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Kentucky Derby Festival Marathon Runner Comments
Back to Kentucky Derby Festival Marathon Information & Reviews
Course 4.3 
Organization 4.1 
Spectators 3.7
Number of comments: 362 [displaying comments 171 to 181]
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J. W. from Pittsburgh, PA
(4/29/2008)
"A Great Experience!" (about: 2008)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Kentucky Derby Festival Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 I'm trying to become a member of the "50-staters," and I've just run the Kentucky Derby Festival Marathon for my eighth state. Overall, I was pretty impressed with the experience. I stayed at the Holiday Inn, within walking distance from the expo and the shuttle busses. I DID like the fact that they gave us 8-ounce water bottles as opposed to cups - I could sip instead of guzzle water. For me, this is especially important near the end of a marathon - I tend to need more and more fluids as a race goes on. The expo is small, and the t-shirt is so-so, but this is a good race if you plan to do Kentucky. This is a race for 1/2-marathoners, so, it is a bit spooky to be running almost alone after the 1/2-marathoners split off. If I weren't looking to do other states, I would definitely return to this race next year. | |
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K. B. from Pagosa Springs, CO
(4/29/2008)
"good race... but needs tweaking" (about: 2008)
6-10 previous marathons
| 2 Kentucky Derby Festival Marathons
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 5 This was my second time running this race; I was seeded last year, but not this year. Definite disadvantage!!! It was really rough the first 5 miles getting people not to box you in or respectfully to move out of the way when they slowed down. I strongly agree that the water bottles need to be gotten rid of - a definite hazard - and the sports beans should be optional, with gel as the standard (as I much prefer gel). Crowd support on the first half of the mini-marathon is awesome; you have fun people, and lots of music... though the last 4 miles could use a bit more, if you really want to get picky. Overall, it is a great race; it's nice to get the hill work over with early. | |
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J. W. from Jeffersonville, IN
(4/29/2008)
"Nothing to Gripe About" (about: 2008)
2 previous marathons
| 1 Kentucky Derby Festival Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 I had run the Mini (1/2) Marathon the previous two years, but this year decided to run the full. I had seen a lot of comments in past years, and now this year, complaining about certain aspects of the race. Here are my thoughts. 1) This is a half marathon event with a marathon tacked on. It is a local event that is part of the Kentucky Derby celebration; you should know this before you come. It is a local "event" race, not the Boston. 2) Why all the complaints about no fan support along the full course? There were pockets of fans scattered throughout, and besides, I don't have fan support for my 20+ mile training runs. 3) I prefer the jelly beans to gels, but that's just a personal preference. 4) Overall I thought it was well organized, comparable to the other marathon I'd run, and a great time. | |
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Gid Oswitch from Kent, Ohio
(4/29/2008)
"A Great Spring Marathon!" (about: 2008)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 Kentucky Derby Festival Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 Due an injury in '07, I was not able to run in the marathon, but the director was kind enough to carry my '07 registration to '08 (that is very rare). It is always easy to nit-pick with a marathon, but this race covered 95% of my expectations - the course is scenic with some hills, but as has been previously stated, the deflation at mile 22 when you have to cross the bridge to Indy and back is psychologically and physically brutal (especially when you just have hit the downtown area at 22). Volunteers were very friendly and made you feel welcome. My family and I really enjoyed the event.... | |
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p. a. from Louisville, ky
(4/29/2008)
"My 2nd KDF Marathon - keeps getting better" (about: 2008)
11-50 previous marathons
| 2 Kentucky Derby Festival Marathons
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This is a great race. The course is beautiful. Yes, the hills and the bridge at the end are challenging, but you are running a marathon, you wanted it to be easy??? The shirt this year was a big improvement over last year. Packet picket was quick and painless. Although I didn't have a chip, it was resolved very quickly and my time was posted under my name on race day. Spectators along the back of the course have gotten much better. I've read some people complain about the start being too crowded; I was able to line up with the pacing group and had no problem getting into my pace right away. I actually went out a little too fast. The medal was awesome - I love it. The course is beautiful, so PLEASE don't change it!! My only complaint: there was very little food for the marathoners once we were done. Could you set up a tent or something at the finish line just for marathoner food? I don't care if it's the same food you give the mini people; I just want some when I get done. There was only water, bagels, and chips when I got done (4:26). Fruit and Gatorade would have been nice after 26 miles. All in all, great race!!! It keeps getting better and I'll keep coming back! | |
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michael penny from tennessee
(4/28/2008)
