Paul Bunyan Marathon - Race Reviews

The Good: -Really cheap entry price -Expo was great for such a small marathon -First 10 miles were really nice, along a quiet road with lots of trees -One nice volunteer at the end drove us back to the start because the end was 2 miles away -The medal and t-shirt were neat. Plus the Paul Bunyan statue at the start was tourist kitschy, but still neat -Someone left a waterhose spraying the street to cool the slow pokes - thanks!! -I think I remember a big guy and a fire hose, spraying cooling water from a funky-looking truck. But I could be confusing marathons now. -Nice volunteers, just not enough of them. Some enthusiastic kids were out there helping. -Saw a white-haired gentleman wearing a really old Ironman Hawaii shirt near the beginning. I think the shirt was 25 years old. This guy must have been in his late 60s. Very inspiring. The Bad: -No bathrooms - not a single porta-potty! Thankfully a house had one in their driveway from constuction work they were doing. That provided relief. -No gels - They advertised some, so I didn't bring enough. I didn't get a single one! -Insufficient Gatorade/sport drink - although I did get a few sips of a very watered-down drink at only one stop, and that was hardly enough for a hot and humid day. I'm lucky I didn't get hyponatremia. -Not enough ice. Only one stop had it by the time I got there. I think the volunteers bought the bags themselves, as opposed to the race providing them. -Warm water bottles near the end at one stop. It seemed as an unplanned pity offering by two nice runners near the end, rather than something organized. -Dear Race Organizer, please remember that while some people walk or are just slow runners, they still need support! We really appreciate it when we get the same care as the fast people, since we're paying the same amount. -Unorganized shuttle for the slowpokes. Took a bit of asking to get a ride. Some volunteers/competitors didn't want to help us get back to our car, but maybe we were too stinky and sweaty. The thought of walking 2.5 miles myself was disheartening in that heat. -Last several miles were along a busy road with no sidewalk. Not very safe. -Food? There was food at the end? There was food on the course? Didn't see or get any of that! Would I do this marathon again? Nope. For a Maine marathon I'd pick another one (I didn't have any say in the selection of this ME marathon). I would have paid more money for better stuff at the aid stations, like a bathroom or two, gels, ice, and Gatorade (remember to save enough for the slowpokes). You get what you pay for. I bet it will be better for 2007, though, since it can't get much worse. Hopefully the town will support a bit more since so many out-of-towners showed up. I assume the different course will make a difference, plus having more people than planned (or so I read) might help with planning for this year. With the river ending, hopefully no shuttle will be needed. Was Bangor nice? It was nothing special. Nice river view and brewery, but the town was boring and not really worth a stop compared to the quaint little coastal towns, the lovely Portland and gorgeous Acadia NP. We had the most delicious soft-shelled lobster in some nearby coastal town where we stayed at a nice little bed and breakfast. We could bring our dog on the outdoor patio and watch the boats in the harbor. Lovely! Overall, the marathon was poorly run and I'm surprised more people didn't have heat issues based on the lack of stuff on course (I saw one high school-aged girl looking like she needed medical attention, but she was just left in a chair to recover).

This was my 87th marathon and for the first time ever I feel compelled to give an unfavorable report. I feel the race director was very inexperienced and possibly incompetent. The advertisement for the race didn't come near discribing the actual conditions encountered. Finding the location of the expo turned out to be some kind of treasure hunt. No national anthem prior to the race start. A total of two porta-potties for about 300 runners resulted in impossible lines and some short tempers. The finish line was about two miles from the parking area where the race started. It was suggested we "thumb" rides back to our transportation. I don't blame locals for not being real enthusiastic about loading marathoners in a clean car after they just finished perspiring for 26.2 miles. I still don't know where the awards ceremony was held. I qualified for a 2nd place age-group award and would like to obtain it somehow. I e-mailed the race director about the possibility of having someone pick it up for me, or me sending some money so the award could be mailed, but no answer to my request. I have done inaugural marathons before, but have never seen overall quality as poor as this one. My wife ran the 15K and was promised a finisher's medal within two weeks. She didn't receive it and has not been able to get an answer to her inquiry as to how it could be obtained. I send in my registration fee and only expect a decent effort on the part of the race organizers. No way did it happen at Paul Bunyan, 2006.

