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Sep 19, 2024

Paul Bunyan Marathon Runner Comments

Back to Paul Bunyan Marathon Information & Reviews

Course 3.5

Organization 2.3

Spectators 2.2

Number of comments: 20 [displaying comments 11 to 20]

More Comments: [ < 1 2 > ]

Poke Salad Annie Singer from Suffern, New York (7/20/2006) "Bravo, Phil... you're the man" (about: 2006) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Paul Bunyan Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 2 What an undertaking to restart the Paul Bunyan Marathon after so many years. For those of us trying to accomplish our 50 state marathon quest, a Maine marathon was highly desireable. The hospitality was wonderful. The pasta dinner at the truck stop: delicious, friendly, and warm. The speech at the start of the race had a real hometown feel. Bangor, Maine, you have a wonderful state. Early 6 a.m. start - unfortunately, temperatures reached in the 90's for us slowpokes... but the finish line stayed open as promised until "the last one." Shirts and medals are keepers: Paul Bunyan in shorts and running shoes. Also, cute trophies: a slab of granite with the logo. Stay in town by the race start. Don't forget that Stephen King lives here.
B. B. from New Orleans, Louisiana (7/19/2006) "nice course but still needs work" (about: 2006) 2 previous marathons \| 1 Paul Bunyan Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 2 The course itself was very scenic. After mile 15, the hills get steeper and longer. Traffic control could be used in the future from mile 20 to the finish. Water stops should have been closer together, considering the heat, humidity, and the hills. Portable restrooms need to be placed throughout the course and not just at the start. Also, shuttle service should be at the finish to bring runners back to the start.... Thank goodness for the thoughtful volunteers. The course itself was very challenging to me. This only being my second marathon and being from New Orleans, was probably the reason why I thought the course was very challenging... not many hills down here. But, all in all, I must thank Phil for bringing this marathon back to Bangor after so many years. I really did enjoy the run and the Bangor area. I'm sure next year with more runners and more sponsors, this run will get better.
K. R. from Maple Grove, Minnesota (7/18/2006) "Paul Bunyan Marathon off to a good start but...." (about: 2006) 50+ previous marathons COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 1 I decided to run the Paul Bunyan Marathon mainly because of the timing. Not too many July marathons to choose from. I was also a bit intrigued with the Paul Bunyan name of the race. Coming from Minnesota, I thought Paul Bunyan was just part of Minnesota folklore. Apparently, he made his way up into Maine, as well or originated there and came to MN. I need to research that a bit. This was basically a new race, having not been run since 1984. I wasn't too worried about the fact that the race was new and might have some kinks to work out. There were about 360 runners competing in the 2 events. About 100 ran the 15K and over 260 running the marathon. Packet pick-up was at the host hotel, but you also had options to pick it up at the pasta meal or even the morning of the race. The pasta meal was excellent. It did not have an all-you-can-eat format, but the plate of food I received was MORE than enough. Organization was ok... but left a few things to improve upon. I would have just a couple of suggestions to mention and for some runners these are biggies. Only 2 toilets in the starting area for over 350 runners?? It was advertised that there would be van transportation from the finish back to the start after the race. The race director told runners at the finish that there was not a van, but maybe you could catch a ride with other runners heading back to the start? At the pasta meal, the director had told me that volunteers would be driving runners back to the start? Hmmm... I guess the volunteers let him down. They did announce (after the awards) that if there were any drivers that were headed back to the start and had room, they should come up to the table and offer rides to those who need one, so I didn't have to walk 2.5 miles back to the start - thanks goodness. But many runners that wanted to get back sooner walked... and others may not have found folks heading back and probably had to walk. I heard the race director telling people directions to the start... saying it was about a 1-mile walk, but in reality it was about 2.5 miles as started on the race website. A small bus shuttle needs to be reserved in the future or make sure runners are aware of the situation. Ok... so how was the course? I would consider the course to be somewhat challenging. There were a lot of hills. But... nice downhill sections then as well. The actual conditions of the roads were not the best. The surface was quite broken up in spots. Not a problem for the runners probably, but a bit of a hazard for the wheelers (I think there were only 4 of them). The finish on the track was nice. The 15K ended up being only 8.9 miles. Most of the runners were not aware of this before the start of the race. Why the race director didn't announce that at the starting line I don't know because he was aware