"This could be a great race with a few changes" (about: 2008)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 Kentucky Derby Festival Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 This is a very good urban course course. I enjoyed the parks, Churchill Downs and the river crossing. The police did a great job with traffic control. I like the use of water bottles and the medals are great. I believe the post party should be by the river with more beer for the runners. Tech shirts and hats are needed. All walkers should start at the rear. Awards should be given after the race. Glad I ran the race, but would not do it again as the race is right now. | |
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J. T. from Los Angeles, California
(4/28/2008)
"A Friendly Marathon" (about: 2008)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Kentucky Derby Festival Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 The Kentucky Derby Marathon was my twentieth marathon and my eighth marathon in a different state. I enjoyed the entire experience. During the expo, all the volunteers were extremely helpful and friendly. One nice volunteer provided excellent directions for me to a sporting goods store because I was not able to purchase Clif Shots at the expo. The start of the race was well organized, and it was a great luxury to have the high school open in the morning instead of having to wait outside. Some participants have complained that the starting area was too crowded, but this just was not the case. Up until the gun went off, it would have been easy to line up close to the starting line. It was a bit congested during the first mile, but that is to be expected when you have over 10,000 runners in an event. Anyone who thinks it was crowded should try the Los Angeles Marathon. I absolutely loved the course; the parks were beautiful, and Churchhill Downs was amazing. Having the broadcast of past races put a big smile on my face. The bottled water was a bit disconcerting at first; I have always had cups of water, but I actually prefer the small bottles. They are easier to navigate while in stride; less chance of the water going down the wrong pipe or swallowing too much air. The spectators were sparse in places, but only big city marathons will have big crowds throughout the entire course. I'm just extremely thankful for those who did come out to cheer on the runners. Overall, I had a great experience in Louisville, and I would highly recommend the race to anyone. The icing on the cake was that, despite a course that could be challenging at times, I was able to set a PR and qualify for Boston. | |
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S. T. from Atlanta, GA
(4/28/2008)
"Glorious; Loved it!" (about: 2008)
2 previous marathons
| 1 Kentucky Derby Festival Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This was my first marathon and I loved it! I've been to many race events and trained on both full and half marathon routes. I thought that the half and full Louisville routes were grand - lots to look at, fine neighborhoods, excellent parks and the spectators were fabulous. I have to say that I really, really appreciated the number of people who stuck it out to see those of us who are slow come struggling through to the end! It was wonderful! This race was about 90% half marathon runners and I hope that changes in future years. Even so, there were plenty of full marathon runners around, so I never felt isolated. The route was fantastically well marked (you could not go wrong) and traffic had been stopped all the way so you didn't have to compete with cars. The expo, though very small, was easy to find, as was the Galt Hotel and buses to the start. Everyone at the expo jumped to help and answer questions and Chad was great. We waited out a somewhat rainy, chilly morning in a school until the start of the race, but eventually the sun came out and the day could not have been prettier. There are hills at the beginning which were not bad if you've trained on them, but I heard alot of people complaining. However, the hills in the park at the far end of the full marathon, although not too long or too steep, still took alot out of me, as did the seemingly endless final run across the bridge and back. But what a view! Seeing the horses exercising at Churchill Downs as we ran the infield was a not-to-be-missed experience. I'll be back next year! | |
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Tanya Goetz from Louisville, Ky
(4/28/2008)
"challenging course" (about: 2008)
4-5 previous marathons
| 2 Kentucky Derby Festival Marathons
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 I enjoyed running this marathon for the second time. The crowd support is great for the first half, but not the second. The course takes you through two states, which is neat. And running through Churchill downs is great one week before Derby Day. This is still a very new marathon, which I see getting bigger and better each year. More bathroom facilities are needed for the second half though. The hardest part for me was the bridge over to Indiana at around mile 22 and coming back over at mile 24. Overall, a great course for a fairly new marathon. | |
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Thomas LaRose from Detroit
(4/28/2008)
"Awesome Course" (about: 2008)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 Kentucky Derby Festival Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 Reading comments from 2007, I was less then thrilled after I signed up for 2008. They must have made huge improvements for 2008 because it was a very organized and awesome course. The difficulty of the course was high; the hills wear you down. As for scenery, it was awesome. You run through the Kentucky Derby and run across the Ohio river. It was awesome that they had bananas and oranges early in the race. I was bummed that they didn't have as much for the marathon at the end. Organization was awesome. I would highly recommend signing up for the spaghetti dinner. The restaurants were packed in town. We had to go to a sports bar, which wasn't bad. But if you are looking for pasta, you will have to wait 1.5 hours. |
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