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Paavo Nurmi Marathon (USA) Runner Comments
Back to Paavo Nurmi Marathon (USA) Information & Reviews
Course 4.5 
Organization 4.6 
Spectators 4.2
Number of comments: 62 [displaying comments 41 to 51]
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Richard Daymont from Northfield, MN
(8/19/2005)
 "I'll be baaaack!" (about: 2005)
11-50 previous marathons
| 2 Paavo Nurmi Marathon (USA)s
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 Excellent smaller (260 individuals plus 90 relay teams) marathon. Great organization, a great course (hilly, but fair) and a terrific t-shirt (with the course map on the back) and medal to finishers. Marathon weekend begins with a very easy packet pick-up, an inexpensive ($5) pasta feed, and the lighting of the Paavo torch on Friday. Transportation is provided to the starting line (15 miles out) and this year we wore a computer chip, although everyone's chip was activated when the gun went off. Good aid stations every 3 miles until mile 18 when they came at every mile. Lots of refreshments at the finish line, including the 'Finnish' stew. Also, they have a nice awards presentation at a local park in early afternoon. Inexpensive entry fee makes it an even better deal! | |
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j. s. from Oak Forest, IL
(8/16/2005)
 "Friendly small-town race" (about: 2005)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Paavo Nurmi Marathon (USA)
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 I must start with the course, which was very beautiful with woods and rolling hills. This year there was perfect weather, in the 60/70's. It is a challenging course, which takes you through many small towns where the people are friendly. The organization was decent, pre-race dinner, for $5, was decent; however, you get what you pay for. Another thing that could have been a problem is that you could not pick up your timing chip until race morning. The race material stated STRICTLY no driving or parking along the course; however, there were plenty of cars/people who did this. The police were there for your protection ticketing those driving over the posted speed limits. What really made me upset is that I forgot to mail my entry prior to going to train a Wisconsin National Guard unit that is deploying to the sand box, and when I arrived to packet pick-up, they stated I owed $5. With my late mailed entry I wrote a letter explaining that I missed the date to due to military commitments. The woman at packet pick-up stated 'Sorry, there is no serviceman discount.' This made me visible upset. Thankfully the rest of the people were nicer than this person. Spectators are limited, although those who were out were vocal and very supportive. If you want a destination with not much to do - one that gives you a chance to relax and enjoy the outdoors - this is a race for you. Overall grade: B | |
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Bill Sanders from Elmhurst, IL
(8/15/2005)
"A Perfect August Marathon Location" (about: 2005)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Paavo Nurmi Marathon (USA)
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 Run a marathon in August? Are you nuts? It'll be too hot. Not so. If you are looking to do an August marathon (destination race or well supported long run) consider Northern Wisconsin. I have a few marathons scheduled in the fall and made a last minute decision to take a vacation 'up North' (from Illinois) and run the marathon as a long run. What a pure experience. Small town. Rich marathon history. Now I know the special meaning when people ask, 'Have you done Paavo?' Wonderful experience. Fan support is light but there is something great about those who are around to cheer the runners on. From the children to the retirement age fans sitting on their porches, they are there to cheer and it's a blast seeing them. Paavo also offers 5-person relay teams so you come across large crowds about every 5 miles. These relay runners are great encouragement to the marathon runners. The course is challanging with the hills, so figure it will cost you a few minutes, but the atmosphere and scenery are well worth it. After the race, it was back to the cabin on the lake for some rest and recovery. What a great day. | |
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Lindi Kopecko from Shoreview, MN
(8/15/2005)
 "Wonderful, scenic, rolling run" (about: 2005)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Paavo Nurmi Marathon (USA)
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This was my first marathon ever, and it was wonderful. The course was rolling and beautiful. The hills were just right, not very big or straining. And I was never crowded - not by other participants nor spectators. If you like a run filled with wilderness and rolling terrain, this run is perfect. I would recommend it to all. | |
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w. z. from milwaukee
(8/29/2004)
"lots of fun" (about: 2004)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Paavo Nurmi Marathon (USA)
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 Paavo was my first marathon, and I couldn't have asked for a better experience. It was a lot of fun! The course is tough, and very scenic. A 250 foot climb from mile 5 to mile 10, and two fifty foot hills in the last three miles are just the most obvious obstacles, but they make the turn down the Silver Street finish so rewarding. The atmosphere is electric. There may not be a lot of fans, but I think its because everyone is voulunteering. The water stations were well attended by enthusistic and well-organized volunteers. The friday night spaghetti dinner was delicious, only narrowly beaten by the Mojakka stew at the finish line. I'll be back in '05. | |
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Dave Milke from Geneva, IL. USA
(8/20/2004)
"Great race, great people, great area." (about: 2004)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Paavo Nurmi Marathon (USA)
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 The seeds of my Paavo experience were sown months before during the post-race ceremony of Eagle River's Journey's Marathon where I heard mention of the 'crazy people who do Paavo'. It was that case of recognizing a new word [Paavo] and then seemingly to hear it everywhere throughout the day. When I returned home I looked it up on the web, liked the description with runners comments, and threw my application in the ring. As I am a long-time backpacker and visitor of the Porcupine Mountain area, my plan was to make a vacation trip, beginning with the run and following up with a couple of days of hiking. I arrived in Bessemer (15 minutes east of Hurley) on Friday night from a 7hr Chicago-area drive and made my way back to the race dinner in Hurley. Maybe I was just hungry from the drive but I found the food very tasty. The service too was very well done. I sat with a man who had done Paavo many times and shared tails during the meal. I remember him saying that the weather would be no problem but that the bright sun could be bothersome, which at the time made no sense to me at all. Who cares