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☰
Fargo Marathon Runner Comments
Back to Fargo Marathon Information & Reviews
Course 4.4 
Organization 4.6 
Spectators 4.6
Number of comments: 391 [displaying comments 141 to 151]
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K. K. from Kansas City, MO
(6/1/2010)
"Add Fargo to your must-do list!" (about: 2010)
4-5 previous marathons
| 1 Fargo Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 This is a great race in all regards, in a fun, little community! The only reason I give it 4 instead of 5 stars is that the marathon doesn't start until 8 a.m. This is a very late start given that sunrise was officially at 5:45 a.m. on race day. They should move the 10K to Friday evening with the 5K, and start the half-marathon at 7 a.m. and the full marathon at 7:30 a.m. Other than the late start time, this is a super race! | |
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K. W. from Santa Cruz, CA
(5/30/2010)
"A great marathon" (about: 2010)
3 previous marathons
| 1 Fargo Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 Fargo was a great experience. Highlights: 1) Expo: great organization and nice, long-sleeved, tech shirt and track bag. 2) Pre-race: being able to be inside the Fargo Dome prior to race start was great. It was pouring rain and being able to stay dry and use the bathrooms inside rather than porta-potties was very much appreciated. 3) Course support: The people of Fargo and Moorhead were amazing in supporting the race. After the rain eased, it was a hot day and many people turned on hoses, misters, sprinklers, and handed out oranges and water. Amazing! 4) Plenty of water stops on the course. 5) Post-race: ending in the Fargo Dome was very cool, the medal is beautiful, and the amount of food offered was great. The organizers deserve a pat on the back. Great race! | |
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J. M. from Springfield, MO
(5/28/2010)
"As Good as It Gets!" (about: 2010)
11-50 previous marathons
| 2 Fargo Marathons
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This was my second Fargo Marathon, and in my opinion, this is developing into one of the best races around. Here are some highlights: Course: You won't find anything flatter; there were just enough gentle grades to mix things up a bit. It's a very interesting course, hitting residential, downtown, and university areas in Fargo and Moorhead. Of my 15 marathons, I would say the course probably includes as much shade as any - nice when the weather gets warm, as it did later in the 2010 race. One observation: there is a lot of concrete, taking a bit of a toll on the legs. I don't think there is much they can do about this, since Fargo has a lot of concrete streets. Organization: Top-notch from beginning to end. Plenty of great volunteers all around. Lots of perks, including a great race shirt, a nice bag, and a fine medal. They also gave a nice medal if you did the 5K on Friday night. (Three medals total, if you are into the "bling," as I am.) Great pasta dinner, a good expo, and nice support on the course. One suggestion: Start the marathon at 7, the half at 7:30, and the 10K at 8; that would help alleviate potential heat problems. Fans: This race is surprisingly well supported by spectators for a city of this size; I did St. Louis last month and Fargo had comparable if not stronger fan support for a decent portion of the race, especially the last few miles. The community really supports this race. Folks were in their yards with food, hoses and sprinklers (in the heat), and in several cases Kleenex tissues (first time I've seen that, but really nice, especially when you consider they had to clean them up themselves afterward). Very, very impressive. All in all, this marathon is well worth a trip to Fargo! | |
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R. C. from Fargo, ND USA
(5/28/2010)
"Very good race" (about: 2010)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Fargo Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 Congratulations to Fargo on a great race. Let me first deal with the biggest complaint I see here: I think it's good that they started the 10K first, then the half, and then the full. This helped prevent a very crowded finish line, like we have seen here previously - although maybe moving the bag-pick up to another area helped too. The course was a bit chewed up at points, and although there are very few hills in Fargo, I think we hit nearly every single one (I know since I live here). Hills don't necessarily make a course bad though, unless you're going for a personal record. I loved running through Concordia College at about mile 6 - that was the course highlight for me. The fans were great; it took me awhile to realize that they were actually cheering for me at many points. There were several places playing music, and I got a laugh when I heard, "I can see clearly now the rain is gone..." when the rain stopped. Their was also a great live band playing later in the race. A movie theater we ran by said,"'Fargo Marathoners are Iron Men 2," which was good for another laugh. Lastly you get a good amount for what you put in here. The finish line food was delicious, with pizza, water, fruit, bagels, and chocolate milk. The finisher's medal is amazing and warmup jacket is going to be great for chilly runs. I also thought the aid stations were great and I can't believe we got 3 GU energy gels. Great job to all involved! | |
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George Southgate from Calhoun,GA
(5/26/2010)
"Great race and course event." (about: 2010)
50+ previous marathons
| 1 Fargo Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This was a great event. Even the light rain at the start did not dampen the enthusiasm of the runners or the supporters. The Fargodome made for a great start/finish area. The use of the locker rooms afterward made the recovery more relaxing. The bananas and oranges on the course were greatly appreciated. There were also a variety of other treats. Thanks. | |
