Some improvement this year (it started on time and the change of the course is moderately better), but still the worst organized marathon I have run. It is unfortunate, because this race has potential and should be great. Should start earlier to avoid extreme heat in the city, needs better aid stations the last 6 miles, PowerAde at all stations, a few spectators would be nice, better organized finish, clean chip bands, and on and on. Please do it right. We would be happy to pay more for a better run.

The vista from the start was awesome! From the starting area you look down over the course through the canyons and you can see the glow of Salt Lake City. I'm sure there are others but I don't know of any other point-to-point marathon where you can see your ultimate goal from the start. It was very scenic from the mountainous start and then throughout the historic run down the Pioneer/Mormon Trail. Given the extreme downhill grade, my quads tired before the rest of my body. The air was thin up that high. Temperatures were hot even at the top where the starting temp was around 60 and quickly warmed to the mid to high 80s when I finished.

I have two complaints. First, I was disappointed with the crowd. Given the size of the July 24th parade I thought that the parade-goers would cheer. The parade watchers seemed indifferent to us runners. Second, why not start even earlier to avoid the 80-degree heat? We had to be up at 3:00 a.m. to catch the buses. With such sleep deprivation going already, I would suggest starting at 4:30 instead of 5:30.

I would highly recommend this marathon to an out-of-towner looking for a different experience, not a PR. It's a fantastic way to see the Wasatch Mountains, get a taste of Utah's heritage, and run a summer marathon.

This was my fourth year of running this race, and my 20th marathon since 2003. The 2006 Deseret News Marathon had substantial improvements from past years. The race started on time this year, which was very nice due to the heat. There were enough aid stations, along with many nice spectators who provided additional drinks. One even gave me a full cup of red Gatorade with ice in it, which was wonderful.

The elimination of the trip back up 8th south to the zoo was a welcome change, along with the loss of the other out-and-back in that same area. The new course was very nice, the neighborhoods we went through were where I got my cold cup of Gatorade. The buses are good; usually they're school buses we get to ride at other marathons. The finish was well done. I was very hot and worn out, and was quickly whisked into the aid station, which helped a lot. When I finished the Salt Lake Marathon last month I was in a similar situation, and just had to stand there on hot asphault at the finish line feeling faint until I had recovered enough to walk away on my own. Great effort with that aid station; the organizers at Salt Lake could learn from you.

Only one thing to work on: that would be getting more bathrooms along the course. Each location only had one bathroom, and some of the lines were four deep. It's very discouraging to stand in a line and watch your time goal bleed away because there's only one bathroom. But overall there was significant improvement from last year, and I look forward to trying it again next year. I hope if I have to make a bathroom stop that there will be three to four bathrooms there, instead of just one.

RACE SUMMARY:
This was my first marathon. I was warned that the extreme downhill sections would hammer my legs. It did, but I didn't notice as much until the following day. I would recommend that your long training runs leading up to this marathon include some prolonged 5-6% downhill grades. Despite the temptation to sprint down the initial descent, I strongly suggest holding back on the first 6 miles, which comprise an aggressive descent.

The course in 2006 was changed as you exit Emigration Canyon. Instead of running up and down Sunnyside Ave. and through Research Park (which lacks shade but has wind), the new course runs along Wasatch Drive, following a much cooler and shadier course (hopefully the Bonneville Golf Course sprinklers will be on as you pass by and be firing onto the street!). The final descent through Salt Lake City is gradual, but mostly exposed. (At least you have a strong incentive to maintain a fast pace the last 8 miles or so.) Just remember the temperature is only going to get hotter the longer you're out there. Starting temp. in the 50's, finishing temp. in the 80's +.

PROS:
* Beautiful start at 7500' (5:30 a.m.) with the twinkle of city lights below and pink sunrise behind you.
* Lone bagpipe player on Big Mountain at starting line was a nice effect.
* Enthusiastic volunteers at water stations every other mile.
* Mostly shade (or darkness at beginning) for the first 17 miles.
* Police blockades of cross traffic during city portion of race were very courteous.
* With last mile or so along "Days of '47" parade route gives extra crowd support for a strong finish.
* Plenty of post-race food choices for recovery.
* I liked having massages available at end of race; however the waitlist was quite long.