Anyone signing up for a marathon should factor in signing up for a first-run marathon - there are always going to be some problems. I enjoyed this marathon despite some of the roughness of the course. It appears that the course will change for '07, so I am glad to see that runner's comments are being listened to. Overall, the one item that sticks out in my mind is that if a statement/promise is made by the organizer they need to deliver on it (shuttle from finish back to start, porta-potties, gel). Fortunately, I was not affected by many of the glitches because my extended family was cheering for me from mile 17 until the end, leap-frogging me every mile and handing out water and Gatorade. Suggestion for future - have folks park at the finish before the race and shuttle them to the start. The timeframe for having to provide this service is much shorter and more predictable (you can have a start and stop time for running the shuttle). I do not remember ever being offered any gel from the water stations. Also, at least one set of porta-potties along the route would have been appreciated. Fortunately, it's Maine and Maine has some woods. I have looked at the information for the '07 race and am confident that other minor issues will be corrected in future marathons. I am on state 11 out of 50, so I don't anticipate being back to ME soon for a marathon, but this one will soon be a great marathon!

It really is a no brainer to be prepared to take care of your runners in the predicted high heat and humidity. There is no excuse to not have electrolyte drinks at all of the support stations and extra water stops toward the end of the marathon to help thwart heat problems. There was no Gu or food available as promised at any of the water stations for this middle-of-the-pack runner. There were many problems with the Paul Bunyan that could have been avoided. It is a beautiful course that I would consider running again if a different race director took on this marathon.

Overall I quite enjoyed this marathon. Like any inaugural event (which I consider this race to be), there were some "teething" problems, but nothing too serious. I think Bangor should definitely keep the race and work on improving it. Desperately needed: More sponsorship and volunteers. There was some confusion of details on the website and subsequent emails. I suspect this was an overworked RD trying to make everything perfect for his runners. The expo was small but adequate. There was some confusion at the packet pick-up. Apparently some of the on-line registrants had been lost in cyberspace. The race officials were extremely gracious however, and accepted the word of any runner who claimed to have pre-registered in this fashion. The pre-race dinner was a disappointment. We sat at separate tables in a regular family restaurant. There was no interaction, the service was slow and the food was mediocre at best. Obviously, the restaurant was not sufficiently staffed for the invasion of hungry runners. I would suggest the RD drop the pre-race dinner detail and focus more on the race. A water stop every 2 miles was inadequate, especially when you consider the heat and humidity on race day. I understand this requires more manpower hence my earlier comment about more volunteers being needed. There was not enough "energy" on the course. An electrolyte drink every couple of miles wasn't quite cutting it. I would have enjoyed a few packets of Gu, maybe a banana, an orange, or even cookies. More sponsorship is needed to provide these items. The post-race refreshments were poor. I had a dry bagel and a cup of water. It wasn't much of a treat after running 26.2 miles! There was no chip timing and the stated method of recording finish times was inadequate. Allegedly someone was manually recording the times and bib number as each runner passed the line. This was one of the race details that needed improvement. There were several discrepancies on posted results at the finish line. The awards were nice (not that I received one!) - statues of Paul Bunyan for the winners and plaques made of marble slabs for the AG awards. I thought that was cute. The t-shirts and medals were very colorful, each depicting a slender looking Paul Bunyan going for a run. There was a lot of confusion at the finish line about transport back to the start. The website had promised a shuttle service but that was not available due to budget restrictions. We tired runners had to walk back (2.5 miles) or depend o the kindness of the local people to give us a ride. I must mention how nice the locals were however. There were a lot of people more than willing to ferry tired runners back to their cars. The people of Bangor had all that delightful New England charm. I didn't feel like I was in a Stephen King novel at all! Speaking of Mr. King - Bangor's most famous citizen - his presence at the race might have been a nice touch. I'm running the 50 states so I will not be repeating this marathon.

