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Apr 29, 2024

Extraterrestrial Full Moon Midnight Marathon Runner Comments

Back to Extraterrestrial Full Moon Midnight Marathon Information & Reviews

Course 4.6

Organization 4.5

Spectators 2.6

Number of comments: 80 [displaying comments 11 to 21]

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M. B. from Washington, DC (11/5/2015) "Pure Awesomeness!" (about: 2014) 2 previous marathons \| 1 Extraterrestrial Full Moon Midnight Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 I ran the 8/10/14 half marathon and instantly fell in love with the course. It was the most amazing race I've ever participated in and I can't wait to do it again next year. If you're looking for a desert adventure at night, this is the race to run. There's you, the road, and the entire sky full of stars throughout the course. What more could one ask for? Every aspect of the race from registration to organization was amazing. Highly recommended race.
E. N. from Boston, MA (9/7/2015) "Tough course, but worth the experience" (about: 2015) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Extraterrestrial Full Moon Midnight Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 ...I love night running, and love the desert at night, so this was worth the trouble and pain. Unfortunately it was mostly cloudy the whole night, so no chance of experiencing a Van Gogh 'Starry Night' tableau. But even with the clouds, there was plenty of moonlight to see the road, I switched my headlamp on only when cars approached (only happened maybe a dozen times over the 26 miles). Would've been fine with just two clip-on LED flashers, front and rear. Trouble = I live in New England. Not exactly a hop and skip away. Staying in the tacky, Disneyfied cesspool of Las Vegas was also not great but oh well. I avoided the loud smoky casino hotel that Calico partners with for the non-casino Springhill Suites just a 5 minute drive away (book through Priceline), which was cheaper and a lot nicer - very highly recommended. Pain = not the first 13 miles uphill, but the middle 10 miles downhill...that's what kills you! My quads and hip flexors were screaming by mile 23, so I elected to do the marathon instead of ultramarathon (extra 5 miles) that I had originally signed up for. The staff were very nice about letting me change it at the finish line, though. Only gripes were the chaotic bus-boarding procedure, can't understand why the organizers couldn't have simply put big signs on the door of each bus to separate the 51K and 42K runners from the 21K/10K/5K runners since the second group had a different starting line. Also, it would've been nice to have a designated 'quiet' bus for each of the two groups. Overall, the volunteers and organizers were nice and competent folks. No shortage of water stops and even porta potties in the middle of the desert. No spectators of course, hence 5 stars on that count, lol. Swag: a tech shirt which was pretty nice, as was the finisher's medal. Food and drinks post-race was pretty good, though all I had was some chocolate milk. My only serious complaint: we really should've been provided with those foil-like thermal covers at the finishing line since the buses came only every 45 minutes and it got a bit chilly in the wee hours of the morning what with the desert breeze.
P. E. from Valatie, ny (9/4/2015) "A great experience" (about: 2015) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Extraterrestrial Full Moon Midnight Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 1 Really a extremely well organized different race that is one of my favorite races to date. It's unique full moon, midnight start was great. Happy runners, great volunteers work through the night to deliver a race that should not be missed. Good job Joyce and Calico. Unique shirt and medal (specific to race would be nice but I know it saves us runners money) Plenty of food (Need some protein) even for us slow guys and bus to and back was good.
E. F. from Sacramento Valley, California (9/19/2014) "Unusual, beautiful, fun" (about: 2014) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Extraterrestrial Full Moon Midnight Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 Ran the 51K. Was worried about base elevation, start time, and elevation change. Need not have worried. As a commenter wrote below, the only miles that were somewhat of a slog were 12-13. Running through the southern Great Basin on a clear night was fantastic. Saw meteors and enjoyed the moon. The last 10 miles out and back from Rachel were incredibly peaceful. Excellent organization and volunteers.