about the sun, I thought. Thinking about next day's race and sleep have never seemed to mix well for me. I think I logged about 2hrs of questionable sleep Friday night, complete with a vivid dream of watching the start of the morning's race on a TV screen somewhere in a strange room with people I didn't recognize. I remember thinking I MUST BE DREAMING as I woke myself up, relieved and laughing. Bad sleep behind me I got ready fast and made my way to Hurley to grab one of the busses leaving for the start line. It really was a great morning, cool (~44F) and clear. For those who don't know the course it is a point to point starting in the small town of Upson, moving through several other small towns, finishing with the last four miles or so along Highway 51. The starting area was very informal, small but not crowded. I was able to meet some new people as well as talk to a few others I had recognized - it was great. I really enjoyed the sights of the crowd and the anticipation of the race ahead. The race started. The course is definitely one of ups and downs. Somewhere along the first 5-miles I had to run with my eyes almost completely shut due to the laser-like sun that was rising. Gosh, where had I heard about that bright sun? If you saw a guy running with his eyes closed, smiling, that would have been me, #49. Since the course is spread out between the small towns there is plenty of time to be by yourself. That said, I was really impressed by the people who turned out in every single town we went through as well as a few oddly chosen spots in between. The spectators were extremely pleasant, cordial and motivating. In addition to the spectators were the many, wonderful volunteers along the course. I don't know how they could have any better for my taste - awesome job. The run was more than I expected physically. I started wanting to run a given time, but my goals were scaled back a bit after mile 18 or so. Someone had stopped in front of me and jokingly asked if I would carry them to the finish. I told them I wished I'd had the strength for that. Miles 22-25 were the hardest for me as I felt myself slowing down. I met up with a runner at mile-25 who actually looked worse than me. I decided to run in with him giving him whatever encouragement I could offer. I remember saying 'check it out - a mere 200 feet from the finish'. I made sure I didn't go in before him, I think he appreciated that. I stayed in the finish area for the next couple of hours just to enjoy the atmosphere and see the other runners coming in - again the volunteers there were great. I went to my car for my camera and made a lunch of melted cheese slices (hot car) on rye bread with sun chips stuck in between. I was eating the sandwich on a cement stoop watching the finishers when a runner pointed to my meal and said, "Hey, that looks good!" Went to the post-race ceremony and then headed back to Bessemer rewarding myself with a 6-pack of Becks Dark to sample after dinner. Basically it was a pretty good day, the memories of which will stay with me. The next day I hiked in and photographed the Porcupine Mountains for over eight hours. I was packless, as light as I could go. Got some nice pictures a chance to reflect, and I SAW A BEAR! I was totally excited, the first I've seen up there. The next day I hiked and photographed the Black River area. Totally awesome. So to sum up: Great race, great people, great area and now my great memories that I will recall often - especially whenever I find myself blinded by the sun. | |
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S. S. from Chicago, IL
(8/18/2004)
"Fantastic!" (about: 2004)
2 previous marathons
| 1 Paavo Nurmi Marathon (USA)
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This was only my second marathon, my first being Chicago, and I have to say this experience was much more fun. The weather was perfect considering the time of year. It was almost cold at the beginning and a sunny mid-60's by the finish. The scenery is very nice with rolling hills and forest throughout. There are only a few small towns where fans are cheering you on so you have a lot of time to yourself, but it seemed like everyone in the area was out there. Aid stations were well manned and plentiful and the whole event has a great, friendly feeling. The post run picnic was excellent and the town of Hurley is a great place to spend a few nights if you like drinking beer. I'll be back as often as I can get in proper shape for it. The numerous hills would have been a lot more taxing if the weather had been warmer. | |
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Eddie Rousseau from Minneapolis and Park Rapids Minnesota
(8/18/2004)
"GREAT EVENT" (about: 2004)
50+ previous marathons
| 6+ Paavo Nurmi Marathon (USA)s
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 Hi Ricky and all; What a great race and a great day! I so love this marathon. The course is challenging as it should be. It runs a wonderful route. Your small staff is so helpful! Great pre-race dinner and a great place to visit. The evening ceremony is unique and special. Thanks again, see you next year, God willing. Fast Eddie Rousseau | |
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S. S. from St. Louis
(8/17/2004)
"A great experience" (about: 2004)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 Paavo Nurmi Marathon (USA)
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 A very nice small town race where the people and organization explains why so many come back for repeats. The course is hilly and the rises at 24 and 25 exact their toll. It's scenic except perhaps the last 5 miles on Hwy 51 where the traffic detracts from the view. The start area has no shelter so be prepared with some coveralls as it can get be cold while waiting. The small towns along the way make it interesting and although the spectators are few, they are enthusiastic. Volunteers at the finish were very helpful and the massage was great compared to some tepid stuff I have recieved at other runs. The stew is recommended. The medal looks great. A great experience. | |
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G. V. from Muskego, WI
(8/17/2004)
"Hilly Beautiful Course" (about: 2004)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Paavo Nurmi Marathon (USA)
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This was our first marathon and it was hilly! And I mean hilly. The hills and the views kept it interesting, though. It was a beautiful course through the Northern WI forest and with several water views. The people in the small towns we passed through were great. Fans of all ages were out to cheer us on. Local firefighters were there to hose down the runners, though it never got all that hot. The miles were clearly marked and there were plenty of volunteers. The race organizers were wonderful, letting us pick up our packets a little on the late side Friday night. They even were able to look up our names and announce our hometowns as we crossed the finish line. Overall a great experience. My husband and I kept saying we'd only do one marathon, but this one was so much fun we may do it again next year! |
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