The Paul Bunyan Marathon overall was not too bad. I've experienced worse ones. Positives I have: the volunteers on the course were sparse, but cheerful. I liked the point-to-point loop. It was a scenic course with lots of rolling hills, typically a feature I enjoy. The back half of the course was more difficult than the front, and I did appreciate the warning about the hill after 25. Areas of Improvement: 1) The website did not provide much specific information. Sure the history was a nice touch; however, I would have liked details around where the course started and finished (like addresses), or at least a readable map. There was a promise of guest speakers, but that section was never updated. 2) There should have been electrolyte drink at every water stop. The water stops every two miles were fine, but in light of how hot it had been the previous two days, there was not enough water at those stations. 3) The course was scenic, but the road was torn up pretty badly. We had to watch our steps pretty closely. 4) The published times were wrong. I actually won the women's division and it was exciting to see my name on the front page of MarathonGuide.com, but disheartening to see the time published was three minutes slower than it actually was. I know that non-chip timed races can be a little off, but three minutes is a pretty big disrepancy. 5) A summer marathon in ME is a great addition to the race calendars for those of us finishng the 50 states, but could you move it up a couple of weeks? The heat was brutal. I think these are all small tweaks that can be made toward having a great event. I would definitely encourage folks to do this one!

I think the race organizer did a great job in bringing this race back to life in a short time. It was amazing to see all the people lined up from 39 states and 5 provinces. The packet pick-up change on Saturday was a small problem, but was easily explained and solved. The course is not flat, but not a problem for the serious marathon crowd this event seemed to attract. Prepare for some mild rolling hills, but no real serious inclines. The shirt and medal were great and worth the run. The water stations were as advertised and the staff did duty at more than one station on the course. I would have more stations toward the end if possible. The weather this year was unseasonably warm for Maine, but the skies stayed overcast until the end for me. It would have been nice to have more restrooms at the start and some along the course, but the store-owners and other folks were cooperative and helpful. The traffic was also cooperative, they are apparently used to sharing the road with bikes and other slower moving traffic. It is a very worthwhile event and I hope it has another successful run in 2007!

I enjoyed the course. Living in California, we have lots of hills, and these were very small compared to those from where I live. The humidity almost put me out of commission; the water stops need to be close together, especially after 20 miles. Needed sport drink about mile 4 instead of 10. For a first-time marathon, it was not too bad. I agree with most of the other comments. Hope Phil reads the comments and makes some changes. It was great to meet many of my brother and sister maniacs!

PBM was my 49th marathon. The course was very pretty with a creek or small river running alongside of it part of the way. The countryside was a lush green. The tar road was a little rough in places and a fellow runner told me he pushed one of the wheelers out of a ditch... arrggh! The hills were not big but seemed continuous and wearing, so I walked up some of them. I found the fluid stops every 2 miles adequate only because I carried a 5 oz. water bottle with me and refilled it at each stop. I felt safe from the traffic and found the intersection control sufficent. The course was well marked with volunteers at the turns. There were mile markers at each mile. I appreciate Phil putting on the event and as with everything there are always room for improvements. My suggestions are: 1. Avoid Dysart's where the only thing worse than the food is the service. It was an hour before I got my meal and some of the meat was unchewable. 2. Increase the fluid stops to one every 1.5 miles or have an out-and-back course so the fluid stops are doubled up. Offer sports drink from the start. 3. Have the start and finish at the same place to avoid the need for shuttles. I think this marathon is a diamond in the rough and look forward to hearing wonderful things in the future.

