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Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon Runner Comments

Back to Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon Information & Reviews

Course Rating Course 3.3 
 
Oranization Rating Organization 2.7 
 
Spectator Rating Spectators 2.8 
 
 
Number of comments: 736 [displaying comments 181 to 191]
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C. D. from Ohio (12/6/2011)
"Worst running event I have ever participated in" (about: 2011)

2 previous marathons | 1 Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon
COURSE: 4  ORGANIZATION: 1  FANS: 4


This was one of the most inhumane experiences I have ever encountered. I have never felt a greater since of fear at any of the many races I have participated in. And to think I paid $150.00 to inflect it upon myself. Event workers were unfriendly and uncaring and no one really wanted to do more then was needed of them...making your way to the Mandaly Bay was a nightmare...finding Gear Check was next to impossible...there were over crowding issues from the beginning...I don't know why I thought it would be better at the end.

The course was fine...but I still can not figure out the purpose of the corrals...with so many people and no crowd control no one could even get to the correct corral...for what ever reason walkers thought they should start in the first part of the corrals which was a huge unsafe issue of its own...when a runner is going 5mph and has to come to a dead stop...someone is probably going to get hurt. I also just want to mention the lack of bathrooms quickly...oh and the bands or lack their of left a little to be desired. In my opinion the finish is where it really starts to go down hill. Feeling a bit more like cattle then a person I was herded through lines lucky to get water and a milar blanket...I stumbled around nearly passing out...one person asked if I was dizzy but no one helped...I got myself into the Mandaly Bay and into a bathroom...not even aware of the chaos going on outside the bathroom door...I may have been ill but thank god I was safely in a bathroom stall and not out in the open as many others...I laid on the floor violently ill...as an experienced runner the way I felt after that race is still perplexing to me...when I finally decided I needed medical attention...the medics could not get to me due to the chaos and confusion...it took over an hour...the saddest part was that I had to wait cause I knew it was the only way I could get out of there safely...RnR should be ashamed of themselves as should Mandaly Bay...these are human lives the were screwing with...I realize they may just be in it for the money...but lord have some compassion...this was sick...they will be lucky if no one dies as a result of their actions...they will also be lucky if a class action law suite is not brought against them...I know I for one would like a refund, my medical expenses paid for, and money for the day I had to take off work to recover from this mess.

I would ask so like to know why I, along with many others became so violently ill. I will never run this race again...and running another RnR event is probably also not going to happen. It may also be good to mention that I have been told they get the water on the course from hydrants and they put it in large trash cans...many people were vomiting all over the place after the race...if you do decide to run the strip...I would bring your own water and don't check your bag, it's not worth it...

 

S. B. from Calgary, Canada (12/6/2011)
"Not a marathon event" (about: 2011)

11-50 previous marathons | 1 Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon
COURSE: 2  ORGANIZATION: 2  FANS: 5


This event is geared toward one event only...the Half Marathon. The numbers say it all: 3500 marathon finishers compared to 35000 half finishers.
The organizer could have done a lot better in all areas - from package pick up to crossing the line. The corralling of the runners after crossing the finish line needs to be drastically improved.
Course is a 1 star for the first half (lots & lots of corners and short little out & backs to make up the distance) and maybe a 4 for the second (running LV Boulevard was the highlight!). Spectators were awesome on the Strip.
Final words: if your looking to run a 'nighttime' marathon with absolutely no expectations Las Vegas is fun but this event should only be a half marathon.

 

J. M. from Las Vgeas, NV (12/6/2011)
"Disorganized mess created a nasty vibe on course" (about: 2011)

3 previous marathons | 1 Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon
COURSE: 3  ORGANIZATION: 1  FANS: 3


This was a very poorly organized event. Among the problems:

-Not enough space at the start line to accommodate the crowds of people trying to get to their corrals. My husband and I shared a somewhat panicky moment while we were trapped in the crowd on the sidewalk, unable to move and getting pushed from every direction. We were allowed to enter the wrong corral to get out of that mess and made our way to the correct one.

-Substantial corral issues. I think a lot of other people must have entered the wrong corral and just stayed there. I also heard that people who'd estimated a slow pace were assigned to early corrals. Weird, but you could tell on course. I estimated a slow pace and started near the back and still had to pass A LOT until around the 11 mile mark.

