Marathon Details - Windermere Marathon

North America Marathons > USA > WA > Spokane > Windermere Marathon

Windermere Marathon & Half Marathon, 10K, 5K

Spokane, WA USA

May 19, 2024

http://www.windermeremarathon.com

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Results:	2023 \| 2022 \| 2021 \| 2020 \| 2019 \| 2018 \| 2017 \| 2016 \| 2015 \| 2014 \| 2013 \| 2012 \| 2011 \| 2010 \| 2009 Top 3 Finishers by Year

Contact Organizer

Name:	Elaine Koga-Kennelly
Address:	Windermere Marathon 1237 W. Summit Parkway, Suite B Spokane WA 99201
Phone Number:	509.226.1978
Email:	Email the organizers



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Reviews

Course 4.1

Organization 3.2

Spectators 2.8

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Number of comments: 40 [displaying comments 1 to 11]

More Comments: [ < 1 2 3 4 > ]

S. C. from Eugene Oregon (9/5/2020) "Great job on a COVID actual run" (about: 2020) 50+ previous marathons \| 1 Windermere Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 Great job keeping everyone safe and apart. Flawless execution on this easy course. Nice medal to boot.
T. T. from Canada (6/15/2015) "HOT HOT HOT" (about: 2015) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Windermere Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 2 I picked this race in the hopes of running a fast marathon. The course was favorable for a fast race, but the weather certainly wasn't. The high that day was 34 C (93 F), much to hot for this Canadian to run a fast marathon. If they moved it back to May, then I'd be all over this race, but I can't recommend it was a fast race in June. Also they didn't have any ice, or cold water, or sponges or anything like that at the aid stations, just warm water and Ultima.
Gary Hobart from South Carolina (1/15/2015) "Not as fast as you would think" (about: 2014) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Windermere Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 I decided to run this marathon as a BQ attempt following a 21 week training cycle. Needing a time of 3:10 and 8 weeks prior having run a 1:30:30 half on a pancake flat course I was optimistic. The organization was not terrible. The expo, as many have said, is what you would expect from a smaller marathon. Packet pick up was easy and the tech shirt was pretty nice (one of the very few race shirts I actually wear. The worst part of the whole experience was the late start (about 20 minutes). I think a bus with a few runners took a wrong turn. The course starts out in a community built into the side of a mountain. The first 6 miles or so is rather hilly. Don't even try to maintain your pace through this section. Save energy, slow down and save yourself for the 20 miles of down hill. There is a section of the course where it transitions from the neighborhood to the Centennial Trail, before you cross over the interstate, where you run through an empty gravel field. This .3 miles sucks but it is what it is. Now if you're like me and come from a flatter than flat area your quads are NOT going to be able to tolerate the constant down hill. The grade is not much but its almost all down hill after you hit the trail. I was not prepared for the down hill beating. Factor in the temperatures quickly rose to nearly 70 degrees, 10 miles in I seriously thought about DNFing. Had I not flown 3000 miles to run it I probably would have. I ran the first half in 1:35 and the second half in 2:18. This is the worst marathon time I've had to date. A few more (2-3) water stations would have been nice. The best part was receiving the finishers medal from the uniformed marine and the free finishers photo. Very nice touch. If you can tolerate the downhill this race can be FAST but I was ill prepared to handle it.
Brian OC from Seattle, WA (7/2/2014) "Good course but teeds better organization" (about: 2014) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Windermere Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 4 Ran the full in 2014. This race has good potential but needs to be much better organized before I'd recommend the race to a non-local. The good: Super volunteers! They were very friendly and try to do whatever they could to help folks before and after the race. The marathon course was very scenic and not too crowded. Finishers food and medals/swag were high quality and the free finishers photo is a nice perk I haven't seen at other races. Mile markers appeared fairly accurate (misplaced markers were a problem in prior years that has been fixed.) The bad - this was a very poorly organized race. Worst offense - course was advertised as fully paved but had a