My wife and I traveled from Michigan to Maine to 1) take a week-long vacation exploring Maine, 2) celebrate my birthday, and 3) run the Paul Bunyan Marathon (me, not her!). We had a great time in Maine and enjoyed many fun activities, including riding rollercoasters at Funtown Amusement Park, eating lobsters at an authentic lobster pound, whale watching out of Bar Harbor, hiking a couple mountains at Acadia National Park, exploring the tidal flats near Bar Island, and riding rental bikes on the carriage roads around Acadia. I also ran the marathon... a tough, hot, challenging, hilly course.... POSITIVES: >early start, and on time >race director publicly wished me a happy 43rd birthday via megaphone >very friendly water station volunteers >water stations every two miles >nice medal and t-shirt >results posted and updated regularly >nice, mostly rural, point-to-point course >small-town feel and friendliness >sparse but enthusiastic and supportive fans NEEDS SOME WORK: >packet pick-up changed locations from the host-hotel (where we were staying) to a truck stop (where we were not planning on going) >host hotel too far from start/finish >host hotel would not allow late check-outs... PERIOD! >from mid-pack back, we couldn't hear the race director's announcements - including my birthday announcement (my wife told me about it afterward) >need a few port-o-jons along the course >many of the mile signs did not correspond with the mile markers painted on the road (?) >rough road surface in many places, and highly crowned roads >gel was gone by the time I got to mile 10 >bagels were gone (were they ever there?) at mile 14 (I can't eat bagels while running anyway, but they were promised) >Ultima - does ANYONE like this stuff? It may seem like my "needs work" section outweighs my "positives" section, but we actually had a fun time and I enjoyed the race. The hill at mile 25, including Summit Avenue, was a killer way to finish a marathon, but I ran the entire course, hills and all (except through the water stations), and I truly enjoyed my race experience. After the race, we drove back to Acadia, and hiked a very difficult, challenging trail to the summit of Pemetic Mountain, enjoyed a spectacular panoramic view, and then hiked down an even more technical descent. The next morning we went tide-pooling, then hiked to the summit of Bernard Mountain. All that hiking proved to be the best recovery therapy for my legs and feet, as all signs of soreness, stiffness, and fatigue quickly disappeared, and I'm back to my normal running already! Great time in Maine! (Now, as for our experience at O'Hare International Airport in Chicago... that's another story!)

What an undertaking to restart the Paul Bunyan Marathon after so many years. For those of us trying to accomplish our 50 state marathon quest, a Maine marathon was highly desireable. The hospitality was wonderful. The pasta dinner at the truck stop: delicious, friendly, and warm. The speech at the start of the race had a real hometown feel. Bangor, Maine, you have a wonderful state. Early 6 a.m. start - unfortunately, temperatures reached in the 90's for us slowpokes... but the finish line stayed open as promised until "the last one." Shirts and medals are keepers: Paul Bunyan in shorts and running shoes. Also, cute trophies: a slab of granite with the logo. Stay in town by the race start. Don't forget that Stephen King lives here.

The course itself was very scenic. After mile 15, the hills get steeper and longer. Traffic control could be used in the future from mile 20 to the finish. Water stops should have been closer together, considering the heat, humidity, and the hills. Portable restrooms need to be placed throughout the course and not just at the start. Also, shuttle service should be at the finish to bring runners back to the start.... Thank goodness for the thoughtful volunteers. The course itself was very challenging to me. This only being my second marathon and being from New Orleans, was probably the reason why I thought the course was very challenging... not many hills down here. But, all in all, I must thank Phil for bringing this marathon back to Bangor after so many years. I really did enjoy the run and the Bangor area. I'm sure next year with more runners and more sponsors, this run will get better.

