Dori Ingalls is a ROCKSTAR!!! What an incredible event, especially for the first time. The course is gorgeous and challenging, the support is fantastic, an amazing race experience.
Organization- every thing was smooth from packet pick-up to parking, course was very well marked. Race started exactly on time.
Course- tough. Hills, hills, and more hills. Beautiful scenery makes it all worthwhile. Just be ready and no whining- embrace the challenge.Finish line was a very cute and fun covered bridge.Great for photos!!!
Medals- good quality, representative of the VT theme
Support- water stations were frequent and well manned. And I might add well trained.. The volunteers knew how to hand out the water and clear the cups as well as show enthusiasm. I do not eat on the course much, but I know some of the slower runners do, and they commented they would have liked a few snacks on the course. Gu was plentiful, however, so no one went without something.
Lodging, travel- the way they did the carbo load was different and interesting. Rather than one big pasta party, you could go to many restaurants who had a 'carbo load' menu. It's a great way to get the community involved.The resorts offered excellent pricing, the golf course offered serous discounts. It was a great family vacation for my family of six from Texas. The dads golfed, the kids rode the lifts, we all toured the Ben and Jerry's.... And I will add that everyone everywhere was wonderfully welcoming to the runners.
Dori has tremendous community support and it shows!!
Good job and congratulations to everyone in Mad Valley!!!

Congrats to Dori (race organizer) for a near flawless race. Amazing how smoothly things went in the first Mad Marathon. Observations:
Gatorade that actually tastes like Gatorade.
GU.
Water stops offer pitchers of water to be poured over your head. (Nice touch on a warm day).
Plenty of water available for slower runners.
Race Marshalls.
Some shade early and mid race.
About 58 degress at start. About 78 by noon.
Long, steep up hills at mile 1, 2, 8 13. Long steep down hills at 3, 22-25.
Lots of people walking early.
Enough porta potties at start. Not enough potties out on the course.
Ben & Jerry's truck at finish; $4 for Phish Food!
Free Massages.
Roughly 5 miles of dirt roads.
Enthusiastic volunteers.
More than ample aid/water/Gatorade stops- roughly 21 of them.
Can run the finishing chute with friends and family. Nice touch!
Start promptly at 7:30.

For those wanting a great Marathon experience, great scenery and challenging terrain, THIS is your race.

What a great marathon that these guys put on!! Water station every were with the best volunteer , police , event guys did awesome JOB!! The coarse was beautiful and glad this was my 2nd vermont for my 2nd trip around 50state plus DC . Thanks /+5 !! www.fix4theday.com

Nice job for the first marathon here.
Race: traffic control, route, aid stations, volunteers - Very Good.
Scenery: Amazing. Weather: Ditto.
Course Difficulty: Hills, hills and more hills.
Post Race: Needs a do-over. No salty snacks, no bananas... Doughnuts and apple cider?! No offense, but I don't think consumption of 500 calorie containers of ice cold apple cider was a wise choice. My buddy who spent the afternoon giving it back to the Vermont landscape will be happy to second my vote.

Rated the course 5 stars because I like versatility in a course, this is not a PR course, but having run on PR marathon courses, I much prefer this any day! The course was great, lots of hills up and down so be prepared (you know it's hilly when people are telling you that you are at the highest elevation). The Organizers did a fantastic job with fluids and volunteer support, did not need to carry water even on a hot day. This was the best marathon I have done and for an inaugural race did better than many well established marathons, awesome marathon!!!

Organizers did a wonderful of supporting the runners during a hot and humid day with plenty of water/gatorade stops. This is a difficult hilly marathon with more than 2000 feet of gross elevation gain and non-stop rolling hills. The shirt, medal and race program were wonderful, and the post race food/festivities adequate.

I gave the course 4 stars because it's breathtakingly beautiful, but hilly. There are cows on the course as well as the smell of cows. I gave spectators a 3 because there weren't very many. Most people on the course were either runner's entourage or the wonderful and cheerful volunteers.

The only thing I'd change is possibly start the race earlier to avoid the heat and to redo the elevation graph with more sampling. The current graph really does not do justice to the course. Earphones should be banned because most of the race is on open roads/trails and some of the drivers did not respect the race and barreled through.

If you have ever wondered where all the hippies went after Woodstock, it is probably Vermont. If the sight of white guys in dreadlocks and sandals, or a vegetarian restaurant in a town of 1800 people, or no fast food restaurants for a 100 miles doesnt bother you, then this could be the race for you. T-shirts with Keep Vermont Weird and Buy Local abound. Vermont is all about being close to the earth, nature, and fresh food.

The inaugural running of the Mad River Valley Marathon in Waitsville, VT had lots of good things going for it. It is a beautiful part of the country and the organizers did a great job with the logistics of the race. There was enough water and food, nice medals and tech shirts and all the other things you go to a marathon for. The town supported the race well with businesses getting involved and homeowners parking lawn chairs at the end of their driveway to watch the nuts run by. The packet pickup is Saturday and there is a farmers market across the street from 9 to 1. There you can find Vermont maple syrup, organic peanut butter, veggies, flowers, music, and handmade crafts.