CONS:
* Need more buses after 4:00 a.m. at Delta Center so not as much waiting time at top of Big Mountain. I think early buses were a result from a late start the previous year. (Bring some cover up clothes while waiting for race to start).
* There was only 1 gel station at about Mile 17. Could use one at start and several more throughout race.
* Would be nice to have some mid-race split-time indicators.
* Could use more port-a-potties at Big Mountain start and more than one at each water stop. (Most people elected to create their own port-a-potty.)
* Finishing medals should could be a little nicer and state location of marathon.

As a long-standing Utah tradition that nearly died a few years ago, I hope the Deseret News Marathon continues and gets stronger each year! I plan on coming back in 2007!

This was my 40th marathon and much of what's been said below is on point. I find downhill courses challenging, but some of my friends love them. Know what you're signing up for and prepare for it - either run a lot of declines, or plan the day after to stay away from too many stairs!

The start of the course is beautiful - thanks to a local runner, who pointed out wildlife to me as we cruised along, I saw deer, elk, and a snake. It was a treat to be out in nature as the sun rose, with just the sound of running shoes on the road around you. I agree that the juxtaposition of running from the mountain into town makes for an interesting contrast. Sharing the holiday with the local runners made the day festive.

Packet pick-up on Sunday was a breeze, and high marks for getting us commercial (not school) buses for the trip to the start. The R.D. was very responsive to an inquiry I had. All the intersections were well-staffed with police and they did a very professional job. Volunteers were abundant and great about ID'ing water and PowerAde, and being really supportive. The other shorter races were staggered sufficiently so that we marathon runners (around a 3:30 pace) weren't having to do end runs around walkers 3 and 4 abreast as I've had to do in other marathons.

There aren't many summer marathons, and this one is a lot of fun. Given it was threatened by the start of the SLC Marathon, think about supporting it and experiencing a unique event.

This is a pretty fun course. There is one major incline, and two major declines. I think I like the course better than the Salt Lake Marathon. They had great traffic control. The aid stations were good. This isn't really a big marathon - I'm guessing maybe 700 people. The 10K seemed to have many more. It wasn't the hardest marathon, but it wasn't the easiest marathon I have run either. The one major con was the heat. It was oppressive. I thought I would melt. It was 104 F the day before, and I'm not sure how hot it got on the 24th, but I sweat so much my shirt and shorts were drenched. The race starts at 5:30 a.m., and as soon as the sun comes out things heat up. I finished around 9:00 a.m., and I was absolutely drained from the heat. I would recommend training in the heat, because I didn't do that, and I suffered at the end. Other than that I would do this run again; I really liked the course, it's a great tour of Salt Lake City, and the city is all revved up for the big Pioneer Day holiday.

The organizers try to put on a good race and genuinely care about the participants but the race suffers from some fatal flaws, listed below in the order we encountered them.

1. There is no chip-mat at the start nor any other point in the race other than the finish. They told me that problem would be fixed this year but it wasn't.
2. Still not enough outhouses at the start.
3. The initial 3 miles are brutal, BRUTAL, like falling off a steep cliff. You don't feel it at first but they really take a toll on the legs and especially the feet in the form of blisters.
4. There is an enormous hill between mile 5.5 and 7.5 that kills the downhill momentum and erases all the time banked from those first downhill miles.
5. There is a small uphill out-and-back at mile 9 that is not on the course map.
6. In the heat, common that time of year, more aid stations are needed.
7. The finish line area is chaotic; gear-drop bags remained scattered about unguarded near the street, there were no outhouses at the finish and the busses to take runners back to the Delta Center were non-existent.
8. Compounding all these problems is the fact that there is a big parade that day and getting through the city is problematic.

To sum up, the biggest problems this race has is the difficulty of the course and the time of year it is run. Although downhill, it is not fast. I've raced other downhill marathons like St. George, Top of Utah, Tucson and Death Valley Trail, and this one is by far the most brutal on the legs, so much so that I would not do it again. Second, we had the misfortune of running this year in record heat (105 high, 88 at 8:30 a.m.). It will always be hot in SLC in July. The race might be more comfortable in the spring or fall, but because of the organizational shortfalls and especially the course, I will not be back regardless.

This race is a tough one, and if you are either running your first marathon like me, or you've been running them for a while, you have to respect the course. The declines really takes their toll on your quads. I'm only 17 years-old, and since it was my first marathon, I really learned how difficult marathons are. None can get much harder than this. In order to run it successfully, you HAVE to stay hydrated out there, take gels when you need to, and do whatever you can to prevent from cramping (taking salt tablets really helps). The most important thing is to keep yourself fresh for when you reach mile 19 and 20. If you can stay strong up to that point and not hit "the wall," you'll be fine.

