3-Laender-Marathon

I give this race mixed reviews. The pre-race email communications were excellent. The volunteers and aid stations along the way were top notch. And the spectators were amazing! The negatives: Packet pickup was a bit confusing in that the volunteer at # pickup demanded to see my registration email which I hurridly tried to pull up while other runners waited behind me. I never received the t-shirt I paid for. And when I lined up for the 'free' pasta dinner, I was asked if I had ordered it ahead (this was not mentioned in the race emails). Morning of ship transfer was smooth. There was a little confusion trying to find the clothing drop off trucks, but eventually I found them. For some reason the truck for my # seemed to have a long line of runners waiting to drop off clothes, while other trucks were near empty. Same for after race pickup - long line waiting for clothing while we were all freezing. The race itself was nice. Views were a bit limited due to cloud cover. There were long stretches of industrial type areas and few spectators, but the ones that were out were super motivating! Aid stations were numerous and well stocked, with plenty of volunteers. But - very few port-a-potties! Men pulled over to pee all over the place, but ladies had to wait forever for a toilet. The finish area in the stadium was not well organized. I was expecting food, beer and a massage, but decided to look for my clothing bag first because it was so cold. For this I had to climb up and out and walk around the stadium only to stand in that long line. At that point I did not want to go back in the stadium. Overall, I would recommend the marathon for its unique venus, but expect several complications along the way.

My first time running in Europe. My wife and I respectively ran the 42km and she ran the 21km . The start was awesome, good vibe along the route and the spectators was just brilliant. I loved everything about this race . I will sing the 3-Lander-Marathon praises back home in South Africa. Well done to everyone that made this race possible and for all your efforts. It was also a very scenic and beautiful route . I'd love to do it again next year. Salute champions salute