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Sep 20, 2024

Georgia Marathon Runner Comments

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Course 4.1

Organization 3.1

Spectators 4.0

Number of comments: 459 [displaying comments 281 to 291]

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R. M. from U.S. (3/31/2007) "No water = no consideration for runners" (about: 2007) 50+ previous marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 2 Beautiful course but shamefully planned - water stops vacant and with no water, two stops with water but no cups, etc.
K. S. from Dayton, Ohio (3/31/2007) "Lovely course, TERRIBLE organization" (about: 2007) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Georgia Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 3 As many people have already said, I was surprised that ING and Georgia didn't have a more organized race. I only did the half. (Normally I do the full, but I'm glad I didn't with what happened.) 1. Starting line should have had corrals based upon finishing time. 2. Longer water stops could have avoided the bottlenecks. (PowerAde and oranges would have been nice on such a warm day.) 3. For the half marathon, after the split there were no mile markers or clocks, until we began seeing the full marathon markers. 4. Port-o-pots along the race were scarce. They were nicely spaced, but never enough. Long lines would form. Normally people can run into the bushes, but being in the city makes that difficult. 5. Towards the end, the half marathoners were all over the path. I saw full marathoners running in the grass to avoid slowing down. Half marathoners should be kept to one side. 6. The finish was equally confusing. I wasn't sure which side was for the half or full. Signs could have made it clearer where things were for chip removal, food, aid stations, and family reunion areas. 7. The BIGGEST problem was that I saw anyone walking through the food line. I saw a HOMELESS man picking up bagels and snacks. The finish area should be secure. No one should be allowed to enter except runners (and runners shouldn't be allowed to re-enter after exiting, just like every other marathon).
C. T. from Leesburg, GA (3/31/2007) "A good race that will get better" (about: 2007) 3 previous marathons \| 1 Georgia Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 4 This race had its problems, but all in all it was a quality event. Those who are complaining about the course being too hilly need to stop. The course profile was on the website since the beginning. Luckily, I did not have a problem have PowerAde being in short supply. However, one runner who stated he finished in the top 350 could not find any PowerAde on the course and this is inexcusable. I only have 2 things to complain about: 1. The way the half-marathon course joined with the marathon. At about 21 miles, it became an obstacle course to try and avoid the half-marathoners. I do not blame the participants. Most of these people were walking the half-marathon and my not have an understanding of running etiquette. It is the race director's job to make sure the marathoners have a clear path to run. 2. The lack of abundant water at the finish. I was able to grab two 12-oz. bottles of water (which I downed in about 10 seconds); then I had to wander around looking for water. I finally found someone that pointed me to some small cups of water. I had the guy filling the cups fill up about 5 times. I will run this race again and I am confident that these problems will be solved.
M. R. from Orlando, Florida (3/31/2007) "Apologize to the runners - it will help" (about: 2007) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Georgia Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 4 You need to apologize to the runners of the ING Atlanta Marathon for the lack of PowerAde on the course. I emailed the race organizer last Monday and have not heard from them. I am sure everyone is devastated with the comments after all of their hard work. In marketing, the best advertising is word of mouth, and with the internet and websites, it can either help you or hurt you. If you read MarathonGuide.com you will see what the word of mouth is on your marathon. My advice to ING and all involved: 1. Read the comments on MarathonGuide.com. 2. Be honest with yourselves. 3. Fess up and acknowledge the problems/mistakes. 4. Explain what happened on your website or email all of the runners. Runners are a very intelligent group - most are college-educated and hard-working, according to all of the studies. 5. Get a new sponsor for sports drink if neccessary. I do not know what happened to Coca-Cola. 6. Tell the runners what you will correct things for next year. 7. But most of all, apologize. Americans are VERY forgiving. Silence on your part does not do the ING Atlanta Marathon any good, as it just lets the wound fester and never heal. When people train for up to six months for race day for a marathon of 3 - 6 hours, travel from out of state, pay for hotels, food, airfare, gas, race entry fees, etc. Treat them with respect and acknowledge their complaints. Believe me, I know that everyone has an issue in life, but your issues break down into three catagories. Water stations: PowerAde on the course. Better tables for the water stations, allowing 15,000 runners to not trip over each other. More water stations over the first 8 miles of the marathon. Start line: Corrals at the start line separating marathoners and half marathoners. Placing people in corrals based on time - can be done easily with signs at the start. (Gate River Run in Jacksonville did this and it worked out great.) Check in at Expo: Better check-in for the half marathoners at the expo - it seemed like they had to wait for a long time. Runners do not like standing around for a long time These can all be resolved if the organizers just spend a little time with each item. The course is beautiful and hilly, but showed Atlanta at its best. The local residents were GREAT in supporting and encouraging the runners. Ps. My front half of the marathon was 2:10 and my back half was 3:01. I attribute many of my problems to the lack of PowerAde, as I prepare myself on distance runs using sports drinks to finish training runs greater than 10 miles. Whether this is psychological, or physical, or both, I do not know; but I do know how I feel with and without sports drinks - I did not feel good at mile 15, and I completely broke down at mile 18 at the ING Atlanta Marathon.