I decided to run the Paul Bunyan Marathon mainly because of the timing. Not too many July marathons to choose from. I was also a bit intrigued with the Paul Bunyan name of the race. Coming from Minnesota, I thought Paul Bunyan was just part of Minnesota folklore. Apparently, he made his way up into Maine, as well or originated there and came to MN. I need to research that a bit. This was basically a new race, having not been run since 1984. I wasn't too worried about the fact that the race was new and might have some kinks to work out. There were about 360 runners competing in the 2 events. About 100 ran the 15K and over 260 running the marathon. Packet pick-up was at the host hotel, but you also had options to pick it up at the pasta meal or even the morning of the race. The pasta meal was excellent. It did not have an all-you-can-eat format, but the plate of food I received was MORE than enough. Organization was ok... but left a few things to improve upon. I would have just a couple of suggestions to mention and for some runners these are biggies. Only 2 toilets in the starting area for over 350 runners?? It was advertised that there would be van transportation from the finish back to the start after the race. The race director told runners at the finish that there was not a van, but maybe you could catch a ride with other runners heading back to the start? At the pasta meal, the director had told me that volunteers would be driving runners back to the start? Hmmm... I guess the volunteers let him down. They did announce (after the awards) that if there were any drivers that were headed back to the start and had room, they should come up to the table and offer rides to those who need one, so I didn't have to walk 2.5 miles back to the start - thanks goodness. But many runners that wanted to get back sooner walked... and others may not have found folks heading back and probably had to walk. I heard the race director telling people directions to the start... saying it was about a 1-mile walk, but in reality it was about 2.5 miles as started on the race website. A small bus shuttle needs to be reserved in the future or make sure runners are aware of the situation. Ok... so how was the course? I would consider the course to be somewhat challenging. There were a lot of hills. But... nice downhill sections then as well. The actual conditions of the roads were not the best. The surface was quite broken up in spots. Not a problem for the runners probably, but a bit of a hazard for the wheelers (I think there were only 4 of them). The finish on the track was nice. The 15K ended up being only 8.9 miles. Most of the runners were not aware of this before the start of the race. Why the race director didn't announce that at the starting line I don't know because he was aware of that before the race. Course support was excellent. Water and sports drink every 2 miles and volunteers were awesome!! I didn't notice any bathrooms on the course, but I may just have missed them. Finish area had an ample supply of bananas, oranges, water, bagels, some donuts. A sports drink at the finish would have been good! Nice finisher medals for the marathoners. But the 15K runners did not receive a medal as advertised?????? The race shirts made no mention of the 15K. Their shirt was the same as the marathon. Probably an oversight in the design, because the awards (a nice slab of granite) had a Paul Bunyan sticker that also mentions the 15K. I'm guessing that the shirts were made before they noticed the 15K was not included in the design. Probably the same thing with the medals? I'm sure the 15K runners would not want a medal that only says, "marathon." They had tons of extra medals after the race, so I'm guessing that they intended to give the same medals to the 15K runners. The award ceremony was very quick once they got to it. Lots of mix-ups with the results delayed the awards longer than expected. They had hoped to do them at 10:30 and it was closer to 11:15 or so before they started. So... my review might seem a bit critical... but I think the race went off quite smoothly and for the most part was a good first year. I think the race will work out the kinks mentioned above and will continue to improve each year.

Bangor is a cool town. I'd like to bring the family back to Maine. As far as the race goes I have two words: "elevation chart." The website and the race coordinator made it seem like the course had "rolling hills and flat stretches." The hills nearly pushed me to my first DNF. Fortunately I was able to gut it out and get to the finish. There were only 400 runners and I bet I saw fewer than 100 spectators. It was a good course but I wish I would have been prepared for the hills.

While the course was very beautiful, the logistics and organization of the marathon left much to be desired. The web page wasn't current and trying to find where the registration was being held was a nightmare - the hours of registration weren't honored The pasta party was also not where it was advertised; there was no post-race massage as advertised; water stops were set up late in some areas for fast runners and abandoned/ran out towards the end for the mid-packers; mile markers were off and confusing.... I could keep on ranting. I will not return.

T-shirts had a great design. Too bad they gave mine away to someone who registered after me. No Gatorade-type liquids for the first 10 miles. The director's wife told me that water and Gatorade would be every 2 miles. The water was served at air temperature before, during, and after the race. The gels promised at mile 10 were gone for everyone but the frontrunners. No medical personnel anywhere that I could tell. The Mile 25 marker was missing. Very few volunteers. My wife volunteered online 3 different times, and they never got back with her. The awards ceremony was going on when I arrived at the finish in around 5 hours. By then, the fruit was gone. I kept hearing about cold beer, but all they had was air temperatured water (mid 80's). Even though I gave the spectators 1 star, the very few who were along the course were quite friendly and cheerful. Some even had cool water for the runners, which was far better than what the organizers were handing out. Also, I heard that one of the water stops lacked cups, but I carry my own bottle, so that part only affected the other 200 runners. I never saw any town support. If the mayor and city council were aware of the race, they did a pathetic job of promoting it. Every restaurant I went to in Bangor, I met other runners. Not one waiter or waitress had any idea a marathon was going on in this town of 35,000. If I knew it was going to be this bad, I would have signed up for Bar Harbor, Maine in October, even though their course will be harder. Even though the Bangor course was hillier than I expected, I had no problems with it, except that there was absolutely no control over traffic. Some runners insisted on running in the middle of the car lane, but that was their fault and not the drivers who were trying to get around them on the many blind hills. The promised shuttle back to the start line, which was 1.5 miles away from the finish, was not provided. We drove some runners back to their cars in our rental, but saw plenty walking back to their cars. I heard them asking for volunteer drivers on the loud speaker. If my wife had not come to support me, I would have been limping back a mile and a half (assuming I didn't get lost in a strange town) like so many other out-of-town runners.

