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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 51 to 61]
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e. s. from Perkasie, PA
(5/18/2014)
"Fargo Rules!" (about: 2014)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Fargo Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This race was extremely well done and totally fun. Perfectly flat, neighborhood parties on the lawn cheering for all! Nice entertainment from Elvis, garage bands, square dancers, bag pipers even the Grim Reaper telling us the end was near at mile 25. No problems with traffic to expo or the start (I got up way too early). Porta potties even in the race parking lots. Perfect weather, excellent medal and swag. Post race dance party looked fun. I went to see a movie at the historic theater. Great Time in Fargo! | |
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A. G. from TX, USA
(5/13/2014)
"Great experience!!!" (about: 2014)
4-5 previous marathons
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 I did the half. This was a great race! Well organized, a fun, flat course, great crowd. I love the perksthe free video of your finish, all the information closer to the time of the race (I tend to ignore emails with info 4 months from the race!) and I really felt that they tried to give each runner a great experience. The only things I would improve on for next year: 1) the expo should be organized better. You followed arrows that implied that you would get your shirt but really all it does is take you on a circle so you can see all the vendors. Once around the circle you can leave the exhibit hall and go to the real place to get your shirt. Most places just have the shirt pick up in the exhibit hall in the back so you do have to still see the vendors but at least it's not deceptive. 2) The finishers' area needs more signage and the finishers' foods should be equally set up on 3-4 separate tables. There was mass congestion as a lot of people were trying to get to the one table with food. Otherwise I thought this race was great. This was my fifth half and one of the most enjoyable. | |
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M. M. from Illinois
(5/12/2014)
"Overall good race" (about: 2014)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Fargo Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 I had relatively low expectations for this race, but was pleasantly surprised. The course was nothing too exciting, but I think it was the best it could be for a small city. Spectators were outstanding!!! Water stations were plentiful and well-stocked. Port-a-potties were OK, but not as plentiful as advertised. One minor issue, I received a pre-race packet in the mail when I returned home, guessing it came 2 days before the race. It may have been for the best, as it suggested getting to the start area 1.5 hours before the race. I arrived 30 minutes before and it was plenty of time. But, from the time I got on the plane to Fargo until I left the airport, the people of Fargo were very warm and welcoming. I'd definitely recommend it to anyone who is trying to run a race in North Dakota. | |
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J. W. from Kansas City, KS
(5/12/2014)
"Spectators/Race Support Make This Event!" (about: 2014)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Fargo Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 My only two (minor) criticisms would be the women's shirt (already gave mine away because of the design), and that I would have preferred if the marathon had started at least an hour earlier. Other than those this race is great. And, I care far more about a well run and supported race than I do a shirt or medal. If all communities were as supportive of their marathons as Fargo is the world would be a beautiful place. I can't really comment on the course (which IS very flat) because there were so many people along the way to distract me. There weren't thick crowds of people like Chicago or New York, but you never went more than a few blocks before there was someone cheering, playing music, setting up improvised aid, etc. What a spectacular community Fargo has. | |
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T. B. from Indiana
(5/10/2014)
"Organization & Logistics ruined it for me" (about: 2014)
50+ previous marathons
| 1 Fargo Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 3 If you run for the bling, you'll be greatly pleased: medal, Body Armour goodie bag, wind jacket at the end, and the tech shirt were all pretty impressive. That's about it for the positives. 10 year anniversary and 'return to the bridge' really created some problems. Getting to the packet pickup on Friday night THROUGH the pack assembling to start a rather monstrous 5K that blocked to road to the Civic Center was first headache. Expo-enter the civic center and the vendors have to send you back outside to get your bib in a tent. Back to the vendors who have to send you downstairs to get your shirt and bag. (Signs? Volunteers directing you through the Expo?) Then the hike back through all the cars leaving the 5K to get to my car and decide where to go to eat. 3rd headache-trying to figure out from the maps provided how the finish area parking matched up (for my spectator wife) with the parking for the marathon village at the Center Mall (which was a nice offering by the mall, by the way). Bottom line-my wife did not want to have to figure out how to drive around the blocked roads to get from the Marathon village at 5:30 AM, to a down town parking and walk to the finish area to wait till noon for me...so I left her at the motel. No late check out, so no shower option, and I did NOT want to try to fight back through the finishing traffic to get to the Civic center the showers that were only mentioned in the spectator guide we got the day of the race, so a sponge bath in a bathroom at the motel. 4th headache-after the finish. Finding your way around the finish party(?). The only obviously visible area was the UPS drop bag pickup. Had to ask other runners where the food was. Looked and looked for the shuttle bus back to my car and couldn't see them. Looked for information reps/volunteers to help direct us-none of them either. Finally used Google maps to look up the mall and walk back through town to find my car and drive back to my spit bath in the motel bathroom. I know I'm griping, but this was marathon/ultra #77 for me, and from that experience I felt this event was quite oversold for what my wife and I and others went through. To have all 50 states represented and several foreign countries, I felt you left out of towners on their own to struggle through getting around. Sounds like the new improved 'start and end in the Fargo-dome' route used in previous years is the preferred option. OHHHH-ALMOST FORGET THE GREATEST FRUSTRATION. Starting the marathon and the 10K on the same bridge and run together for 2.5-3 miles!!!! Dodging and weaving kids, walkers, strollers, for the first several miles. Unbelievable! At least start the 10K later, run it the same time as the 5K -something different. I will finally acknowledge that I was extremely impressed that the back of hour medal was engraved with scripture. I know it's surprising perhaps for me to state I wore my Team 4:13 shirt ('I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me') after being so negative, but I have never had a medal that included scripture on it. I applaud that part of the day as a closing comment. | |
