Onward Shay! Boise Marathon Copy

I ran this race yesterday and cannot recommend it, which is a shame, because I generally love small marathons on scenic greenways. However, water stations in this race were not where they were advertised, and the second was still being set up when most of us passed it. Instead of using the typical 12-ounce Gatorade cups that you get in most marathons, they used tiny bathroom cups. As these were half full anyway, each only provided about an ounce of fluid. I counted 11 functioning water stops on the course, and there were none between mile 10 and the half-marathon point, despite the pre-race info saying that there would be one at mile 11.5. So you either had to run this race on 22 ounces of fluid on a day where the temperature would hit 98 degrees, or you had to stop to drink at the water stations, which is not what you generally do when you are racing. To add insult to injury, there was no volunteer at the last turn when I went by, which added about a half-mile to my race and had me miss the Boston qualifying time by 71 seconds, instead of qualifying by 3.5 minutes.

Low key marathon. Easy logistics. Good aid stations. Unique award for winning age group (medal that serves as bottle opener). Not much for a marathon course with a long out and back.

Kind of disappointing when a race, which includes a long out and back, still can't get the distance right and runs long every year. And not sure what is up with reporting the correct times/finishes. 2019 is missing the top 3 males and top 5 women. Way to be on top of things and best represent your race guys! Noted: gorgeous course with huge upside. Needs lots of help.