quarter-mile unpaved section where you're running through a field of jagged rocks and loose dirt/gravel (problem only for full marathon, half was 100% paved.) Second problem, the race started 30 minutes late, which meant 30 minute more time spent running in the hottest part of the day. Also organizers didn't tell the runners it would be a late start until a minute before scheduled gun time (after runners had finished eating our '5-15 min before' pre-race fuel.) Third, there aren't enough water stops for a summer race and water vs Ultima were in different places at every stop. Fix the delayed start time or move start to 6/6:30, switch to a fully paved course, and add 1-2 more water stops and I'd consider running this race again. A note for the PR/Boston qualifier crowd: the course isn't as easy as it might appear. Weather can be a challenge: if it's a hot day there's almost no shade for the first 20 miles of the course, and if it's a cool cloudy day you'll likely be running most of the race into a steady west-to-east wind. If you're an out-of-towner and live at sea level, Spokane isn't Denver but 2000' elevation is enough that you'll feel it the last few miles. Most hills are in the first 8 miles so a negative split strategy would be wise.
R. L. from Walla Walla, Washington (6/10/2014) "Late start" (about: 2014) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Windermere Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 2 I will try to be a fair as possible even though my race did not go as hoped or planned. The marathon web site suggested hotels and promoted the shuttle service of said hotels. The morning of the race a handful of us runners were waiting for promised shuttle (hotel front desk called at 10:00pm to confirm shuttle would be there). The race was scheduled to start at 7:00 (which in my opinion pretty late for a June race). Well at 6:42 we realized the shuttle was not coming. No call either. Also The Best Western was not super helpful or sympathetic either. 7 of us crammed into a gracious strangers car and finally made it to the start at 7:12! I guess I should be thankful the race started late?! The RD was waiting for other buses to supposedly arrive. The gun finally went off at 7:23. That is pretty late and it was already heating up- low/mid 60's. The course was ok, although I thought more of it would have been along the river. The start and near the end was just hot, roads. The volunteers were great but the sports drink was warm and disgusting by the second half of the race. The medal is cool and the shirts good quality. However I would not run this race again. I am very well aware that one can not control the weather but seriously...No shuttle and almost 1/2 late start. Too bad.
Steve Heaps from Spokane Valley, WA (6/4/2014) "Pick up your garbage" (about: 2014) 50+ previous marathons COURSE: 1 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 3 I am sending to the race director a photo of the energy gel packets I picked up after the race in 1/2 mile of the course just west of the Flora Rd. entrance. Marathoners will inevitably, in the heat of the moment, throw their stuff on the course. It is up to the aid station workers to follow the last runner to pick it up. The failure to follow through with this task makes your race and the trail itself look shabby.
Rick Dorsey from Everett, WA (6/3/2014) "A good marathon with room for improvement" (about: 2014) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Windermere Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 3 There are things you can control and things you cannot, and it's the ability to control those little things that can make a good marathon a great race. A race director cannot control the weather, and on this Sunday, the temps climbed into the mid-70s making the race's second half a bear. Runners must be able to deal with all the elements. But a race director can control when the race starts. And having a 7 am start delayed by 25 minutes due to a late bus to transport runners from the finish to the start line is inexcusable. That is a rookie organizing mistake and it should not be tolerated by a race looking to make its mark during a crowded marathon calendar. My suggestion: Start the race at 6 or 630 am to help maximize the cool morning and mitigate the possibility of high temperatures. And have separate buses to transport the half and full runners. The race course itself, starting with the first six miles through Liberty Lake, then running onto the Centennial Trail for 19 miles, proved to be a relatively downhill beautiful run along the Spokane River. Except for miles 21-23, which veered onto a street shoulder with zero shade. There were plenty of aid stations, each with water, Ultima, and most with gummy bears. Except for a badly needed one at the mile 24 marker (it was at 24.5). Every late spring/summer marathon should try to have one aid station at every mile marker starting at mile 20 and beyond. The free post-race photo, the chicken broth, and chicken skewers were great about the post-race amenities. The bad? Having to pay $15 for a 15 minute massage and $4 for a post-race beer. Huh? With no cash on me, I did not partake in those two when I really wanted to. Overall, this could be a fabulous race with some much needed tweaks. And some clouds.