D. C. from Georgia (3/31/2007) "Beautiful course; Atlantans rescued the runners" (about: 2007) 2 previous marathons \| 1 Georgia Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 5 On Sunday, March 27, 2007, I ran the ING Georgia Marathon. In most ways, it met my expectations: 26.2 miles in length, urban/suburban setting, thousands of participants. I expected many aspects that have been perceived by some as negatives as well; however, these known negatives are hard to criticize. I knew (or should have known) the following: 1. This was an "event" marathon, not a "race" marathon. Many participants saw this as a once-in-a-lifetime event, a charity fundraiser, or some other worthy but not primarily athletic goal. That's fine - I expected that, and this type of race is part of the marathon landscape. 2. Walkers were everywhere. Again, this was to be expected in an "event" marathon. And yes, I even expected them to be up front, in the center, lined up in rows, etc. It's a pet peeve of mine, but that's my problem - this is a "known." Thank you, however, to the walkers who moved to the side, and walked no more than two abreast. 3. The hills. For people who know Atlanta, you know that Atlanta is hilly - it's at 1,000 feet elevation, not on the coastal plain. You can even see the real mountains to the north as you fly in to that gigantic (but efficient) airport. For those who do not know Atlanta, the course profile showed it like it is. 4. The weather. The Southeast U.S. can get pretty warm in the spring. Of course, we had record warmth, but that too was predicted almost a week in advance. 5. MARTA (subway) problems. This would not have been known to everyone, but certainly should have been to many who had been to Atlanta before. Atlanta desperately needs a reliable, efficient, pleasant mass transit system. MARTA is not it. The real problems were with those things that differed from reasonable expectations. 1. Packet pickup: Runners should not expect to wait an hour or more to pick up their packets, as reportedly happened early on Friday. Unfortunately, lines that extended out the doors were the first impressions many people had of the ING Georgia. 2. Hydration/replenishment: Attentive runners studying the map would have noted the locations of PowerAde and rightly expected to find some when they got to those stations. My personal experience was finding NONE at any station along the entire marathon course, at least when I came to each one. Frankly, it would have been OK if I were told there would be none; I can come prepared. I planned for PowerAde, though, and really did suffer from the lack of calories and electrolytes late in the race. Missing water stations between approximately miles 3 and 8 were inexplicable. 3. Starting line organization: With 15,000 participants, adequate provision for corralling by pace and event becomes important. It can make a race much more comfortable for everyone, and alleviates much of the runner vs. walker friction. Corralling mostly failed. More generally, the ING Georgia Marathon was a good, challenging, and fun race. Some observations: 1. The marathon course is beautiful. I don't think many of us realized just how pretty Atlanta is: the neighborhoods of stately homes, the funky streets with mixes of shops and houses, the rolling terrain, and the spectacular blooms of dogwoods, azaleas, flowers. Wow. 2. The fans. Personally, I don't care at all if people are cheering - running is a personal and highly individual sport for me. The people in those crowds, however, came through when and how it counted, providing their own Gatorade, fruit slices, hoses, and just about anything else to help each of us along the course. Wonderful, hospitable people. Atlanta should be proud. 3. The volunteers. Although not organized overall as well as they could have been, the individual volunteers were dedicated and truly caring. They saved what otherwise would have been a difficult inaugural event. My final word: The ING Georgia Marathon has the potential to be a very good "event" (versus "race") marathon, and given the people supporting it, I believe it will fulfill its potential. Personally, I will skip next year so they can finish working through their growing pains, but hope to be back for the third running.
C. C. from Atlanta (3/30/2007) "PowerAde Available Once On 26.2 Mi. Course" (about: 2007) 2 previous marathons \| 1 Georgia Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 3 This will be a great race one day. Unfortunately, it was far from a great race this year. PROS: The very scenic course enables runners to see skyscrapers and beautiful neighborhoods. For a first-time event, the fan support was impressive. The number of hills will keep you on the top of your training game. As always, I met some very nice people during the race. CONS: The start was chaotic at best. It was nearly impossible to find a pace team or get into a reasonable starting position. A start near Centennial Olympic Park may offer nicer scenery and more room. I encountered one water station with PowerAde during the 26.2-mile event (in mi. 7). This oversight cannot be minimized. I drank the recommended amount of sports drink one to two hours before the race to avoid a bathroom break during the race (big mistake). A key part to that plan was that I would drink PowerAde, which was promised on the pre-race website, during the race. Not good at all. Based on the feedback, this race will have more than enough to drink in the future - maybe PowerAde every 1/2 mile....