of that before the race. Course support was excellent. Water and sports drink every 2 miles and volunteers were awesome!! I didn't notice any bathrooms on the course, but I may just have missed them. Finish area had an ample supply of bananas, oranges, water, bagels, some donuts. A sports drink at the finish would have been good! Nice finisher medals for the marathoners. But the 15K runners did not receive a medal as advertised?????? The race shirts made no mention of the 15K. Their shirt was the same as the marathon. Probably an oversight in the design, because the awards (a nice slab of granite) had a Paul Bunyan sticker that also mentions the 15K. I'm guessing that the shirts were made before they noticed the 15K was not included in the design. Probably the same thing with the medals? I'm sure the 15K runners would not want a medal that only says, "marathon." They had tons of extra medals after the race, so I'm guessing that they intended to give the same medals to the 15K runners. The award ceremony was very quick once they got to it. Lots of mix-ups with the results delayed the awards longer than expected. They had hoped to do them at 10:30 and it was closer to 11:15 or so before they started. So... my review might seem a bit critical... but I think the race went off quite smoothly and for the most part was a good first year. I think the race will work out the kinks mentioned above and will continue to improve each year.
J. S. from Ohio (7/18/2006) "Hot, hilly and lonesome." (about: 2006) 6-10 previous marathons COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 1 Bangor is a cool town. I'd like to bring the family back to Maine. As far as the race goes I have two words: "elevation chart." The website and the race coordinator made it seem like the course had "rolling hills and flat stretches." The hills nearly pushed me to my first DNF. Fortunately I was able to gut it out and get to the finish. There were only 400 runners and I bet I saw fewer than 100 spectators. It was a good course but I wish I would have been prepared for the hills.
C. S. from East Brunswick, NJ (7/18/2006) "Very disappointed" (about: 2006) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Paul Bunyan Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 2 While the course was very beautiful, the logistics and organization of the marathon left much to be desired. The web page wasn't current and trying to find where the registration was being held was a nightmare - the hours of registration weren't honored The pasta party was also not where it was advertised; there was no post-race massage as advertised; water stops were set up late in some areas for fast runners and abandoned/ran out towards the end for the mid-packers; mile markers were off and confusing.... I could keep on ranting. I will not return.
Victor Butcher from Memphis, TN. (7/18/2006) "Worst organized marathon ever!" (about: 2006) 11-50 previous marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 1 T-shirts had a great design. Too bad they gave mine away to someone who registered after me. No Gatorade-type liquids for the first 10 miles. The director's wife told me that water and Gatorade would be every 2 miles. The water was served at air temperature before, during, and after the race. The gels promised at mile 10 were gone for everyone but the frontrunners. No medical personnel anywhere that I could tell. The Mile 25 marker was missing. Very few volunteers. My wife volunteered online 3 different times, and they never got back with her. The awards ceremony was going on when I arrived at the finish in around 5 hours. By then, the fruit was gone. I kept hearing about cold beer, but all they had was air temperatured water (mid 80's). Even though I gave the spectators 1 star, the very few who were along the course were quite friendly and cheerful. Some even had cool water for the runners, which was far better than what the organizers were handing out. Also, I heard that one of the water stops lacked cups, but I carry my own bottle, so that part only affected the other 200 runners. I never saw any town support. If the mayor and city council were aware of the race, they did a pathetic job of promoting it. Every restaurant I went to in Bangor, I met other runners. Not one waiter or waitress had any idea a marathon was going on in this town of 35,000. If I knew it was going to be this bad, I would have signed up for Bar Harbor, Maine in October, even though their course will be harder. Even though the Bangor course was hillier than I expected, I had no problems with it, except that there was absolutely no control over traffic. Some runners insisted on running in the middle of the car lane, but that was their fault and not the drivers who were trying to get around them on the many blind hills. The promised shuttle back to the start line, which was 1.5 miles away from the finish, was not provided. We drove some runners back to their cars in our rental, but saw plenty walking back to their cars. I heard them asking for volunteer drivers on the loud speaker. If my wife had not come to support me, I would have been limping back a mile and a half (assuming I didn't get lost in a strange town) like so many other out-of-town runners.