Hillier than expected, but what the heck? Humid but luckily the cloud cover kept it cooler than it could have been. Bangor is close to the coast of Maine, which is a beautiful side trip. Pros: Started on time. The few volunteers were friendly. The roads were not closed but the drivers were considerate. Cons: Best Western (host hotel?) was closer to 13 miles from the start line instead of the 4 miles listed. The finish line should be closer to the start line, since no one asked seemed to know about the transportation van(s) back to the start line. Luckily two Bangor marathoners were kind enough to pick up two out-of-town hitchhikers on our way back to the start line. Expo and registration were to go until 8:00 on Saturday at the Black Bear Best Western Inn, but they were packing it up at 3:00.

One of the significant things that I found absent from the Paul Bunyan Marathon was the absence of the Star Spangled Banner during the pre-race events. I have completed numerous marathons, ultras and road races and I cannot recall an event in recent years when the national anthem was not played or sung either by a band, singer(s) or even a pre-recorded tape. This morning while I was at the Bangor International Airport awaiting my return flight to Michigan, I mingled with other PBM competitors who felt the same way. Thousands of brave American warriors are serving to protect our right to participate in events like the PBM. The absence of the Star Spangled Banner during the pre-race events is an insult to them and all brave Americans who have made the supreme sacrifice to defend our way of life.

I ran in the 15K event, not the marathon. I found out later that the 15K course was a bit short (8.9 miles rather than the full 9.3). There were no bathroom facilities at the start or set up along the route, which probably made for a mess. There were no water stations between miles 4 and 8 along the 15K route - could have used at least one more. Spectator support was only fair along the course, but given a 6 a.m. start, that was to be expected. The route was fairly well marked but it would have helped to have more people stationed at the turns to help direct runners who were unfamiliar with the course. There was also no official shuttle service to bring finishers back to the start area which was at least 2 miles from the finish line. Despite the shortcomings I enjoyed the race and look to return next year to do the full marathon.

Overall the Paul Bunyan Marathon (PBM) was an enjoyable event. I chose this marathon as I prefer the smaller event where I can run my race alone or with one or two running buddies and enjoy the scenery. The PBM certainly provided that but it is evident that a few logistical changes must be made if runners, particularly those from out of state, are going to be attracted to this event. One of the primary problems that my wife and encountered was at the finish line. The start line was approximately two hilly miles from the finish line in downtown Bangor. The PBM website stated that there would be shuttle service provided at the finish area to transport runners back to their vehicles. There was none. Thankfully, we used this marathon as a training run and still had some reserve left to enable us to walk back to our car. Traffic management was excellent at most intersections. However, along many stretches of two-lane roads, this was non-existent. During several hilly climbs on two-lane country roads, drivers rode dangerously close behind runners rather than risk a collison with on coming traffic. With regard to hills, I have no problem running a hilly event. However, given the number of climbs and descents in the course, some mention should have been made on the PBM web page so that runners could plan their race. The only fluids available on the course were water and Ultima, who was also a sponsor. Most runners that I train and race with don't drink something new on race day. While I have no doubt Ultima is a fine product, good old Gatorade would have been a nice alternative. Except for the tunnel beneath the stadium where the PBM finished, there was no shade at the finish area. When we crossed the finish line it was a hazy 84 degrees. Some sort of tents to offer shade and perhaps a massage given the number of hills of the course would improve the post-race experience. Despite my criticisms, given that the PBM hasn't been run since 1984, the RD and volunteer staff did a good job in planning and conducting this event. I hope that he views my comments and makes some of the changes that I have suggested. I would recommend this race if you want a tough, no-frills marathon.