A. S. from Atlanta (3/30/2007) "To be expected from an Inagural event" (about: 2007) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Georgia Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 5 First, lay-off ING!! They are financial sponsors in name only!! I guess you could rail on them for not coughing up enough money for the much missed powerade. 80% of the runners were from GA, so we know it can heat up any day of the year, and we know GA has hills. I was surprised at the # of comments from Atlantan's on the hills...we had an advantage, we could train on the course. Lack of mile markers...the more of these you run, the less it surprises you. It is the easiest thing to do, put a darn sign out, but so many can't get it right. The infamous lack of powerade. I guess our lesson here is pack some jelly beans or the like, so we can down them with water and not let this trip us up again. I always tuck money in my shoe, for water, food or a cab. You will be well served to go into these things knowing you may be on your own for a stretch. If marathon running were easy, everyone would do it!! Think like a boy scout and come prepared! As they go, I have run better, run worse, but I will be back, travel expenses = marta card!
D. K. from North Metro Atlanta, GA (3/30/2007) "There is no excuse for a PowerAde shortage!" (about: 2007) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Georgia Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 5 I know it has been said over and over but I really feel as though we are all owed an explanation and an apology. You can't plan a race for 15,000 people and just forget to get PowerAde for it. We all expect glitches in an inaugural event but we also all expect more from a seasoned sponsor like ING and its organizers. The course was wonderful, but if there was a way to throw in just a little bit more flat terrain, it would make it more enjoyable. Definitely a challenge for those seeking it, though. Very pretty course. Other complaints were the unorganized start (no corrals), inadequately marked start/finish area (couldn't find the gear check, had a hard time finding the chip removal folks), no security was in place to keep spectators out of the finish chute area, and the expo, which was OK except that I never got an "official" gear check bag. Some mile marker signs were missed as the water table was set up right AT the mile marker sign.... Please, space them out by 10 or so yards at least so that we can find them. And please put a water station in place if you are going to put up a sign that says, "Water station ahead." I would like to run this race again since I am local, but I'm hesitant to do so until I can be assured that the main problems are addressed. I feel we are deserving after all the hard work we all put into our training.
m. m. from Loganville, GA (3/30/2007) "hilly and challenging" (about: 2007) First Marathon COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 5 This is my first marathon and because of all the comments (lack of organization, minimal water stations, no PowerAde, etc.) I have read, I will run again. I didn't know what was normal, but if you have to run 26.2 miles with no PowerAde on a very challenging course like this one, then I was prepared to call it quits. This was like nothing I have experienced in my life. I can't wait to go to Chicago to compare the two events. Please get this event together for next year. Residing in Atlanta, we need to show the world that we can plan a 5-star marathon.
M. B. from Suwanee, GA (3/30/2007) "Very Disappointed Half-Marathon Participant" (about: 2007) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Georgia Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 4 I had been looking forward to this race for almost a year. With the ING name associated with the event, I expected great things. I was VERY let-down. With only 15,000 participants (which is not huge by marathon standards), I would have expected it to be much more organized and run much more smoothly. The positives: * The course was beautiful, with good variations in elevation (it was challenging but I prefer some hills to an all flat course). * Crowd support was great. * Nice technical shirt. And now for the negatives: * Not enough porta-potties at the start area and it was poorly laid out - more units in several different locations a bit farther from the actual start line would help thin out the crowds and pull the crowd away from the start line * I NEVER saw a single drop of PowerAde at any of the water stops on the course - with the heat that was a recipe for disaster and with Georgia's unpredictable weather, there was no excuse not to be prepared for a warm spring day. (Good thing I always carry my own!) * The start area was too congested and the crowd didn't thin out for about 4 miles - corrals or a wave start or a different start time for the full and half marathons would have helped. * The water stops were too crowded and should have been on both sides of the road rather than just on one side. * Traffic was allowed to cross at some streets during the race (very frustrating for runners!). * The early part of the course included a street with some round traffic bumps near the curb area that were a real safety hazard for runners in a congested field - I even saw several people trip and hit the pavement and end up with bloody knees, etc. * The finish line area was too crowded and total chaos - after you got your one little bottle of water there was no more water/drink to be found; you had to look too hard to find out where to turn in your timing chip (when you are tired the last thing you want to have to do is think!); needed signs directing participants to different areas (i.e. food/water, chip return, photos, awards, etc.). * I didn't see any mile markers for the half course after the split from the full course. (If they were there, they definitely were not very visible; not knowing where you are mile-wise really messes with your head!) * Although it was thrilling to see the elite full marathoners come through, bringing the full marathoners back onto the half course for the last several miles had to be very frustrating for the elite runners as they had to battle their way through the crowd of the halfers. I hate to be so negative because I'm thrilled that Georgia finally has a big-name race and I know it was an inaugural event and it will have growing pains... but I had higher expectations and was very disappointed in the experience. It will be several years before I do this race again. I hope they will have the kinks worked out by then.

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