H. V. from Utah (6/2/2014) "Low-key means you need to be patient" (about: 2014) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Windermere Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 This was my seventh marathon and my first time running the Windermere Marathon. The expo: This was about what you would expect for a small marathon, but it was easy to pick up my packet. The shuttles: I was able to park on the street near the Arena for free when I arrived at 5:30am, got the last seat on a school bus and was off right away, arriving to the full start at about 6:00am. The start: My biggest complaint regarding this race is that we started 24 minutes late. Apparently, we had to wait for the shuttles to bring the last of the runners to the half and full starts. I don't know why this happened, but I was quite frustrated that we had to wait so long. It was a warm day and only got hotter by the minute. The course: The course was pleasant and despite the heat, it was a PR race for me. I thought that after leaving Liberty Lake, we would be on a trail entirely closed to traffic, but there were portions that went on the road. There wasn't much shade, which wouldn't have been a problem if the day had been cooler. All had water and Ultima sports drink, and a few had gummy bears, Gu, and Vaseline. The spacing would have been good on a cool day, but I was really ready for each one by the time I got to them. The course was not closed to others recreating, so sometimes I had to dodge bicycles. Nevertheless, I did especially enjoy the parts on the trail with views of the river. The finish: By the time I was finishing the full, I was passing some of the walkers. There were a lot of people cheering at the finish and the announcer was able to read the names of the finishers, which was nice. There were bagels, bananas, oranges, and chicken skewers (a first for me) in the finish area. No chocolate milk. It was also a low-key scene and easy to pick up my checked bag. The bling: I'm not really into medals, so I can't comment muchit was sufficiently large and heavy. The shirt is one I can toss away at another marathon if I can't do a gear check. Overall: It was a good, small race. I like low-key marathons, and so I was prepared for limited spectator support and not feeling crowded on the trail. I hope they can get the shuttle situation figured out in future years.
C. K. from Post Falls, Idaho (6/2/2014) "1/2 marathon walkers" (about: 2014) 4-5 previous marathons \| 2 Windermere Marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 I've run the full and 1/2 marathon and loved them both. Great aid station support and all of the volunteers were awesome cheerleaders. Beautiful scenery, shirts and medals. My only suggestion would be to have the runners start a few minutes before the walkers. Things got pretty jammed up.
J. M. from Washington (6/2/2014) "Beautiful course w/ small marathon pros & cons" (about: 2014) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Windermere Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 2 Course: The course was great. So beautiful and much more shaded than I was expecting. Organization: The volunteers were wonderful, all the aid/water stops were set up well, the race organizer replied personally and promptly to emails. ONLY negative, the bus shuttle system was not well organized, there was a serious lack of communication with the hotels, transport drivers, and racers. I waited at my hotel for over an hr. and no shuttle showed up. Finally a friend of mine gave me and 6 other people a ride to the start 15 min. before the race was suppose to start. Pro & Con side to this: it is a small marathon so they pushed the start back by 20 mins to make sure every shuttle place had a pick up and delivery to the start. My friend told me the shuttle arrived to our hotel when she got back from dropping us off at the start. Spectators: Not many people out cheering. People in Riverfront Park didn't seem to know there was a marathon going on.

