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May 2, 2024

Icebreaker Indoor Marathon Runner Comments

Back to Icebreaker Indoor Marathon Information & Reviews

Course 4.3

Organization 5.0

Spectators 4.6

Number of comments: 38 [displaying comments 11 to 21]

More Comments: [ < 1 2 3 4 > ]

L. B. from New England (4/1/2012) "Best Staff EVER!!!" (about: 2012) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Icebreaker Indoor Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 Run around in an oval/circle for four hours was tedious. That said, the staff was incredible - joking with us, talking, having everything we needed whenever we needed it, always smiling and encouraging. They made each lap, if not enjoyable, entertaining. And the spectators were great, too. If you're looking for a winter race - tough out the tedious laps and enjoy the friendly people and great staff.
J. M. from Chicago, IL (2/6/2012) "Put on your 'Must Do' list" (about: 2012) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Icebreaker Indoor Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 Honestly, I anticipated that running 96 laps would be dreadful. I could not have been more wrong. It was a real hoot. This is a very fun, well organized race. The first half just flew by. The entire race went much faster than I thought. The music pumped over the PA system really helped. The volunteers were top notch, and this is the only race of my 30 marathons where I could put out my fuel, and a volunteer would retrieve it and hand it to me on the next lap. It is also the only marathon I have run where the next portapottie is never more than 1/8 mile away. The ice rink which is in the middle of the track keeps the temperatures perfect for a marathon about 55 degrees. A shoe chip keeps track of your laps, a large screen shows the laps of the runners by name (scrolling through all the names), so you can catch your name from time to time to see where you are at. They will give you your lap count if you request it, and they will announce your name and lap count as you get closer. They announce your name with one lap to go, and they announce when your finish. No chance of accidentally doing 97 laps. One interesting experience is literally being shoulder-to-shoulder with the fast runners as they breeze by on the inside lane. It is really impressive to be running hard, and have these smooth, very quiet, seemingly barely breathing hard gazelles go flying by. Very cool. Very impressive. Very inspriring. The race was limited to about 130 runners, so the track was never really crowded, and also there were not a lot of spectators. But the folks who showed up had lots of enthusiasm and lots of funny signs ('Warning, Left Turn Ahead' 'Haven't I Seen You Before?') I know the importance of specificity of training, and was concerned about the 382 left turns I would be making (the first lap is a half lap, with only two turns). I contemplated getting on a track to condition my legs to all the turns, but never found time to do it. Well, the turns were absolutely no problem during the race, or the days following, even without any specific training.
D. B. from Mukwonago WI (1/24/2012) "Lots of fun, unique experience" (about: 2012) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Icebreaker Indoor Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This was a great experience and one I would highly recommend. It was well organized and the venue was just the right temperature.
P. L. from Illinois (1/24/2012) "Indoors equals boring? No way!" (about: 2012) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Icebreaker Indoor Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 I ran the half marathon. Many people told me that running indoors would be boring and the curves would be tough on my knees and hips. They were wrong. First the Pettit Center is extremely large - inside of our 2 lane running track was a wide track of ice for the speed skaters, inside of that were TWO hockey rinks plus stands for their spectators. The straight aways and curves didn't feel any different than my usual run on streets. And I had no pain after the race. Boring? No way! Besides being able to watch everyone else who is running the race, we had all the skaters to entertain us. I was awed when the Olympic skaters were out there practicing. Spectators? The volunteers were amazing and my family was able to cheer me on 48 times. What other race could they do that? And being situated in Milwaukee, we had a fun evening before the race and a great lunch downtown afterwards.
B. B. from Pittsburgh, Pa (1/23/2012) "Unique and Fun Experience" (about: 2012) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Icebreaker Indoor Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 A really fun and friendly race. It was so nice to just drive up to the Petit Center, park within steps of the race, run, take a shower and then go. Everyone involved was very friendly, including the RD, the spectators, the other racers, and especially the water station volunteers who worked with incredible efficency. I thought that this race required much more mental toughness than most outdoor races that I have done which made the finish more rewarding, even if I wasn't thrilled with my time. If I lived closer, I would run it annually. Great race.