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S. P. from Brandon, Manitoba
(5/25/2010)
"Overall Excellent" (about: 2010)
4-5 previous marathons
| 1 Fargo Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 A great marathon that exceeded my expectations. The Fargodome is an excellent venue to stay warm in pre-race, we had decent crowd support, and there was a great course that is very flat. Much like others, I wonder why the marathon would be the last event to start. Makes no sense to me. Hopefully they change that next year. | |
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D. H. from Oregon
(5/25/2010)
"Outstanding Marathon" (about: 2010)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Fargo Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 I agree. This is a terrific medium-sized marathon. The organization was near perfect. The shirts, medal, finish area, and expo were all outstanding. The course is very flat and can be fast if the wind isn't blowing hard (which it did in the latter portion of the marathon). Much of the course is in nice, residential, tree-lined streets. The number of spectators is limited, but those who were out were very supportive of everyone and enthusiastic. Lots of volunteers (thank you!!!), and plenty of aid stations and porta-potties. The entire city is very welcoming of the out-of-town visitors/participants. I can't think of anything important to be critical of. You will like this event. | |
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Geoff Martin from Winnipeg,Canada
(5/25/2010)
"Wonderful" (about: 2010)
11-50 previous marathons
| 3 Fargo Marathons
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 Great event.Where else do you get a backpack and a long-sleeve tech shirt. The finisher medal is a work of art. This whole race is so well organized from start to finish. Great pasta feed and expo. It is nice to start and finish at the Fargodome. I think this race is so good, as they really care about the runners. Ok, so the weather was not too great, but better than having temps over 80 F. I only did the half, but I would recommend it to all Manitoba runners. Unfortunately, Fargo spoils us. Fargo, you guys rock. | |
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C. D. from Winnipeg, Canada
(5/25/2010)
"fantastic first-marathon experience" (about: 2010)
First Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 Thank you, thank you, thank you to all of the organizers and supporters in Fargo! I loved the whole experience. I stayed with my family in the NDSU residence apartments across the street from the Fargodome, and would recommend that. The food and the timing of the race all worked out well for me, and I came in at 4:28. Like the others, though, I wondered about the staggered start: why did the marathoners not start first? | |
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A. D. from Livermore, CA
(5/25/2010)
"Well done, Fargo!" (about: 2010)
11-50 previous marathons
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 Fargo is quite an interesting place, and it made for a great marathon experience. There is a sense of local pride, a tightly-knit community that resonated all through the race weekend. First, the course: great, as advertised, and both flat and fast. I enjoyed the route; it was fun to run through the various residential areas and the business district, and the start and finish at the Fargodome were terrific. I did have a little trouble with the uneven street pavement through much of the course. I think the winter weather beats up the streets, so you do have to stay a bit focused on the ground not to turn an ankle. Organization was very good. The only area for improvement is the bus transportation to the start. There needed to be more buses getting runners from the West Acre Mall to the Fargodome - although I got to the mall pretty early, I did not get to the dome until about 7:40. The half marathoners on the bus were late. I felt bad for them. The expo was nicely organized, and lived up to the write-up in RW (we got wonderful schwag - I just love the long-sleeve race shirt). The best: the fans. Since I usually do these races alone (working on 50 states), so I am more used to seeing others get cheered on by family/friends, Team-in-Training supporters, etc. I never feel like any of it is for me, but in Fargo, it was so cool to have people cheer me on. At first I was certain that the encouragement was for the person next to me, but when I was alone, out of the pack, and still getting the cheers, I realized these are just nice, friendly people who are quite proud of their marathon. I have to say, the only other marathon I have run with more fan support is Boston. Many thanks to all of the people that got out there for the runners; I hit the wall so very hard at mile 20, and the encouragement kept me going. Other note: I did not like to sports beverage. It got me pretty queasy, and I ended up racing to the porta-johns at miles 22 and 24, which whacked my time. I paced to a near PR all the way through about mile 18 when the bad reaction to the drink set in. Everyone has their preferences; this one was too sweet and blue for my liking. I miss the days when Gatorade was the only game in town. So last comments, and to end on the positive note: this is a wonderful race, and I have to offer my thanks both to the race director and team, as well as the community of Fargo. To the staff at the hotel I stayed at - La Quinta - thank you as well; what wonderful hospitality (and a nice, new, clean hotel). I left Fargo with some terrific memories, and North Dakota crossed off of the list! |
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