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Apr 27, 2024

Grandma's Marathon Runner Comments

Back to Grandma's Marathon Information & Reviews

Course 4.5

Organization 4.7

Spectators 4.4

Number of comments: 298 [displaying comments 61 to 71]

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W. C. from Minnesota (6/21/2012) "Beautiful Course, Warm, Congested At Times" (about: 2012) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Grandma's Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 Pro's: -Nice Course, Gentle rolling hills, Lake views. Good mix of forest/city. There were fewer turns and obviously fewer runners than Chicago, which make for easier crowd navigation. -Ample aid stations/water stops. They were prepared for a warm day. They had wet sponges and ice, which was a plus. -Nice shirt/ Great Medal(no paint to cheapen it.) -Friendly fans. Some music on the course. Con's: -Bad spacing at start line for pace groups. This made for a tough few miles trying to get passed by other-paced runners and also made it tough to pass so many other-paced runners. -Not enough toilets in first part of race. -Finish area was a bit confusing and congested. -More music on the course would make the more lonely first half more exciting. Overall, a great race. Twin Cities marathon is still my favorite, but this has a different feel and is very much worth the trip. The Duluth area is rugged and wonderful. I would suggest camping or college dorms to save cash. It is a warm time of year, but I plan on doing this race again within the next couple years.
S. M. from Barrington, IL (6/20/2012) "Excellent Marathon" (about: 2012) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Grandma's Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 My 6th marathon overall (Chicago (twice), Boston, LA, NYC) and a very good experience for my first mid-sized marathon. The expo was smaller than at large marathons, but that is a positive for me. Several guest speakers including course record holder Dick Beardsley (very entertaining). I enjoyed the pasta dinner and had good conversations with several other runners including an elite participant in the US Half Marathon Championships. I was lucky enough to know someone in town and have a place to stay, but others stated the dorms are a good deal. I took a bus from the UMD campus, no lines and the bus left promptly after boarding. We made it to the start a little over an hour before the start which allowed for two trips to the porta potties and bag drop with about 15 minutes to get seeded in the corral. The course is relatively flat with smaller rolling hills, nice views, and several twists along the lakefront. Water stops are every other mile up to 19. My only complaint with the aid stations is they were not consistent with the amount of powerade provided so there were some stations where I was able to grab two cups and others where I only got water. The sponges were useful as temp was mid 60's and the sun was out for about 2/3 of the race. The crowds are relatively sparse the first 19 rural miles, but there when you need them in the home stretch. Chocolate milk and ice cream sandwiches were a nice addition to the typical bagels, bananas, oranges, cookies, etc. at the finish. I highly recommend wading into Lake Superior for an ice bath. I'm recovering a little faster than usual so it may have helped reduce inflammation. Overall, a great race experience including an 8 minute PR.
N. M. from Chicago (6/20/2012) "You won't be disappointed!" (about: 2012) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Grandma's Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 This was marathon 7 for me and for as much as I look to this site for insight on choosing races, and appreciate both the pros and cons, I've never been drawn to sit down and give my opinions until now. Grandmas was top notch! 1. Some comments advice to skip this race if not from Duluth and go with twin cities due to the price inflation of hotels for this weekend. While hotel prices are high and tc might be a great race, don't overlook Grandma's you won't be disappointed. Pros: 1. point to point course 2. Excellent transportation all weekend and to and from race and activities 3. Plenty of well prepared aid stations with plenty of water, gatorade, and ICE and sponges at several stations 4.Cliff pace team awesome 5. Ends in canal park where you get lots of supporters for you during your final miles 6. Scenic course most of the way 7. Decent expo, pasta dinner looked ok too but plenty of nearby options including Grandma's saloon! 8. Everyone from Duluth so nice and helpful 9.Finisher t-shirt 10. Post race party Cons: 1. Hotel prices very high but pay for convince most are right by the water and finish area and sell out at those prices 2. Weather unpredictable Depends on the winds i guess being so close to lake. 2012 had cold 65 and rain the day arrived and then 80 and dry the next and then race day was very humid 70s to start with sweating just standing around at the start and then cooled off mid way to finish in a cold 50's with rain later on Don't disregard the dorms. I was apprehensive about staying here but after taking the chance on them I'm glad I did. The transportation for the race was excellent as well as the weekend and they had coffee water tea and bread and fruit in the lobby before getting on the bus as well as a microwave. In the rooms are a fridge, two single beds with linen (clean but might want to bring own if makes you more comfortable) towels and soap and drinking cup mirror and dressers. The form says no air condition might want to bring small fan (I didn't and was fine-just opened the window and I believe the room actually did have an air conditioner but wasn't looking for it on day 1 since was told they didn't have it so didn't try it) The staff are accommodating and so helpful and nice. There is a tv lounge and bathrooms are dorm style but wasn't bad at all. Women is separate from men and wasn't a problem wasn't crowded and overall very quite. I recommend UMD if on a budget or can't afford the hotels. Again not bad AT ALL! Overall, it was a great race totally worth doing! Lots of small town charm and big time organization. Well run. Lots of support and port o lets at start half way and finish and even shower options for those wanting to shower after race before going home. It was a better then expected weekend and race! Worth doing!
