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May 18, 2024

Wisconsin Marathon Runner Comments

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Course 4.0

Organization 4.2

Spectators 3.4

Number of comments: 91 [displaying comments 81 to 91]

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L. R. from Los Angeles, CA (5/4/2009) "Flat, Fun, Fairly Scenic, Few Complaints" (about: 2009) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Wisconsin Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 This was a nice inaugural marathon. Good scenery along the lake, interspersed with neighborhoods and town segments. Great weather. OK crowd support considering the lack of tradition. Nice medal and shirt (but same for both marathon and half). Main complaints: no age group awards, no energy gel at mile 17 despite promises (mine was gone by then; I was counting on being replenished), advertised Gatorade was replaced by diluted Heed. But the positives greatly outweighed negatives.
B. T. from Vernon Hills, IL (5/4/2009) "Good race!" (about: 2009) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Wisconsin Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 The race was great - I was enjoying running it and definitely will run it again! The only thing that I would recommend for them to address is the total absence of police in the southern tip of the course (miles 18-20). In this area the residents have started to drive on the road while the race was still on (in both directions)! I understand - there are no other roads in this area, so they had no choice. But several times I saw an older driver was driving her car just 2-3 feet behind an unsuspecting iPod-wearing runner - until other runners alerted the runner and she jumped in horror to the road's shoulder! It looked too me very dangerous.
J. H. from Tennessee (5/4/2009) "Good inaugural race" (about: 2009) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Wisconsin Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 For a first-time race, I'd have to say this was a good beginning. Pros: 1) Great email communication from the race director. 2) Nice medal and tech shirt. 3) Fairly decent course (not very hilly), and even with the multiple loops there was no confusion on where to go. Volunteers were at each turn. 4) Weather was decent (a little cool at the beginning and later, though it did warm up quickly, with very little shade on the course). 5) The host hotel was very kind in giving late checkout times to those of us needing a shower before a long drive and flight home. 6) There were several "split timing clocks" along the course. 7) There were plenty of support staff on bikes throughout the course, keeping a close watch on the athletes! 8) Water stops were well staffed by enthusiastic volunteers. 9) Traffic control was great. No issues whatsoever. Cons: 1) HEED is awful! I trained with it a couple of times, and didn't like it then; and it made my stomach hurt during the race. 2) Unusual location for timing mats (7.7 miles and 14)? 3) While parking was ample, it was several blocks from the finish. Pete, from Chicago, was kind enough to let me hitch a ride to my car. 4) Post-race food was not restricted at all! Nobody even asked for my ticket, to make certain that only runners were eating there. 5) The starting line was WAY TOO CROWDED! In order for everyone to activate their chip timing, we were all funneled into a very small archway. 6) The timing mat at mile 20 didn't record my time when I passed over it, so I had to turn around and do it again. Don't get me wrong - I enjoyed this race, but constructive criticism will only make this race even better. Thanks for a good weekend!
B. S. from NW Chicago Suburbs (5/4/2009) "Decent inaugural race" (about: 2009) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Wisconsin Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 What a beautiful day for a marathon! Weather was perfect. This was a very flat course with some looks at Lake Michigan. More porta-johns needed at start. Plenty of free parking available near the start. The opening loop was strange and confusing. The trip up north to Carthage College was the most scenic, as it ran through a lakefront park. The south side was just OK, along the side of a road with some minor traffic. I don't like out-and-back courses, where you look at the other runners on the other side of the street going the opposite direction, and this race had plenty of that. Offering a packet pickup in various locations the week prior to the race is a great idea; but the wait was 30 minutes at Runner's Edge in Libertyville, with only one volunteer working hard to stuff the bags and find the right bib. Two people were needed for this job. The race map and information stated that Hammer Gel to be provided at miles 17 and 20. None was provided. I asked the volunteers and they said, "They didn't bring us any." I had a few of my own, but not enough. I learned from the Chicago meltdown to be prepared with your own money to buy water/food if needed during a race, but there were no stores on this course. This is the first marathon (out of 24) that I have run that advertised they would provide a gel station late in the race and then did not. The course we ran didn't seem to match the course map that was provided.
