Marathon du Finistere

The atmosphere was just fantastic. Throughout the whole seaside course from Plouescat to Guisénny, hundreds of volunteers (people of all ages who actually live along the course) were supporting the runners through both carefully organized and ingeniously improvised ways. Rich refreshments every few km, varied and perfectly marked roads. Other distances (except Marathon Duo) ran mostly separated courses. Because of the relative remoteness of the area, nearly all of the 400 or so runners were enthusiasts, able to maintain realistic paces throughout (unlike in crowded city marathons where many people 'just want to try it out' and then end up interleaving sprint and walk episodes).

On the 26th of June 2011, 363 participants ran the Marathon du Finistere in Brittany. The day was quite hot (35°C/95°F) and most of the course was exposed to the sun. At least the majority of the course was situated on asphalt roads beside the ocean, so there was a slight breeze throughout the race. In addition, there were water stops every five kilometers which kept most people from completely overheating. Whereas other marathons usually start and end around the same area, the Marathon du Finistere started at a chateau in St Vougay and ended in Guissény (27 km away by car). Logistics were slightly complicated, but the arrival area had several shuttles that would take runners back to the starting point where they had left their cars. One thing about this race is that participants require a car to get around because St. Vougay and Guisseny are slightly remote. Due to the marathon's remoteness and small number of runners, there was hardly any local crowd support. Only in Gouvlen (at the halfway point where relay marathon runners exchanged team partners) was there a significant number of people. At least the reduction in runners and crowds led to ample space for participants to run comfortably. The finish in Guisseny was quite nice with a lot of people crowded around the last 500m cheering the runners to the end. Runners were greeted at the end with a metal, participation T-shirt, beer, water, snacks and BBQed sausages. The highlight of the race was passing through Meneham at the 35k mark which is a nice area near the ocean with big boulders and sand. There was a local band that played the entire day and some water and snacks for the runners. As part of the Challenge de Convivialite, I was disappointed that the race wasn't at the same level as the Champenoise, the Medoc Marathon, the Cognac Marathon, etc. Almost no one dressed up during the race and there was no alcohol served during the race as well. I also found the race to be very challenging because of the intense heat during the day. Finally, the race was in a remote region of France, so just getting to it took a lot of time.