-Courses were too narrow for half and full. Bad course dividers between the half and full made for negative attitudes on course. Marathoners were yelling at halfers to get out of the way, halfers were trying to pass slower runners, too. Total traffic mess for most of the race and really poor sportsmanship all around. I usually like other runners because of their attitudes, but saw a lot of runners at their worst in this event.

-The finish area was chaotic. I just wanted out of the secure area so I could get to my family and friends, but had to stand at another standstill next to a barricade for about 5-10 minutes, cold, hungry and wanting to reunite with my friends. I still have no idea why there was such a bottle neck to get out.

Overall, I came to the race thinking it would be a lot of fun and have good energy. Not so much. The volunteers were great and the bands were good, but the course support and logistics were complete crap. And I am beyond sick of hearing marathoners discuss their bad race. I feel like it was a waste of a lot of money.

 

S. B. from Utah. USA (12/6/2011)
"2011 RnRLV FAIL!" (about: 2011)

2 previous marathons | 1 Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon
COURSE: 3  ORGANIZATION: 1  FANS: 4


My first & likely last RnR event.
2011 Las Vegas
44,000 competitors and the race organizers were not prepared for them.

The good parts of this race.
1. Fun to run at night on the strip
2. Amazing medals
3. Good volunteers trying to make do with what race organizers had given them. I tried to thank everyone I came in contact with. It was clear they were not properly trained in many aspects.
4. The Brooks area at the Expo. Fun and educational.

The bad/ugly/dangerous
1. Everything else. :)
2. Poor/empty swag bag
3. Checkout line at expo so long I put the $100+ dollars worth of merchandise on the floor and walked out. You want me to wait 30-45 min to give you my money??
4. No enforcement of corrals
5. Complete lack of signage & directions everywhere.
6. No clear course marking for half/full marathon separation. 4 inch cones with a sign on top that were knocked over at the beginning didn't cut it.
7. Bikers used to protect the full marathoners were just an added hazard to the course. There is a multitude of ways this could have been done better. Competitor group chose to do the cheapest and most dangerous/disappointing option.
8. Lack of bathrooms.
9. I heard water stations on right for half, and left for full. Water stations on right were out of water and cytomax. Half runners had to cross over the full running area to get water. Running out of cytomax is both unacceptable and dangerous to the runners.
10. Finish area was a disaster. LONG LONG lines to take a picture. We bypassed once a way was finally cleared around the photographers.
11. GREEN Bananas (really?) Fueling after a race is important. The after snacks were disappointing.
12. Complete lack of direction/signage after the race. We were herded into the Mandalay Bay where we got stuck in the hall of puke and passing out? This was a most dangerous situation created both by RnR and Mandalay Bay that was 1000% avoidable. Surely someone gets paid enough to be able to realize the traffic for the Michael Jackson show and the Marathoners were going to need the same hall. Clear separation with dividers would have solved this problem. I had two people pass out at my feet because of the shoulder to shoulder cramming and shoving following an endurance event. This is completely unforgivable and both groups should be held liable as this was a fire hazard. I was personally stuck in the Mandalay Bay hall for nearly 2 hours. I was at a complete standstill for 1+ hour. People were yelling for medics and the Mandalay Bay security did nothing to try and alleviate the situation.
13. I was able to get the correct medal upon completing the race, but many were given the wrong medal or none at all. This is unacceptable. Blame has been placed on many volunteers. They are volunteers and can only be as good as they are trained to be. Paid staff should oversee something so important.

Long story short, there were not enough volunteers and/or staff to manage this race. There will be fewer volunteers next year based on what I saw. Who would come back for the abuse and disorganization? Competitor Group plans to increase registration to 60k+. They should figure out how to put on an acceptable event with 44K first. I will never run this event again until I read actual runner reviews for multiple years in a row showing they have learned their lesson and corrected the mistakes.

But... According to The Competitor Group, this was an 'economic success' That is all that matters to them, not the runners. This was made clear all evening.