The landscape is beautiful, reminding me of the mountains of NC and thus the course is very hilly and rural. If you want a flat course this isnt for you. The hill from mile 1 to 2 gains 500 feet in elevation and the vast majority of runners were walking. Through mile sixteen you have about 1000 foot elevation gain. It is mainly downhill after mile twenty but, at least for me, it was too late and my legs were shot. You get to do The Dip twice and going up the hill the second time was brutal. There is maybe 20% shade on the course and a fair amount of the course is hard packed dirt and gravel. Thus if it is sunny bring a hat and sunscreen and if it is rainy you are going to have some muddy shoes. Bring a camera and take pictures to pass the time, the views are worth the extra weight.

Lodging: There are no chain hotels around so you have to make your lodging decision from one of the many inns. The area is a big ski town in the winter with Sugarbush Ski resort next door and there are plenty of rooms available. My experience with the White Horse Inn was good. They had Wi-Fi and good food for breakfast. The owners Brenda and Tom gave plenty of personal service and attention for the marathoners under their care. The room and shower were small but the bed was comfy.

The town of Waitsfield and Warren are small and businesses basically close up at 5 pm. The restaurants all seem to close by 9 so dont think you are going to arrive late in the evening and go out for dinner. There are no chain restaurants which forces you to be a bit adventurous.

Food: I did try Mint vegetarian restaurant for lunch and if you are a vegetarian, I think you will be happy with the selection and unhappy with the 45 minutes it took to get my food. The Common Man restaurant might make you think of hardy home cooking for the average guy but it is a fancier restaurant in a rustic setting with dinner entrees in the $20-30 range. It was good but didnt excite me enough to go back. Easy Street Café had an interesting menu with small, medium, and large portions (small is very small and large isnt really). It was probably the best of the 3 restaurants I ate at with prices from $10 to $30 for entrees. After the marathon I like pizza and I recommend Jays Pizzeria just north of the start. Quick and good NY style for the hungry runner.

If you do this marathon, hit the Waterbury area (north of Waitsfield) and go to the Ben & Jerrys factory tour, and some chocolate factory tour. I didnt really have time for it but would have if I could have.

Congrats to Dori for a great race. Beautiful scenery and lovely spectators and volunteers. Had no idea the course would be as difficult as it was, but it is Vermont, and if you want to run this race, start your hillwork now for the race next July! All in all, I would recommend the race for those looking for a challenge and for those who love a small scale event. It's a true marathoner's run.

Just back from a great time running the Mad Marathon in Vermont. All in all the organizers did a great event, especially for an inaugural.

The Good
1. Beautiful Setting
2. Well organized
3. Great water stops
4. Plentiful Volunteers
5. Quiet course (very little road traffic)
6. Nice tech-shirt
7. Nice medal
8. Organizers kept the course open an extra half hour to let the stragglers finish.

The Bad
1. No food at the finish for runners, unless you count the soggy donuts - unless you want to buy it from the vendors. I usually don't carry cash on marathons so was a bit surprised by this.
2. No water bottles, etc at the finish for runners, just a dixie cup of water or gatorade.
3. Pasta Dinner at $19 from the Waitsfield Inn was disappointing and a hugely bad deal. I've had much better pre-race deals for $10 or less (or even free, like Hatfield-McCoy) and it usually benefits a charity.
4. Very few porta-pots on the course. I think there was only one aid station with them. Ladies especially bring TP and be prepared to squat in the woods.

Observations
1. It's in a resort area so expect to pay resort prices for local and lodging. We stayed in Burlington, VT (45 minutes away) for about a third the cost.
2. Burlington, VT is the closest airport and airfares were pretty reasonable for 2011.
3. At 2100 feet of climbing, this is not a flat or 'gentle' marathon, despite what the organizers tell you. :) Hatfield-McCoy is 1700 feet of climbing, so this is 400 feet more.

This is a very special event, a splendidly run and most welcome addition to the summer marathon calendar. The course is very pretty, passing through a diversity of terrain, including forests and pastoral settings on rolling (ok, hilly) terrain, often with spectacular views. About half of the course, maybe a little less, is paved, the other half being firmly packed and runnable (and forgiving) dirt. The aid stations are ample and amply staffed by cheerful volunteers. Packet pick-up, the starting line and everything else about race morning, and the management of the finish area were flawlessly executed. It is amazing to me how well this race was run, beginning to end, top to bottom, especially because this was the inaugural event. Hats off and a big thank you to RD Dori Ingalls and her staff for the gift of this wonderful marathon experience. Other niceties include the excellent farmers market at the race start/finish area on Saturday morning, complete with live music, and the town of Waitsfield (population about 1200), which is nicely situated in a pretty place (the Mad River valley), with many choices for dining and lodging. Ben and Jerrys world headquarters is just up the road in Waterbury, as is an excellent cider mill and many other tourist diversions.