Danny Swindle from Newport, MI (7/17/2006) "Hilly but do-able" (about: 2006) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Paul Bunyan Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 2 Hillier than expected, but what the heck? Humid but luckily the cloud cover kept it cooler than it could have been. Bangor is close to the coast of Maine, which is a beautiful side trip. Pros: Started on time. The few volunteers were friendly. The roads were not closed but the drivers were considerate. Cons: Best Western (host hotel?) was closer to 13 miles from the start line instead of the 4 miles listed. The finish line should be closer to the start line, since no one asked seemed to know about the transportation van(s) back to the start line. Luckily two Bangor marathoners were kind enough to pick up two out-of-town hitchhikers on our way back to the start line. Expo and registration were to go until 8:00 on Saturday at the Black Bear Best Western Inn, but they were packing it up at 3:00.
Paul Stackpole from Michigan (7/17/2006) "Absence of the National Anthem?" (about: 2006) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Paul Bunyan Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 One of the significant things that I found absent from the Paul Bunyan Marathon was the absence of the Star Spangled Banner during the pre-race events. I have completed numerous marathons, ultras and road races and I cannot recall an event in recent years when the national anthem was not played or sung either by a band, singer(s) or even a pre-recorded tape. This morning while I was at the Bangor International Airport awaiting my return flight to Michigan, I mingled with other PBM competitors who felt the same way. Thousands of brave American warriors are serving to protect our right to participate in events like the PBM. The absence of the Star Spangled Banner during the pre-race events is an insult to them and all brave Americans who have made the supreme sacrifice to defend our way of life.
C. D. from Salem, NH (7/17/2006) "A good start, needs improvement." (about: 2006) First Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 3 I ran in the 15K event, not the marathon. I found out later that the 15K course was a bit short (8.9 miles rather than the full 9.3). There were no bathroom facilities at the start or set up along the route, which probably made for a mess. There were no water stations between miles 4 and 8 along the 15K route - could have used at least one more. Spectator support was only fair along the course, but given a 6 a.m. start, that was to be expected. The route was fairly well marked but it would have helped to have more people stationed at the turns to help direct runners who were unfamiliar with the course. There was also no official shuttle service to bring finishers back to the start area which was at least 2 miles from the finish line. Despite the shortcomings I enjoyed the race and look to return next year to do the full marathon.
P. S. from Michigan (7/17/2006) "Hilly and Hot" (about: 2006) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Paul Bunyan Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 Overall the Paul Bunyan Marathon (PBM) was an enjoyable event. I chose this marathon as I prefer the smaller event where I can run my race alone or with one or two running buddies and enjoy the scenery. The PBM certainly provided that but it is evident that a few logistical changes must be made if runners, particularly those from out of state, are going to be attracted to this event. One of the primary problems that my wife and encountered was at the finish line. The start line was approximately two hilly miles from the finish line in downtown Bangor. The PBM website stated that there would be shuttle service provided at the finish area to transport runners back to their vehicles. There was none. Thankfully, we used this marathon as a training run and still had some reserve left to enable us to walk back to our car. Traffic management was excellent at most intersections. However, along many stretches of two-lane roads, this was non-existent. During several hilly climbs on two-lane country roads, drivers rode dangerously close behind runners rather than risk a collison with on coming traffic. With regard to hills, I have no problem running a hilly event. However, given the number of climbs and descents in the course, some mention should have been made on the PBM web page so that runners could plan their race. The only fluids available on the course were water and Ultima, who was also a sponsor. Most runners that I train and race with don't drink something new on race day. While I have no doubt Ultima is a fine product, good old Gatorade would have been a nice alternative. Except for the tunnel beneath the stadium where the PBM finished, there was no shade at the finish area. When we crossed the finish line it was a hazy 84 degrees. Some sort of tents to offer shade and perhaps a massage given the number of hills of the course would improve the post-race experience. Despite my criticisms, given that the PBM hasn't been run since 1984, the RD and volunteer staff did a good job in planning and conducting this event. I hope that he views my comments and makes some of the changes that I have suggested. I would recommend this race if you want a tough, no-frills marathon.

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