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T. T. from St. Paul, MN
(5/10/2014)
"Perfect size race, very well done." (about: 2014)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Fargo Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 Living in St. Paul, I have run Grandma's Marathon for my spring race the last 2 years. I decided to run this race because I didn't have a great experience in Duluth and the weather was not great. I was very impressed with the Fargo Marathon's organization, especially the pre-race staging. Having 3 separate athlete villages cut down on any traffic issues. My wife was able to see me very easily on the course and park (for free!) very near the finish line. Also, she was able to find me almost instantly after the race. As mentioned in previous years, the swag is excellent. The people both associated with the race and in the community are all very welcoming and helpful. The course is as flat as advertised with a few small overpasses. Most of it goes through treelined residential areas with many people hanging out on their lawns and handing out stuff (oranges, etc.) to the runners or just cheering us on. It does get a bit crowded when there is two way running and multiple races (half marathon, marathon, 10K) together, but for the most part it works pretty well. The weather was perfect, although a bit too perfect for me as I went out way too fast and paid for it at the end of the race. My only two (minor) criticisms are that 1. We had to line up an hour before the race and my legs stiffened up a bit in the cool morning and 2. There weren't enough bathrooms in the mall which made for ridiculously long lines. I will definitely be back again next year! | |
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S. T. from Kansas City, MO
(6/12/2013)
"First half; it will be hard to top" (about: 2013)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Fargo Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 I diligently searched for a 'flat and fast' half and Fargo seemed to fit the bill. I registered Jan 1 for the May 18 half; this became my LIFE for 5 months - conquering a missed goal from years ago. I can't say enough good about this. I LOVED it - all of it. It was never too hard. There were never pockets without awesome people cheering you on. It's truly a community event. My professional pictures show me beaming like I was walking across a stage to receive a crown, not on mile 12 of 13. The finish into the Fargodome with cheering fans lining the stands is awe-inspiring. I am a slow runnerabout 3 hours. I was treated like as much royalty as anyone else. I ran the whole way and the course was good. Almost all asphalt. And seriously FLAT. Unbelievable. I trained in Kansas City, which is NOT, so this was like coasting - which I wanted. You want your first to be good. It was. I don't regret a penny I spent or a day or training. Caveat: Traffic! Stay at a hotel close by and avoid the Red River Inn (I left a day early). Partly I chose Fargo because the course crossed the Red River into MN. Because of possible flooding, they changed it. It turned out NOT to flood but they kept the change. That was disappointing, but as you can tell it was still incredible. The hardest part (not sure if this is always or was the modified route) was the mile 11-12 area where we zig zagged around campus - the Fargodome was close and we had to run around campus. Psychologically, that was the hardest part. The campus is nice, though! The other problem was with MarathonFoto who does a lot of the big ones... their customer service stinks; they don't reply to emails so you have to meticulously go through all the thousands of unidentified pictures to find yours (that's where most of mine were, including my finish shots) before you order, if you are so inclined. I wanted Fargo to be my first full next year but they moved the date to the 10th and I am under contract in a teaching job across the country until the 14th. I was so bummed I don't have words. So I don't know if I will be back but the DATE is the ONLY reason. This race was one that will always be one of the most wonderful days of my life. | |
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B. W. from Manitoba, Canada
(6/9/2013)
"Marathon start should be earlier" (about: 2013)
11-50 previous marathons
| 3 Fargo Marathons
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 OK course (I know that had to make adjustments due to the flood forecast and that made some things tighter and more repetitious than they would have liked), great spectators, wonderful volunteers. I know that they have the marathon start last to relieve congestion at the finish line, but the longest run, with the highest risk of runners being affected by heat, should not start last. I saw several runners getting medical help along the course over the last few miles. It got warmer than most of us were prepared for and things got tough. We should have started sooner. Great job otherwise. Nice touch having Canadians sing their national anthem. | |
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K. A. from Massachusetts
(6/3/2013)
"Worth the trip" (about: 2013)
50+ previous marathons
| 1 Fargo Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 I'm late to add my two cents and I think the existing reviews below for 2013 have said it all. I'll restrict my comments to two points. If you are from Out of State I recommend staying at the NDSU dorms. They are so convenient to everything you need and actually fun. Also you do not need to rent a car. It is a 2 mile walk from the airport to the dorms. Make a friend and go out after the race into downtown Fargo. I had the greatest apres marathon party of my own making. It is a very welcoming city with fun people, and great restaurants and pubs. 50 States or not, this marathon is worth the trip. | |
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S. H. from Wisconsin
(5/26/2013)
"Love the crowd, but could use some changes" (about: 2013)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 Fargo Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 I agree with others who have said how great the spectators/residents of Fargo are - there was always crowd support, and I was very appreciative of the many residents who provided sprinklers, hoses and ice for the runners as the humidity and temperatures took a toll this year. I realize the course was changed at last minute due to flooding potential, and that likely accounts for the things I didn't care for about the course - lots of twists and turns and a very crowded out-and-back stretch between Mile 11 and Mile 14. I would love to see the race start earlier - maybe at the same time as the half, but with corrals/waves. The late 8:15 start puts the full marathoners at risk for a much warmer race by the time they finish. Shirts and medals were great, and the indoor area (real bathrooms!!!) to hang out before and after the race is also great for years like this when it is raining before the race. |
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