But I will say this: a lot of people were hitting the wall today. I was passing a lot of people at the end of the run, and I was running a 4-hour-and-20-minute marathon. I wasn't even running all that fast. The only reason I finished was because I was smart and I respected the course. If you are to run this marathon you have to understand what you are getting yourself into. Otherwise, things can get ugly. Overall, the race was run well. They had plenty of aid stations, so hydrating myself was never an issue. They had plenty of restrooms on the top of the mountain before the race, so the course was a lot cleaner, and the people in the community were fairly supportive. All in all, a good experience. I'll definitely run this again next year.

The shuttling to the start line early in the morning was a bit of a mess. However, we all made it eventually. We weren't allowed to relieve ourselves on the mountain but there were insufficient porta-potties for all the runners. I think most of the runners broke the 'no-pee' rule. The race was late starting due to the shuttling mismanagement.

I thought this race would be less stressful seen as a lot of it was downhill. However, the race profile fails to show the steep uphill portions in the first 6 miles. After that, running down a steep incline was very hard on the knees and the quads.

Running through town for the last few miles alongside the parade was fun. Lots of people out for the parade were cheering for the runners too.

The finish area was disorganised. All the property bags were in an unguarded area. Getting the shuttle back to the start was another exercise in poor management.

I ran this race as a summer marathon. This was my 9th marathon, and I was looking for something different, having run NYC, Rome, and some smaller marathons. There are few marathon options around in the summer, so after reading the comments here at MarathonGuide.Com, I decided to do something different: Run this race.

Flew into Salt Lake City late on a Sunday night, with the race on Monday. Pioneer Day is a state holiday in Utah, and the marathon is part of the festivities. I had contacted Bob Wood about arrangements for packet pick-up since we would miss the Saturday expo. He assured me that we would get our numbers and chips. They weren't at the hotel, but there was a note on the Radisson hotel room stating that they would be at the start. The Radisson was the host hotel (a block from the Delta Center) and the room was fine, the hotel allowed us a late check-out, and we got a $79 race rate for the room.

Got on the bus at 3:45 am, no problem. We arrived at the top of Big Mountain with an hour to spare and got the race packet. Cool and refreshing. The start was delayed about 15 minutes, which was annoying but tolerable. The course for the first 16 miles during the Utah sunrise and cool temperatures was outstanding. Running downhill, viewing the canyons and the red rock formations in the early morning light was awesome. When you hit the city by Hogle Zoo, the course does become ordinary running through the city. And it gets hot. The police officers were great at stopping traffic; there were even volunteers that stopped a train so I could cross a railroad crossing unencumbered. The course does run through the Days of 47 parade route for a block, which is very uplifting and something to look forward to. It would be nice if it could be longer, but apparently the parade committee won't allow it. The finish is at Liberty Park, with your name and hometown announced, and some great finish line photos. There were some delays catching a bus back to the Delta Center.

We took in the some of the Pioneer Day festivities for the rest of day, including the parade, visiting the Mormon temples and taking in the Days of 47 rodeo. Caught the red-eye flight home that night. All in all a great day.


Notes:
The race starts at 7600 feet above sea-level. Salt Lake City is 4330 feet above sea-level. Living at sea-level and coming in just before the race, I hadn't adjusted to the altitude, hence I ran with an elevated heart rate for the race. Did not receive a T-shirt race day, as they ran out, but I e-mailed Bob Wood, and he sent one to me afterwards. My quads and calves hurt considerably; the downhills have some advantages, but they can also be much more difficult than expected.

Pros:
Awesome scenery for the first part of the race. Great communication with the race director, Bob Wood. He was very accommodating with us. Fun and hokey taking in the other Pioneer Day festivities.

Areas for improvement (but no whining!):
This race had chip timing, but not a chip start, so be wary if you need those few minutes. Buses at the end were delayed, but I am told that this issue will be resolved in 2006. There could have been more food/Gu along the course, and more of the course could have been along the parade route. A 5:00 AM start could help with some of the heat later on. Have seen better organization/logistics/goodies in other similar sized marathons.

Summary:
The Days of 47 Marathon was awesome. I had a great day in Utah. I didn't PR as I would have hoped, given the downhill course, but that's OK. I never felt so good as I did at mile 17 of a marathon (and so crappy at mile 25!). Despite some of the nuances and inconveniences, this was a race and an event that I was glad to be able to participate in. It's a little different. I recommend it.