D. E. from Bay Area, CA (1/27/2011) "Perfect organization" (about: 2011) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Icebreaker Indoor Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 I know it sounds crazy to some, but the race was fun! I thought it would get boring after a while, but it didn't. The laps went by quicker than expected, in big part thanks to the friendly atmosphere and support from fellow runners, spectators and volunteers. It was very nice to see faster runners who had finished stay around and cheer slower runners on. In how many other races do you see that? In how many other races do you have 96 water stops and 191 porta-potty stops (with no waiting time at the porta-potties)? If the porta-potties in one turn were occupied, just continue 1/8 of a mile to the other ones in the next turn) available to you. Chris Ponteri and his team organized an excellent event and the number of participants was just right - not too crowded, but still enough people so that you never felt lonely.... Because the course was certified by measuring the inner lane of the track and most runners spent most of the time in the outer lane to let faster runners pass on the inside, the race distance was longer than 26.2 miles, which is something to consider for people who are looking for PRs. I don't know how much extra distance is added per lap by running in the outer lane, but judging by the distance length for different lanes around a 400 meter track, each lap was probably 25-30 feet longer in the outer lane. Multiply that by 96 laps, and that totals almost half a mile. I haven't done any other indoor marathons so I can't say which one is best, but I do know that this is a race I can strongly recommend to anyone looking to do an indoor race and/or race in January and/or in Milwaukee.
N. A. from Chicago (1/24/2011) "Pretty good race" (about: 2011) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Icebreaker Indoor Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 I ran the marathon in 2011. A flu caused me to run my worst marathon time ever, but the race itself wasn't too bad. High-energy runners and crowd. It was nice to run in a temperature- and elevation-controlled environment, and to see my girlfriend 96 times. The race shirts were nice. I thought the hockey jersey long-sleeve t-shirt was one of the cooler shirts I've ever received at a race. My only complaint (and I understand why they did this) was the fact that we weren't allowed to listen to music. Being forced to listen to the PA announcer count down the leader's laps when I still had 5 miles to go was a little disheartening, and it made it hard to just zone out and run. Overall, though, it was a good race. And if you live around Chicago or Milwaukee, you can't really find a more convenient January marathon.
k. b. from milwaukee, wi (1/24/2011) "Great, Midwest, Indoor Running Event in January" (about: 2011) 6-10 previous marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 Have run the relay, which is really a lot of fun because the Pettit Ice Center is a great venue for runners and spectators. Weather is perfect in the Pettit and family and friends can see you every lap. You as a runner can pace yourself nearly perfectly and you have aid in the form of volunteers every lap! Plus, race staff goes out of its way to make sure the races are managed perfectly and everyone has fun while getting personal attention. You can tell they are runners themselves. For anyone in the Midwest during the winter months, this is probably the best venue at which to enjoy 5K, a half or full marathon. Can't say enough about the organization, volunteers and venue. What a way to start the New Year!!!
M. S. from Chicago, IL (1/29/2010) "Best race organization EVER!" (about: 2010) 3 previous marathons \| 1 Icebreaker Indoor Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 I ran the half, and as far as races go, this was easily the best organized. Packet pickup was a breeze, and the race started on time. The volunteers were AWESOME, and having a crowd cheering for you the entire way was an experience I've never had before. It was so nice for my family to be able to watch me run the entire race - usually they just see me off and then wait for the finish line! Great medal and t-shirt; I will definitely be back!
H. K. from saint charles, IL (1/28/2010) "PERFECT CONDITIONS AND GREAT MARATHON" (about: 2010) 11-50 previous marathons \| 2 Icebreaker Indoor Marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 I thought the 2009 marathon was superb and could not be better, but Race Director Chris took this to the next level. First off, the playlist was GREAT (a nice mixture of music that you could hear at all times around the track to motivate you). The emcee/announcer did an excellent job mentioning people, how far they had traveled, and pointing out folks approaching their last lap to finish or if they had a birthday. It really personalized the experience. The chip timing experience was great. I knew how fast I was running each lap and how many laps I completed. The volunteers, just like last year, were AWESOME. Friendly, high-energy, and they opened my Clif Bloks for me, which made my life and the appearance of the track better. Lots of little kids made it interesting by sticking their hands out for high-fives. Definitely a highlight and boost during the last 6 miles. I would do this in a heartbeat again.

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