 

K. J. from Hollywood, CA (12/6/2011)
"Horrific merging of half and full at midpoint." (about: 2011)

11-50 previous marathons | 3 Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathons
COURSE: 3  ORGANIZATION: 2  FANS: 3


Everything was going great for the first half. This was run through a mostly industrial section of Las Vegas, but that was OK because of the excitement of starting at sunset. I was on pace for a 3:50 finish. At the midpoint we were merged onto the Strip at night with all of the neon and glitz, which was exciting until we were met with a solid wall of slow-moving half-marathoners. My pace dropped from an 8:40 to right around a 10:00 minute pace. I was livid. There was supposed to be one lane of traffic for the full and the rest of the street for the half. But the half-marathoners were spread all the way across the course. There were tiny orange cones with little signs, but they were ignored with row upon row of walkers in the middle of the full marathon lane. The proctors on bikes were little help; they were in the full marathon lane adding to the congestion and they had no bull horns so their commands were mostly ignored as well. I feel I was robbed of the strong finish that I had trained six months to achieve. I can only hope that the race administration fixes all of this for next year.

 

S. A. from Tampa, Florida (12/6/2011)
"Great excuse to be in Vegas, But Crowded Course." (about: 2011)

3 previous marathons | 1 Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon
COURSE: 2  ORGANIZATION: 1  FANS: 2


First half of the race was well lit although through warehouses and suburbs. There were lots of twists and turns and looping back. Crowds were absent, only exception was small 5-6 folks near the band stage in the warehouse districts and the folks standing outside of their neighborhoods.

Second half of the race the course ventures back to the strip, with plenty of distractions and sights to see to make it enjoyable&.

Half marathoners were being released as the marathoners were completing the first half of the race which created an overcrowded course. I found myself fighting through slower paced runners, where folks were running shoulder to shoulder and in most cases running on the sidewalks. Since the course was crowded water stops were unprepared and understaffed, water was available but you had to go to the table and grab it.

There should be more effort to separate marathoners from half marathoners besides the ¾ mile lane separated by cones and the 20 seconds between coral releases.

Besides the Green, unripe bananas and overcrowded course which throws off your pace it was a fun race.

A few improvements:

Coral assignments should be verified off previous qualifying times.

Half marathoners should be released based off their mile times plus a minute (to account for a warm up to get to race pace).

There should be a dedicated area for walkers/slower runners.

2 additional water stops should be added for marathoners in the last 6 miles of the race.

Bananas should be ripe and available for marathoners at miles 18, 22 and 25.

 

K. H. from USA (12/6/2011)
"Not well supported" (about: 2011)

6-10 previous marathons | 1 Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon
COURSE: 4  ORGANIZATION: 2  FANS: 2


I ran the 1/2 marathon and felt bad for the full marathoners, who had to scream for their space. There were limited porta-pottys and near the end there were hardly any volunteers at the water stations. The expo items were picked over by the 2nd day and you could only purchase in two areas, which really sucked.

 

A. D. from NY (12/6/2011)
"Time Limit Was a Lie" (about: 2011)

50+ previous marathons | 1 Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon
COURSE: 3  ORGANIZATION: 1  FANS: 3


How can Rock 'n' Roll claim a 4.5 hour limit when 1404 people finished after 4.5 hours? They should either respect their own time limit and shut down the mat or not have one at all. Anyone who chose to skip this marathon because of the limit should feel ripped off now.

 

W. W. from Las Vegas, NV (12/6/2011)
"2011 was a disorganized mess" (about: 2011)

6-10 previous marathons | 4-5 Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathons
COURSE: 1  ORGANIZATION: 1  FANS: 3


I ran the 2011 marathon, and it was awful. The marathon started an hour and a half before the half marathon ran behind the strip for the first 13.1 then ran back to the strip. By the time I got back to the strip, on PR pace, I was having to dodge slower half marathoners because there was virtually no separation between the half marathon and the marathon. There were way too many runners, not enough volunteers, water, post race food, and apparently medals. I did get a medal, but according to the facebook page a lot of runners didn't. Sadly, I cannot recommend this race.

 

A. C. from Chicago IL (12/6/2011)
"Expected more from RnR" (about: 2011)

3 previous marathons | 2 Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathons
COURSE: 3  ORGANIZATION: 1  FANS: 4


I ran the half this year. I've run RnR events before, and even walked Vegas with my mom in 2009. This race had too many people, corrals were disorganized, and the layouts of the start, finish, and gear check were not designed to handle all the people.

 

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