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California International Marathon Runner Comments
Back to California International Marathon Information & Reviews
Course 4.4 
Organization 4.3 
Spectators 4.2
Number of comments: 231 [displaying comments 181 to 191]
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J. A. from Rancho Cordova, California
(12/19/2005)
 "Great first marathon!" (about: 2005)
1 previous marathon
| 1 California International Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 I ran the 2005 CIM. It was my first marathon & a fabulous experience. The course is wonderful, spectators encouraging and good support. I am planning to run it again in 2006. | |
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Doerte Mahanay from Seattle, Washington
(12/19/2005)
"My First Marathon - Exceeded Expectations!" (about: 2005)
1 previous marathon
| 1 California International Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This was my first marathon. We flew in from Seattle for this race because of: a) reliable weather; b) nice & easy rolling hills, leveling off to flat at the last third of the race; c) excellent support and cheering along the entire way; d) pretty scenery; e) great organization and enough water & gel along the route; f) lots of entertaining bands and music (especially those guys playing the Ramones). All my expectations were exceeded tremendously. The race was enjoyable from start to finish. Everything fell into place perfectly. The only items that could be slightly improved are: a) more burners for the tomato soup at the end. After waiting for 15 minutes post-race, we had to give up since we could not stand around any longer; b) better t-shirt design. Hey, how about brighter colors and a logo that does not look so small and coded? I don't think I could have picked a better first marathon. Even my time was better than expected. Looking forward to the next one! | |
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J. A. from U.S.A.
(12/10/2005)
 "Excellent Race!! Very Well Organized!!!" (about: 2005)
4-5 previous marathons
| 1 California International Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 Very well organized and executed. There were about 4000 runners, which is a comfortable number for space on the road. I drove the course the Thursday before, and the weather was totally miserable, with cold rain and wind. However, on race-day Sunday, it was clear with no wind - but cold (freezing at the start). But it seemed to warm up quickly once the sun is up. Go to Dr. Polansky's presentation about the marathon course at the expo. It is very interesting and will answer any questions you have about this marathon. At the start, there is a new gas station/store to stay warm in while waiting for the start. The Clif-Bar pace teams are the way to go if you are planning on a specific time, or just to keep from going out too fast. The 3:30 pacer was amazing!! He was right on the dot, every mile!! This is a great race. But you may be taking a chance on the weather. | |
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J. C. from Orange County, CA
(12/10/2005)
"Go to CIM to run fast!" (about: 2005)
4-5 previous marathons
| 1 California International Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 This is a real runner's race with a nice feel to it. Organization was great, low-key expo was easy to get in and out of. Buses to the start and getting sweat bags back worked perfectly. There were tons of porta-potties. Start was cold (for us So. Cal. types), but it was pretty good weather for Sac. in early December. Course was just as advertised: Rolling start with more downs than ups. There were some patches of good crowd support from the locals along the way. Great finish right in front of the Capitol. Nice medal and pretty good post-race food. | |
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J. A. from San Francisco
(12/9/2005)
 "uber fast course - no better place for PR" (about: 2005)
4-5 previous marathons
| 1 California International Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 1 I was shooting for a time under 3:00:00 and finished in 2:55 and change. Loved the pace callers at every mile - definitely helped me get my goal time. Perfect combo of slight inclines and declines. The sports drink was terrible - why doesn't everyone just use Gatorade?? | |
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L. H. from Red Deer, Alberta
(12/9/2005)
"Overall decline, yes. BUT nothing is easy." (about: 2005)
3 previous marathons
| 1 California International Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 We picked the Sacramento Marathon because of the course description - overall decline and fast. However, the hills were 'rolling' and seemingly continous. Yes they finally faded away in the last 5-6 miles. Yes, I did my hills (trail running in the Rockies) and in fact took 21 minutes off of my PB. Regardless, I did not find this to be an 'easy' course and the first half can definitely wear your down. But then again, marathons just aren't easy are they? The best thing for me was that I could "breathe." At basically 0-300 feet elevation and lower humidity, breathing was much easier (I have asthma) - and no, you don't get drunk on oxygen. :) The overall organization of this race was EXCELLENT! 1. From the race expo, to the closed course, to the buses, etc. These directors run a tip-top organization. 2. Kudos to the pacers who did a great job. It was nice to meet and greet the pacers at the expo and ask questions. If you practice 10 and 1's, be prepared to tweak your system or be self sufficient as the pacers here run non-stop. 3. Split times are called at every mile - a very nice feature especially if you have a goal time in mind. 4. The volunteers! Oh my gosh, what can I say? Thank you - each and every one of you - you made the runners feel very welcome. You were brilliant. 5. The weather - perfect running weather. You couldn't ask for a better day - even at the start. 6. My only disappointment was in the after-race amenities. You had to walk through the crowds in order to find water. Maybe move the water to the finish line? Nor did we find any free coffee. That being said, the location for the race finish soon took away any disappointment. | |
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D. O. from Spokane, Washington
(12/9/2005)
"Great course, good mileage markers and timers." (about: 2005)
First Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 From Eastern Washington. Great race! My first full. Great fans, great support, I loved having the mileage posted every mile! And the time callers were very helpful! Thanks! Had a great time. | |
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G. M. from Santa Barbara, CA
(12/9/2005)
"An excellent marathon" (about: 2005)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 California International Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 The first three quarters are gently rolling with no grades so steep that they take you out of your rhythm and no declines so steep that they eat you up, unless you attack them too aggressively. There's more down than up but the variety in terrain provides some relief to the legs. Those going out easy will be rewarded the last six or seven miles, which are flat on wide tree-lined streets approaching the Capitol. Because of the cold most runners wore sleeved shirts, gloves and a hat at the beginning and then gradually peeled them off as the race progressed. The busses, start, water tables and finish were well organized and the crowd support was good with lots of friendly neighbors coming out to their front yards in the cold to cheer the runners. Some of the big intersections were packed with spectators. The actual course in my view deserves a 5, but since the score inludes scenery it must be compared to Big Sur or Avenue of the Giants which are spectacular. But hey, no race has everything. This is an excellent marathon and the organizers and locals deserve a lot of credit. | |
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D. P. from Upper Lake, CA, USA
(12/7/2005)
"First-time marathoner - had a great time." (about: 2005)
1 previous marathon
| 1 California International Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 I enjoyed the course. The weather turned out beautiful. The restrooms were a bottleneck on the course; I lost 5 minutes in lines. I really enjoyed the event overall. I hope to do it again. | |
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C. W. from Eastern Washington State
(12/5/2005)
 "Great organization, friendly folks, and it IS down" (about: 2005)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 California International Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 Enjoy the slope of this course.... The inclines were quickly over and the declines stretched forever. The prettiest part is the last 6 miles in downtown Sacramento; earlier it's mostly suburban sprawl but views of more downhill to come make it worth doing once. Organization was great and crowds offered encouragement, oranges, pretzels, and Oreos, which was useful because the sports drink was the most diluted I've ever been sustained on. Great time calling throughout the race. |
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