R. K. from Chandler, AZ (9/3/2014) "Unique Race Opportunity" (about: 2014) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Extraterrestrial Full Moon Midnight Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 Calico seems to be a great race organization. The price is right, especially as elsewhere, race fees are getting way out of hand! As for the race, I liked the midnight start, as I hate waking up early in the morning. But because the race is a 2 hour bus ride to/from Vegas, it's not one I would do more than once. It's a great race to do once for the novelty, but not as a regular thing. The long straight course would have been excruciatingly boring during the daytime, but at night, not a problem. Then, you are focusing more on the night sky. Great volunteers. I highly recommend this marathon.
B. K. from Ontario, Canada (8/29/2014) "Extraordinarily Extraterrestrial Marathon" (about: 2014) 50+ previous marathons \| 1 Extraterrestrial Full Moon Midnight Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 This was a a race not from this world. Just north of Area 51 along ET highway NV 375, at midnight, under the full Moon, with hundreds of runners who looked like participants of an ET convention. The course was tough: 13 miles of steady uphill followed by 7 miles of downhill, past the finish line(!), 3 miles up and finally the longest 3 miles back towards the distant finish. Many thanks to the dedicated volunteers for their hard work during the long night shift. I camped in Rachel and had a chance to explore the area before and after the race. This place has something.
B. C. from Baker City, Oregon (8/24/2014) "Super Run Under the Super Moon" (about: 2014) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Extraterrestrial Full Moon Midnight Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 2 After 17 marathons in the sunshine, it was time for something a bit out of this worldand this was a great choice. Under the 2014 Super Moonwhat a great coincidence for this racethe road was amazingly light. I had the sense that sunrise was always just moments away even though the race starts at midnight. This was my first marathon with considerable elevation gain (1000 feet +), yet it never seemed uphill (except for Miles 12 & 13). The result was a time that was 20 minutes faster than I had expected. There can only be one other explanation for having a good time while having such a good time: I didn't have the (What Stays in Vegas) time. Yes, three hours dozing off to Lawrence Welk in the quietude of the Red Roof Inn was a great way to gear up after the long drive to the Nevada desert!
Ralph Rohena from Houston, Texas (8/15/2014) "Very different experience-take advantage" (about: 2014) 50+ previous marathons \| 1 Extraterrestrial Full Moon Midnight Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 1 Great change of pace marathon. Beautiful night with clear skies, huge moon and meteor shower. Logistics were great for taking care of everyone. The road was well paved to overcome any fear of tripping so one could look around and enjoy the experience. Loved the lights and lit costumes, but wish all the runners had heeded the need to be visible. Course was hard but do-able. No spectators at all except for enthusiastic supporters at the water stations who deserve credit for traveling so far and staying out all night. The lack of people really helped the aura of the area 51/UFO stories. Nice touch in having 'quiet' buses and 'chatty' buses on the long ride out, however most people did not seem aware of this so a little irritation by some when chatty types got on the quiet bus. Coupled with all you can do in Las Vegas I had a great time overall and would do it again. One issue with the medal is that it did not differentiate with any of the run distances to indicate I did a marathon not the 10K.
K. M. from Vermont (8/13/2014) "Great Experience" (about: 2014) 11-50 previous marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 Had a great time! We came with a group of 11 and had someone participate in all 4 distances. The youngest was 11, oldest 68 - all head a great time. Shooting stars were a bonus! Only negative was they were out of a lot of food by the time those doing the marathon and ultra came in. Maybe hold some stuff or limit what 10k and 1/2 marathoners take.
M. D. from GA USA (8/19/2013) "Additional Comments" (about: 2013) 50+ previous marathons \| 2 Extraterrestrial Full Moon Midnight Marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 I have earlier reviewed this race. I have just one more comment. The Hard Rock is the host hotel. I stayed at the Hyatt Place across the street. It is cheaper, quieter, and convenient. They have airport pickup and delivery and shuttle service to the Strip. If you don't like the glitz of the Casino, this is the one.

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