see what you looked like coming in. 4) Cool course overall.
D. C. from Vancouver, Canada (5/13/2010) "Top-notch race, first-class experience" (about: 2010) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Eugene Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 As a senior citizen runner, Eugene and Hayward Field are truly legendary. It was a positive treat to be "Running in the Footsteps of Legends." Not sure if I am now a legend myself, as a result - maybe just a "legend in my own mind," as they say. Great event for such a new one. Some growing pains - partly due to rapid growth - to be totally forgiven if organizers learn. Expo needs a new site. Water stations need some attention, particularly the first one that didn't get the memo and had water on one side and sport drink on the other - you could not get both. Hayward Field finish made me feel like I was a legend. I was tired by then, but anything but running as hard as I could go was not an option after passing those gates! Well done. I will almost certainly be back next year.
V. K. from Florida (5/10/2010) "Finish on Hayward Field - Priceless!" (about: 2010) 2 previous marathons \| 1 Eugene Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 Lovely small-town marathon. We came to Eugene in '08 for the Olympic Track and Field Trials and came back when we heard the finish would be on the track at Hayward Field. We had run the last half of the course on a long run and knew how beautiful it would be (concrete not withstanding). Pros: 1. Finish on the track 2. Shuttles from hotel 3. Plenty of porta-lets 4. Enthusiastic spectators 5. Nice technical shirt Cons: 1. Terrible pasta dinner. Flimsy paper plates and no place to sit, with red tomato sauce?!! 2. Crowded expo. The Hilton had way too much going on. 3. What was that Liquid Gold stuff? Why not name brand gels? 4. The water tasted terrible. Was it tap water? I finally got some from some spectators who saved the day. 5. My brother (his first marathon) lost his chip and we were told there was a help table where he could get a new one. We never could find it so he ran without one. His fault for losing it, but a real shame. These are picky things, but they're easily remedied. This was my third marathon, and my husband's 26th. We've run lots of halves of all different sizes. I would recommend this highly.

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