G. J. from Chicago (5/3/2009) "Beautiful Course" (about: 2009) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Wisconsin Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 I just completed this, my 39th, marathon. I was overly impressed with the organization, and considered about 70-75% of the course to be quite enjoyable and scenic. Running along the lakefront for the majority of the race was unusual but really nice, in my experience. This course is drafting board-flat and fast, ideal for running a PR. Plenty of water stops, though I would jettison the Heed sports drink. That stuff was horrible; kudos, however, for being willing to try something other than the usual sports drink. I liked the turns through the neighborhoods, but did not care so much for the long straightaways in the second half of the race, and I probably would take out the circle at the start. If, as I am confident will be the case, the race increases in size, that circle will become unmanageable. Just a tad bit about organization. I was able obtain my packet on race morning with ease. The guy next to me gave a curious story about how he was certain that his buddy had registered him - yeah, right. Yet, the guy from the race allowed him to pay on the spot. Talk about accommodating! The medals are top quality, both the medal itself and the ribbon. While I'd like something more than a clunk of metal cheese, I suspect others may appreciate the symbolism. Improvements: Throw in a turn or two on those long straightaways during the second half, going out, but not coming back. Ditch the Heed. And maybe this is due to my first-ever experience in having unrelenting sit-down nature calls, but more porta-johns at the start and on the course would be good. Spectators were, as is typically the case for a new race, wanting. Very few, except downtown. Not to worry. More will attend as the race grows in popularity, which it will. Overall, thumbs up. This will be one of my rare repeats. Maybe I will even PR the next time.
a. s. from ohio (5/3/2009) "A good race spoiled by a poor "finish"" (about: 2009) 50+ previous marathons \| 1 Wisconsin Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 2 The race was well organized until towards the end. The race course was supposed to be open for 6.5 hours, BUT I finished in 6:09, and by mile 22, all of the mile markers were gone. By mile 23, there were no marshals at the intersections to indicate where the last few runners should go. The water stops were open, which at least indicated that one was on the correct route. It was advertised as a cheesy marathon; but where was the cheese at the end? They also need a new sports drink. The one they had was probably donated, and I know why. The course was good. Spectators were few, but my main gripe is the complete disregard for the slower runners who did finish under the 6.5-hour cutoff.
D. F. from Chicago (5/3/2009) "Strong freshman effort" (about: 2009) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Wisconsin Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 2 Well organized first-time event. Great weather too. A couple of things that could be fixed: the course double-loops too many times. Going farther north to Cartharge College would have removed a U-turn. Going south, the dirt road where the course went into Illinois was uneven and gravel-laden. Aid stations were well stocked and had great volunteer support. A different sports drink is badly needed. Spacing of the aid stations was odd; some were way too close to each other and then there were some wide spaces at the far south end. Nice finish line, though I was 16th and wonder if the trolley affected slower runners. I would run this again.
L. O. from Waukesha, WI (5/2/2009) "Stunning lack of porta-potties" (about: 2009) 3 previous marathons \| 1 Wisconsin Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 I had to stand in the porta-potty line for 40 minutes and was 10 minutes late starting the race. I am glad I wasn't trying for a PR in this race or that really would have been frustrating. Other than that, I thought it was a pretty good race. The course was pretty, and although there were not a lot of spectators, the ones that came out were really supportive. Some even set up water stops for the runners. The medal is awesome and the shirt is nice too. My husband said that he saw water stops being cleaned up when he could still see runners coming up to them, which he thought was unfair to the slower racers.
B. T. from Chicago, IL (5/2/2009) "Debut marathon needs adjustments to be great" (about: 2009) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Wisconsin Marathon COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 2 I selected to run this debut marathon because of its proximity to Chicago (an hour) and the timing (spring) worked well for me. The positives: I loved the packet pick up in the city the week before; nice tech shirt and finisher medal; good pre-race communication; the scenery running along Lake Michigan and through downtown and residential Kenosha is beautiful; perfect weather (50 to low 60s with a light breeze); and there were tons of great volunteers. The negatives: the course is overly complicated with a couple loops and a double out-and-back; the extra loop at the beginning was kind of ridiculous, as there were very few spectators out yet (at least one volunteer was confused by it and directed some half-marathoners on a different - wrong - route from the full marathoners, even before the first mile. Luckily that was the only incident of confusion I noticed, although there did seem to be lots of general chatter during the race about the confusing course. The best scenery is on the first (northern) half of the course. There were definitely no polka bands or cheer stations or cheese at the brat and cheese festival as advertised. The HEED energy drink along the course was awful. Was there even sugar in that? I'll never run another race with that stuff. At least 2/3 of the total participants were half-marathoners so the southern half of the course was pretty lonely for the marathoners. If you need crowd support, this is not your race. While there were definitely some nice locals cheering on their lawns, it was a quiet run. I suspect local crowd support will pick up in subsequent years. Overall, it was a good race debut and an enjoyable run. I'd come back and run the half marathon, but probably not the full.
Melissa Gacek from White Bear Lake, MN (5/2/2009) "Great, flat, scenic course" (about: 2009) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Wisconsin Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 This race is perfect for any runner looking to run a race without the heavy crowds, and if you are in great shape, you could do a PR on this course. The second half is totally flat. Water stations are dependable and efficient, and traffic control was excellent. Post-race fun for spectators included brats, beer and a polka tent. This is a must-attend event for anyone from novices to speedsters looking for an early marathon or half.

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