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Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon Runner Comments
Back to Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon Information & Reviews
Course 3.3 
Organization 2.7 
Spectators 2.8
Number of comments: 736 [displaying comments 491 to 501]
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Bart Smith from Las Vegas, NV
(12/20/2006)
"2006 Las Vegas Marathon: Debacle and Deception" (about: 2006)
11-50 previous marathons
| 2 Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathons
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 1 So you, the reader, will understand where we are coming from, the 2006 Las Vegas Marathon would have been the fifteenth marathon for both my wife and I. My past five marathons I have been the age-division winner in my category. My wife is a stable 3-hour runner and we have qualified and participated at the Boston Marathon on several occasions. In other words, we would consider ourselves well versed into what it takes to prepare for and complete a 26.2 mile marathon. We were both well prepared and ready for the Las Vegas Marathon after logging several 70 - 80 mile-weeks topped by a 105 mile-week all followed by the traditional taper. We had decided we would run this marathon together; and thank goodness we did, in view of the debacle this event eventually degenerated into for us. Just prior to leaving our hotel room, the current weather conditions were reported as 50 degrees with 10 - 15 mph wind. We are not sure what part of Las Vegas the weatherman was located but they most certainly were not in front of Mandalay Bay or anywhere else near the LVM course. The wind was more like 30 mph and gusting. In spite of this we were doing fine until about the 12 mile-mark when abdominal cramps started affecting my wife. She held on for 4 more miles but then that was it. Between the wind, the cramps and snow spitting out of the northwest, it was time to call it a day. I believe any experienced long-distance runner knows that no matter how well prepared you are, you never know when you will have bad day, and this was ours. However, when we stepped off the course at 16 miles, little did we know that only now was our real ordeal about to begin. For starters, the staff at the aid station had no capability of contact with anyone; no phone, no walkie-talkie. Plus no blankets, no shelter, in other words, with the exception of water, Gatorade and a bunch of cups, they were totally incapable of rendering any assistance or aid to us or the other runner that had also stopped at mile 16. Fortunately two other people were able to help us with communications: a Metro police officer and a fellow on a bike who was monitoring the course for runners needing assistance. We were told by both that the shuttle was just a couple of miles behind us and would there to pick us up in a few minutes. So we waited and waited. In the meantime we are getting colder and colder. To make a long story short, after an hour of waiting, freezing and all three of us entering various stages of hypothermia (confused, slurred speech), we are told there IS NO SHUTTLE. For over an hour race headquarters had deceptively informed us otherwise. If there truly at any time had been a shuttle, then what happened to the one that was reported to be at the corner of Torrey Pines and Smoke Ranch over an hour ago? Fortunately a good Samaritan in the form of a lady driving by the course, volunteered to drive us home. The other runner was also taken hand on by a private citizen for transportation back to the finish area. Needless to say we are totally livid at the irresponsible behavior of Devine Racing and their New Las Vegas Marathon, but happy to have survived after placing ourselves at the mercy of such gross ineptitude. Never again will we step to the line of any event sponsored by Devine Racing, nor would we encourage any friend, family or loved ones to participate in their events. Finally, and most importantly, a big "thank you" from both us to the Metro officers and the course monitor who did everything they could to help, along with summoning aid from passing motorists. And most of all to Rachel, the kind-hearted lady who drove us home. We don't know what we would have done without you. Bart and Eve Smith, Las Vegas, NV | |
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T. S. from Cincinnati, OH
(12/20/2006)
"Not what I expected" (about: 2006)
2 previous marathons
| 1 Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 3 Since when is a 100% cotton shirt considered "technical"? I left the race very hungry because I couldn't find any food. Mile markers were off. What exactly did my $95 go to anyway? I couldn't justify doing this again for that much money. Disappointing. | |
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R. F. from Denver, CO
(12/19/2006)
"I will not run another Devine Racing event" (about: 2006)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 3 I'll just grade it like I saw it: How do you run out of food for people who finish in 3:30? That was about the first 500 finishers (of the full), and already, no food. Reminded me of LA 2 years ago. F If you're going to bother having 26 mile markers, why not put them 5280 feet apart? F Why did we start late? F Course? C - the strip is cool, the rest is bland, like LA (another Devine event). Volunteers/aid stations? A - plenty of H2O, albeit on one side of the street or the other, and with friendly, uninformed volunteers. Entertainment? Who cares? Not much; couldn't see the "Blue Man Group," but what does that matter? Organization? F. I just didn't see any help at the start/finish, or much help at the expo; there was no info in the race packets; the website need improvement; and there were no chip zip ties. Just boo. Never again. Sorry, Salt Lake, guess I won't ever run you. | |
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J. M. from Denver, CO
(12/19/2006)
"The worst organization of any marathon in US" (about: 2006)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon
COURSE: 1 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 1 Of the 24 marathons I have run across the United States and Mexico, this won the prize for worst organization. There was no signage directing participants to the expo, and once at the expo, my bib number was misassigned and there were long lines to receive t-shirts. NYC and Chicago have twice as many runners and shorter waiting times. Getting to the race was a disaster as they blocked off streets 13 miles from the start 2 hours before the race at 4 a.m. The bag check was not well marked and no bags for bag check were given out at the expo. Corrals at the start were chaotic and volunteers were inept at separating runners from walkers and there was no semblance of organizing runners according to time. Mile markers were misplaced most of the time and buried amongst water tables, which were too close too each other. Most embarrassing for the race organizers: there was NO FOOD at the finish. This is not only irresponsible but dangerous. Finally, there was no family reunion area. I stood in the cold for an hour before my family could find me. I highly recommend NOT running this race. | |
