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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 241 to 251]
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B. W. from Kearney, Nebraska
(5/27/2007)
"EXCELLENT RACE ALL THE WAY AROUND" (about: 2007)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Fargo Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 Tech finisher pullover jackets were top-notch. The Adidas goodie bags were a keeper - bonus. Gels were given at three spots on the course. Course was relatively flat. Mid-sized community really embraced the race. Excellent local fans! They made everyone running feel great. This is my 16th marathon and one of the absolute best. RUN FARGO!!! See you in 2008. | |
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K. A. from St. Peters Mo
(5/26/2007)
"Great race; the city of Fargo was really into it." (about: 2007)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Fargo Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This race was run very well. The course was flat; the only downside to the course was all the turns. Considering Fargo is a small town, I do not know how to resolve this issue though. The whole city really embarrassed the marathon as good as any city I know (this includes Boston, Cincy, Duluth and Chicago - 17 states total). Fargo should be used as an example of how a marathon should be run - especially a newer marathon. I really enjoyed running with the 1/2 marathoners for the first 5-plus miles, and then splitting after that was nice too. This allowed the 1/2 and full courses to join again several miles later, but this time with the marathoners alone. I think there were just over 1,300 full marathon runners and this is a really nice number. Enough runners to not feel lonely but not too many. The traffic control was very good, police were located where needed and civilians also where appropriate. The number of spectators lining the course of a race of this size was very impressive. Like I said before, the community was really into the event. Parking at the Fargo Dome was a bit of an issue (but again I do not know how to resolve this). What I could say to all runners is to arrive at the start 1 hour before the race. My wife and I targeted our arrival for 20 minutes before the start and were stopped back on the interstate. We were forced to park in a lot across the street. Again, arrive early enough to avoid the long line. People were very friendly throughout this entire process and the weather cooperated this day - a little windy but this was manageable. I recommend this race and I may run it again next year. | |
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s. f. from Minneapolis, MN
(5/26/2007)
"The whole city seemed excited & involved!" (about: 2007)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Fargo Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 Packet pick-up was a breeze! The course is flat but way too much concrete! It is almost all concrete and so hard on the legs. I don't know if I could run the full marathon on this course because of the concrete. Great fans - the whole city seemed to support this marathon. Really long lines to get food after the race and I never did see any water bottles. It was fun and I would come back next year! | |
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C. T. from Duluth, MN
(5/26/2007)
"Overall great race with a few areas to improve" (about: 2007)
4-5 previous marathons
| 1 Fargo Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 This marathon experience was great overall for me. I set a new PR and loved the cool temps with clouds. I agree with one person who stated that runners in some of the other races should be separated or started at a different time. I lined up at the 3:40 expected finish time (I finished 3:50) and had to pass a ton of walkers and slow people over the 1st 3-4 miles. I loved having tons of spectators the 1st 4-5 miles, but they definitely thinned out with the cold temps. My only other complaint is that the Gatorade should be watered down a bit more because drinking it full-strength is way too sweet on a long run. This race has a similar feel to Grandma's in my home of Duluth, with lots of energetic volunteers and support. | |
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s. g. from Winnipeg, Manitoba
(5/26/2007)
"Most fun I've had running a race" (about: 2007)
1 previous marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 Ran the half and it was a blast. Fan support was outstanding (deafening in some sections). Finishing in the dome is terrific (there's even jumbo inflatable play structures to keep the young'uns happy). Loved the course, the medal, the shirt and the Adidas bag. | |
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C. B. from Minnesota
(5/25/2007)
"Master marathon for the organization!" (about: 2007)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Fargo Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 Congratulations to the race director, the staff and volunteers - in 3 years they made this marathon already an event. They have chosen the best from all the other marathons, and it will become bigger and bigger! The only suggestion I have is: please don't cook spaghetti for the pasta party, and especially for after the race! Use a different shape of pasta that holds better (al dente!). Let's not forget the night at the disco - it was free and it was a nice ending. Thanks! | |
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T. M. from Eau Claire, WI
(5/25/2007)
"I enjoyed every step of the marathon!" (about: 2007)
4-5 previous marathons
| 1 Fargo Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 I qualified for Boston in Fargo!!!!! Yahoo! I was a little worried about the wind but got lucky this year. The spectators were great! Thank you!!! | |