N. C. from Madison, WI (6/20/2012) "Very well run (pun intended!) race!" (about: 2012) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Grandma's Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This marathon is run exceptionally well. The bus to the start is perfect, the aid stations, number of aid stations, porta potties - everything! I am a back of the pack runner and was a small bit concerned, as I read some people in 2011 felt there were not as much support out at the end, and I must say it looks like they listened to people's comments and made sure we were all taken care of! The race started out very very humid. The race director sent out an email earlier in the week to pre-warn us about this, so it was to be expected. Each aid station had more than enough water, powerade, and cups of ice which were great. I finished in 6:30, so I am a true 'back of the pack' runner and never ran through an aid station that had run out of anything. The expo is one of the best in terms of layout and booths present. They even sell bananas, apples and other various things (advil, etc) so I didn't have to make a special trip to the store! We stayed at the Radisson. Overpriced for a run down room? Yes. But - the staff was amazing. Everyone there knows about the race and has all information. If I could change one thing, it would be to pay a little extra to stay right at the finsh line. Speaking of, the post-race festival in Canal Park is second to none. Bands, food, drinks, and the merchandise tent is still up if you want to buy something after you finish. Highly suggest looking into this one!
B. N. from PA (6/20/2012) "Excellent" (about: 2012) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Grandma's Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 Grandma's is a finely tuned machine. You can tell the organizers love marathoning and sweat the details. As a result, lots of strong and experienced runners show up for this race. I didn't perform well due to undertraining, but still loved the experience. PROS: -The FLYOVER at start was epic! My favorite part of entire weekend. -UMD dorms were excellent. New, clean, quiet. The nice volunteers even had a hospitality suite w/ free food & drinks -Water stops were the best. Sponges and ice frequently handed out. Mile markers were balloons floating in sky. -Results posted immediately. CONS: -Let me pee in the weeds OR get more porta johns at start line! -hotel $$$ gouging, but dorms more than make up for that. -Nitpicking, but I would start at 7am instead of 7:45.
T. L. from Dallas, Tx (6/19/2012) "Two thumbs up for Grandma's" (about: 2012) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Grandma's Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This was my 32nd different marathon. Overall, and wonderful marathon experience and I highly recommend running it. Top Pro items: 1. Duluth has a big heart. They love their marathon and are very welcoming. 2. The course is pretty flat. All hills are pretty small, even the one at mile 22. The course is also scenic. I can see where 19+ miles of the same scenery can get old, but the last 10K comes alive and totally makes up for it. Wow, the gauntlet of people downtown cheering is just incredible. 3. Great overall organization. Can only think of a few minor glitches. Everything was top notch. 4. The half marathon starts further up the road and an hour before the full. No issues with colliding with the halfAWESOME. Cons: Seriously hard to come up with any, other than I wish it started sooner than 7:45. And the finish area was confusing, with different areas partitioned off with different entrances and exits. We got turned around in there a bit.
J. P. from Sioux Falls, SD (6/18/2012) "Great course but not a great value" (about: 2012) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Grandma's Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 With all the hype about Grandma's, there are some wonderful aspects to this race and yet it falls short in other respects. Thank goodness the area universities have rooms available, otherwise people would need to travel from 100 miles away to find lodging. UW- Superior had very adequate accomodations for $105/nt. which included transportation to and from the start/finish. Paying to park just to pick up a race packet sucks. Reviews of the pre-race meal weren't good- very basic spaghetti dinner. Anyone planning on decent post race food will be very disappointed- you get OJ, strawberries, ice cream, a nut roll- that's about it. There's definitely expenses in busing everyone out to Two Harbors, but if you're going to charge participants up $500 for a hotel room and money to park at the expo, increase the entry fee five bucks and serve decent food. The course is awesome and is the main attraction of the trip. We were blessed with great weather and, for your viewing pleasure, some very attractive runners (best overall group I've ever seen at a marathon). Volunteers are very friendly and willing to assist the runners. This remains a nice event, but there's other marathons that might be a better choice to travel to and afford.
s. t. from Orlando, FL (6/18/2012) "scenic tranquillity!!" (about: 2012) 6-10 previous marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 Course: Super pretty along the north shore of Lake Superior. A little hillier than I expected (but I'm from a flat region). Organization: Excellent! Great transportation to start line and buses back post race. Great post race showers at the YMCA. Very streamline. Big(ger) than expected expo. THE VOLUNTEERS AND MEDICS WERE AMAZING!!!!!
T. M. from Des Moines, IA (6/18/2012) "One of the Best" (about: 2012) 11-50 previous marathons \| 3 Grandma's Marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 What a great race weekend. Great course, and great people. See you next year, Duluth.
R. W. from Minnesota (6/18/2012) "Outstanding Experience" (about: 2012) 2 previous marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 Ran Grandma's in 2012 as my second marathon. Extremely well organized and the volunteers were fantastic. Stayed in Canal Park which had an 'Olympic Village' kind of atmosphere, and got to ride an old historic train to the start. Buses available, too, of course. Local ANG did a flyover before the race as well. On the course, plenty of water and poweraide, even for us back of the back types. The weather started out warm, and I decided to try a Cliff Bar pace team to beat my 5 hour goal, and Marie was fantastic ... Injecting fun, energy, and distractions for us at the end! You really feel the crowd suppart as you enter Duluth about mile 19 and it seems like the entire town is out cheering us on. Lots of porta potties at the start and mile 13 where the half begins, but only a couple at each of the other water stops. i will be back!! Pretty straight course, a few rolling hills, and except for the start, plenty of room to spread out. Great job, Duluth, volunteers and organizers.

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