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c. p. from AZ
(12/19/2006)
"Not good enough" (about: 2006)
2 previous marathons
| 1 Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon
COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 1 This was my 2nd marathon but I've competed in 30+ triathlons including several Ironman races. I usually know what to expect from a race based on race directors, past races, entry fees, town or city, etc., etc. The "New Las Vegas Marathon" was a big disappointment. The one thing you count on in a race is distances marked correctly. If you can't do that, get out of the biz. The mile markers were so off it messed up pacing, which in turned messed up the race. I would not doubt that the overall distance was off also. The crowds and the water stations don't matter at all if the mile markers are off. There was no family meeting area, as we were told. I ran into a lot of lost people looking for the "family meeting area." There were other things wrong with the race but none more important then mile markers. So the race director needs to stop planning next year's event and counting the money from this year, apologize for the mile markers and the unfulfilled promises, and correct the problems. | |
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Jesus Gonzalez from Garden Grove, CA
(12/19/2006)
"Not as good as last year" (about: 2006)
6-10 previous marathons
| 2 Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathons
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 5 Pros: The course is very flat and fast. The first 6-8 miles of the race were awesome. Fan support/volunteers were great as well. The course had plenty of water/Gatorade as well as bathrooms. This is the perfect race to try to PR and the after-party was off the hook as well (at Tao). Cons: Okay, I normally don't whine, but what was up with the walkers in front of the sub-3:20 sign?? I heard that these were the Las Vegas Roadrunners but that was ridiculous. I moved all the way up to the front to avoid weaving through people. That was the last place I expected walkers. Two other problems I had was, first, that there was no food at the finish line and, second, the wind. I know that the organizers have no control over the wind but is there an alternate path we can take? For two years in a row that long stretch on Carey and Smoke Ranch Road has been brutal. The mile makers were off but it didn't affect me much since I was wearing my Garmin. They promised to have splits at 5K, 10K, 20K, half, 25K, 30K and 40K; but the only splits they posted were the half and 30K. What happened to the other splits?? Finally, there needs to be something done about the marathon/half marathon bottleneck at the end. Maybe starting the half marathon earlier?? Overall, I love this race but I agree that improvements need to be made. I will run this marathon next year because I heard that the organizers are taking our complaints seriously and they will do something about their mistakes. | |
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R. S. from El Mirage, Arizona
(12/19/2006)
"I nearly ran a mile PR at Mile 9" (about: 2006)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 3 That's right... 4:51. As someone who totally relies on my per-mile pace in a race, I was thrown off very early in this race. I really had no idea how fast (or slow) I was going. The true mile markers were actually spray-painted on the side of the road, but I didn't figure that out until Mile 13. The expo was excellent, although the room could have been larger. It was difficult to move around and we left before we saw everything because of that. Fortunately I brought a course map, because there were none to be found at the expo. Running down the strip was excellent, as was running through Fremont St. The water stations were well stocked, but the race directors have to take care of the mile markers, not the water station volunteers, since the mile markers were at every water station. The lack of food at the end was extremely disappointing. I paid $100 for this event and all I got was water and bananas. That's what I ate during the race. One cookie would have been nice. Overall, a disappointing experience for a city that prides itself on taking care of its customers. p.s. To top it off, I had no hot water in my hotel room for a shower after the race. | |
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L. S. from Washington, DC
(12/19/2006)
"How many miles was this marathon??" (about: 2006)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon
COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 2 This was my 13th marathon, and 3rd this year... so I was not prepared for the mile-marker confusion during the race. Marathoning is a challenge both physically and mentally, and there is no excuse for mile markers being incorrect, especially past the halfway point (when you need confidence). The volunteers and water stops were great. Crowd support was negligible. Surprised that more entertainment was not on the course, but those that were out there were inspiring. Thanks. | |
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T. H. from Portland, Oregon
(12/18/2006)
"Not Recommended!!!" (about: 2006)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon
COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 2 I urge you to consider another marathon. The New Las Vegas Marathon was the most poorly organized marathon/road race I have completed. For example, * Organizers would not return my e-mails before the race date. * Mile markers not accurate and/or nonexistent. * No food at the finish. * Dangerous start with members of the L.V. running club (i.e. slow runners) at the front (not their fault, but poor idea). * Boring course. * Wind continues to be an issue for this race. Consider if you want to risk a strong headwind when registering for this event. | |
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K. K. from Cleveland, Ohio
(12/18/2006)
"Take Advice From Chicago" (about: 2006)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 3 Once was enough! I have completed 12 marathons in a number of states throughout the US. Some large and some small, although they all had one thing in common (food at the conclusion of the race). Unfortunately, I can't say the Vegas marathon had food of any type for the competitors. Take advice from Chicago, Cincinnati, Marine Corps, NYC, Boston, Toledo, etc. to figure out how to implement food and proper mile markers. |
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