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A. K. from Fargo, ND
(5/25/2007)
"Happy, Friendly Environment" (about: 2007)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Fargo Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 Such a wonderful experience, as others have said already - the entire weekend is terrific! One Suggestion: Arrange for a big band, etc. to be at the final 2 miles to really encourage the runners (because most of our family/friends are in the Dome waiting for us to finish, and most of us could use a little excitement to spur us to the finish line. :) | |
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E. W. from New York City
(5/25/2007)
"One of the Best Mid-Sized Marathons" (about: 2007)
4-5 previous marathons
| 1 Fargo Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 Simply put: This is a race that was put together by runners for runners. Many of the annoyances that a runner will encounter in other venues are simply eliminated here. The organization is efficient and humane. The comments below are generally supportive, and I don't want to repeat what you've already read or will read. My take, without repeating others' comments: I would place the 2007 running in Fargo on par with the Vermont City Marathon as an event of a solid but not overwhelming size (with room to grow - unlike VCM), great community support, good local flavor and a set of motivated runners. The finish in the Fargo Dome allows for a finish with some flash, and best of all solves a perennial finisher problem, which is how to end up in a place that is not exposed to the elements. Thank you Fargo and thank you Moorhead! The support of your residents and businesses was noticed and appreciated. The 2007 weather conditions were pretty close to ideal for runners, but that means they were nowhere near ideal for spectators. You guys were out in full force anyway: don't think that we runners didn't notice, even if we were too out of breath at the time to say thanks! The marathon course is excellent, and was obviously designed with runners in mind. The course is flat, takes you through nice neighborhoods, campuses, near the banks of the Red River, over the Minnesota border into Moorhead and back into North Dakota. There are boring parts of the course, but you can't design a 26-mile loop in any city without such parts (including New York). The loop generally takes you on a north-south direction, which should minimize wind (which typically blows west-east). We had some wind in 2007. The wind this year seemed to come from the north, so that you had a mild tailwind at points, particularly at the start and the end, and a headwind at other (mercifully brief) points, especially around the halfway point. With conditions in the high 40s to 50s and overcast on race day, things were just about idea for running. Unless you are planning on knocking out 26 miles on a treadmill, you'll always have some adverse conditions, but the weather in '07 was generally great. Note that as a runner you actually want at least a mild headwind or crosswind every once in a while when you're on a course for 3-5 hours because the wind will wick away sweat and cool you off a bit. I understand that the race organizers often read these comments, so here are a few suggestions (I emphasize that these points are picayune): In 2007, it was difficult to leave the Fargo Dome parking lot post-race due to congestion. I bet that the race has simply grown to the point where traffic must be considered, whereas this was not the case in the first two runnings. If additional exits from the Fargo Dome lot are not available (and they may not be because the end of the marathon route skirts the lot), then perhaps one of Fargo's finest can direct traffic. If that won't help matters, it might be useful to just let people know that it will be slow going out of the lot so that they can plan accordingly. The post-race food was just fine. A great improvement could be made if a local restaurant or vendor could be coralled into providing some signature dish at the end of the race. A great treat at the end of the Mayor's Marathon in Anchorage, for example, was thick local bread with slabs of butter provided by a local bread company. The Vermont City Marathon has ice cream provided by that local ice cream company which shall not be named. If a Fargo vendor can spare the food in exchange for some free advertising, it would be a great addition to the reunion in the Dome. | |
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K. P. from Stephen, MN
(5/25/2007)
"Awesome and Fun Race!" (about: 2007)
First Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 My friend and I ran this race for the first time. It was my 2nd 5K race ever and my friend's very first 5K race. We had so much fun with everything. Very organized event! We cannot wait until next year. We definitely plan on making it a weekend event. My only suggestion would be that you need additional speakers towards the back of the starting line. There were so many people that we couldn't hear where we were supposed to be and since it was our first time there, we were REALLY confused by the marathon start and the 5K start. We just followed other 5K people. And, I agree with the other persons suggestion to have all strollers in the back of the starting line, in addition to have people that only plan on walking towards the back of the start. It should be mentioned at the starting line to discourage people from walking with 4 people across, at least at the beginning. With so many people running, it is really hard to get around the groups of people. |
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