More Comments: [ < 1 2 3 4 > ]

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S. C. from Eugene Oregon (9/5/2020) "Great job on a COVID actual run" (about: 2020) 50+ previous marathons \| 1 Windermere Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 Great job keeping everyone safe and apart. Flawless execution on this easy course. Nice medal to boot.
T. T. from Canada (6/15/2015) "HOT HOT HOT" (about: 2015) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Windermere Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 2 I picked this race in the hopes of running a fast marathon. The course was favorable for a fast race, but the weather certainly wasn't. The high that day was 34 C (93 F), much to hot for this Canadian to run a fast marathon. If they moved it back to May, then I'd be all over this race, but I can't recommend it was a fast race in June. Also they didn't have any ice, or cold water, or sponges or anything like that at the aid stations, just warm water and Ultima.
Gary Hobart from South Carolina (1/15/2015) "Not as fast as you would think" (about: 2014) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Windermere Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 I decided to run this marathon as a BQ attempt following a 21 week training cycle. Needing a time of 3:10 and 8 weeks prior having run a 1:30:30 half on a pancake flat course I was optimistic. The organization was not terrible. The expo, as many have said, is what you would expect from a smaller marathon. Packet pick up was easy and the tech shirt was pretty nice (one of the very few race shirts I actually wear. The worst part of the whole experience was the late start (about 20 minutes). I think a bus with a few runners took a wrong turn. The course starts out in a community built into the side of a mountain. The first 6 miles or so is rather hilly. Don't even try to maintain your pace through this section. Save energy, slow down and save yourself for the 20 miles of down hill. There is a section of the course where it transitions from the neighborhood to the Centennial Trail, before you cross over the interstate, where you run through an empty gravel field. This .3 miles sucks but it is what it is. Now if you're like me and come from a flatter than flat area your quads are NOT going to be able to tolerate the constant down hill. The grade is not much but its almost all down hill after you hit the trail. I was not prepared for the down hill beating. Factor in the temperatures quickly rose to nearly 70 degrees, 10 miles in I seriously thought about DNFing. Had I not flown 3000 miles to run it I probably would have. I ran the first half in 1:35 and the second half in 2:18. This is the worst marathon time I've had to date. A few more (2-3) water stations would have been nice. The best part was receiving the finishers medal from the uniformed marine and the free finishers photo. Very nice touch. If you can tolerate the downhill this race can be FAST but I was ill prepared to handle it.
Brian OC from Seattle, WA (7/2/2014) "Good course but teeds better organization" (about: 2014) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Windermere Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 4 Ran the full in 2014. This race has good potential but needs to be much better organized before I'd recommend the race to a non-local. The good: Super volunteers! They were very friendly and try to do whatever they could to help folks before and after the race. The marathon course was very scenic and not too crowded. Finishers food and medals/swag were high quality and the free finishers photo is a nice perk I haven't seen at other races. Mile markers appeared fairly accurate (misplaced markers were a problem in prior years that has been fixed.) The bad - this was a very poorly organized race. Worst offense - course was advertised as fully paved but had a quarter-mile unpaved section where you're running through a field of jagged rocks and loose dirt/gravel (problem only for full marathon, half was 100% paved.) Second problem, the race started 30 minutes late, which meant 30 minute more time spent running in the hottest part of the day. Also organizers didn't tell the runners it would be a late start until a minute before scheduled gun time (after runners had finished eating our '5-15 min before' pre-race fuel.) Third, there aren't enough water stops for a summer race and water vs Ultima were in different places at every stop. Fix the delayed start time or move start to 6/6:30, switch to a fully paved course, and add 1-2 more water stops and I'd consider running this race again. A note for the PR/Boston qualifier crowd: the course isn't as easy as it might appear. Weather can be a challenge: if it's a hot day there's almost no shade for the first 20 miles of the course, and if it's a cool cloudy day you'll likely be running most of the race into a steady west-to-east wind. If you're an out-of-towner and live at sea level, Spokane isn't Denver but 2000' elevation is enough that you'll feel it the last few miles. Most hills are in the first 8 miles so a negative split strategy would be wise.
R. L. from Walla Walla, Washington (6/10/2014) "Late start" (about: 2014) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Windermere Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 2 I will try to be a fair as possible even though my race did not go as hoped or planned. The marathon web site suggested hotels and promoted the shuttle service of said hotels. The morning of the race a handful of us runners were waiting for promised shuttle (hotel front desk called at 10:00pm to confirm shuttle would be there). The race was scheduled to start at 7:00 (which in my opinion pretty late for a June race). Well at 6:42 we realized the shuttle was not coming. No call either. Also The Best Western was not super helpful or sympathetic either. 7 of us crammed into a gracious strangers car and finally made it to the start at 7:12! I guess I should be thankful the race started late?! The RD was waiting for other buses to supposedly arrive. The gun finally went off at 7:23. That is pretty late and it was already heating up- low/mid 60's. The course was ok, although I thought more of it would have been along the river. The start and near the end was just hot, roads. The volunteers were great but the sports drink was warm and disgusting by the second half of the race. The medal is cool and the shirts good quality. However I would not run this race again. I am very well aware that one can not control the weather but seriously...No shuttle and almost 1/2 late start. Too bad.
Steve Heaps from Spokane Valley, WA (6/4/2014) "Pick up your garbage" (about: 2014) 50+ previous marathons COURSE: 1 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 3 I am sending to the race director a photo of the energy gel packets I picked up after the race in 1/2 mile of the course just west of the Flora Rd. entrance. Marathoners will inevitably, in the heat of the moment, throw their stuff on the course. It is up to the aid station workers to follow the last runner to pick it up. The failure to follow through with this task makes your race and the trail itself look shabby.
Rick Dorsey from Everett, WA (6/3/2014) "A good marathon with room for improvement" (about: 2014) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Windermere Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 3 There are things you can control and things you cannot, and it's the ability to control those little things that can make a good marathon a great race. A race director cannot control the weather, and on this Sunday, the temps climbed into the mid-70s making the race's second half a bear. Runners must be able to deal with all the elements. But a race director can control when the race starts. And having a 7 am start delayed by 25 minutes due to a late bus to transport runners from the finish to the start line is inexcusable. That is a rookie organizing mistake and it should not be tolerated by a race looking to make its mark during a crowded marathon calendar. My suggestion: Start the race at 6 or 630 am to help maximize the cool morning and mitigate the possibility of high temperatures. And have separate buses to transport the half and full runners. The race course itself, starting with the first six miles through Liberty Lake, then running onto the Centennial Trail for 19 miles, proved to be a relatively downhill beautiful run along the Spokane River. Except for miles 21-23, which veered onto a street shoulder with zero shade. There were plenty of aid stations, each with water, Ultima, and most with gummy bears. Except for a badly needed one at the mile 24 marker (it was at 24.5). Every late spring/summer marathon should try to have one aid station at every mile marker starting at mile 20 and beyond. The free post-race photo, the chicken broth, and chicken skewers were great about the post-race amenities. The bad? Having to pay $15 for a 15 minute massage and $4 for a post-race beer. Huh? With no cash on me, I did not partake in those two when I really wanted to. Overall, this could be a fabulous race with some much needed tweaks. And some clouds.
H. V. from Utah (6/2/2014) "Low-key means you need to be patient" (about: 2014) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Windermere Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 This was my seventh marathon and my first time running the Windermere Marathon. The expo: This was about what you would expect for a small marathon, but it was easy to pick up my packet. The shuttles: I was able to park on the street near the Arena for free when I arrived at 5:30am, got the last seat on a school bus and was off right away, arriving to the full start at about 6:00am. The start: My biggest complaint regarding this race is that we started 24 minutes late. Apparently, we had to wait for the shuttles to bring the last of the runners to the half and full starts. I don't know why this happened, but I was quite frustrated that we had to wait so long. It was a warm day and only got hotter by the minute. The course: The course was pleasant and despite the heat, it was a PR race for me. I thought that after leaving Liberty Lake, we would be on a trail entirely closed to traffic, but there were portions that went on the road. There wasn't much shade, which wouldn't have been a problem if the day had been cooler. All had water and Ultima sports drink, and a few had gummy bears, Gu, and Vaseline. The spacing would have been good on a cool day, but I was really ready for each one by the time I got to them. The course was not closed to others recreating, so sometimes I had to dodge bicycles. Nevertheless, I did especially enjoy the parts on the trail with views of the river. The finish: By the time I was finishing the full, I was passing some of the walkers. There were a lot of people cheering at the finish and the announcer was able to read the names of the finishers, which was nice. There were bagels, bananas, oranges, and chicken skewers (a first for me) in the finish area. No chocolate milk. It was also a low-key scene and easy to pick up my checked bag. The bling: I'm not really into medals, so I can't comment muchit was sufficiently large and heavy. The shirt is one I can toss away at another marathon if I can't do a gear check. Overall: It was a good, small race. I like low-key marathons, and so I was prepared for limited spectator support and not feeling crowded on the trail. I hope they can get the shuttle situation figured out in future years.
C. K. from Post Falls, Idaho (6/2/2014) "1/2 marathon walkers" (about: 2014) 4-5 previous marathons \| 2 Windermere Marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 I've run the full and 1/2 marathon and loved them both. Great aid station support and all of the volunteers were awesome cheerleaders. Beautiful scenery, shirts and medals. My only suggestion would be to have the runners start a few minutes before the walkers. Things got pretty jammed up.
J. M. from Washington (6/2/2014) "Beautiful course w/ small marathon pros & cons" (about: 2014) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Windermere Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 2 Course: The course was great. So beautiful and much more shaded than I was expecting. Organization: The volunteers were wonderful, all the aid/water stops were set up well, the race organizer replied personally and promptly to emails. ONLY negative, the bus shuttle system was not well organized, there was a serious lack of communication with the hotels, transport drivers, and racers. I waited at my hotel for over an hr. and no shuttle showed up. Finally a friend of mine gave me and 6 other people a ride to the start 15 min. before the race was suppose to start. Pro & Con side to this: it is a small marathon so they pushed the start back by 20 mins to make sure every shuttle place had a pick up and delivery to the start. My friend told me the shuttle arrived to our hotel when she got back from dropping us off at the start. Spectators: Not many people out cheering. People in Riverfront Park didn't seem to know there was a marathon going on.

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Marathon Details - Windermere Marathon