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☰
Missoula Marathon Runner Comments
Back to Missoula Marathon Information & Reviews
Course 4.5 
Organization 4.7 
Spectators 4.2
Number of comments: 167 [displaying comments 151 to 161]
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R. R. from Missoula, MT
(7/18/2007)
"Great day, great fans" (about: 2007)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Missoula Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 My first marathon, so nothing to compare it to, but incredible support and an amazing experience. I plan on doing this race for the rest of my life. A lot of pavement, which I wasn't used to and a lot of turns. I expect they will improve the course for next year. | |
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J. F. from Florida
(7/18/2007)
"Great Inaugural Race. Well Done." (about: 2007)
50+ previous marathons
| 1 Missoula Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 The race director(s) should take great pride in putting on a great inaugural event. The expo. was nothing special, but I don't care about expos. The buses to the start were on time and the race was on time. The starter even came to the port-a-potties to warn everyone that this race will start on time. The course is a bit tough, but not too tough. Miles 13-14 are uphill and there are just enough rolling hills to keep it interesting. The aid station volunteers were enthusiastic and friendly. Many thanks to the local residents on the course who set-up make-shift aid stations and cooling showers to keep runners hydrating and motivated. It was about 90 degrees by mile 20 (for me) and there had to be at least 25 of these make-shift aid stations on the course. The pasta at the finish was a nice touch (tasty) and I really liked my bandana soaked in ice water to cool off at the finish. The only negative comment is that they had clear "E" on the course and no one could tell the difference between the "E" and water. It's not a pleasant experience to dump a couple of cups of "E" on your head in 90+ degree temperatures. Once I figured out what was going on, I had to smell the fluids before I could take a chance on what it was. | |
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Kami K. from Corpus Christi, TX
(7/18/2007)
"Nice Marathon in a Hot Day!" (about: 2007)
50+ previous marathons
| 1 Missoula Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 Inaugural Missoula Marathon Missoula, MT Sunday, July 15, 2007 6:30 a.m. At 4:50 a.m., buses began transporting the runners to Frenchtown, north of Missoula. Temperature ranged from mid 60s to high 90s. The route was point-to-point from Frenchtown to downtown Missoula. Most of it was through scenic country roads. At mile 20, we entered the city. From mile 13 to mile 15 was hilly; the rest was flat. The course was well marked and monitored. Miles markers were easily visible. Fantastic race volunteers. There were ample water/sports drink stations, and sports gels were provided at a few of them. Crowd support was sporadic, and some neighborhoods provided highly appreciated water showers. There were plenty of recovery food items and drinks at the finish (cold watermelon after finishing the run in a HOT day tasted really well!). Finishers received dry-tech short-sleeved shirts and finisher's medallions. I stayed in the Holiday Inn Downtown at the Park, on the banks of the Clark Fork River, which was within short walking distance from packet pick-up/expo, buses to the starting line, and the finish line. University of Montana campus wasn't too far either. It also provided airport shuttle. Although glitches are expected at inaugural races, I did not notice any and hope that it will gain popularity among marathoners. I am a 50-stater and this was #50. | |
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C. S. from Belle Fourche, SD
(7/18/2007)
"Good first effort" (about: 2007)
4-5 previous marathons
| 1 Missoula Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 I was kind of skeptical about running an inaugural event, but I love Missoula so I didn't want to miss the opportunity to run a marathon there. Overall, this race was very well done for a first effort. The expo was pretty small and packet pickup took a little longer than it really should have, but that's nothing a few well placed signs can't fix. The race packet wasn't anything spectacular, but maybe that'll improve as more sponsors jump on the bandwagon. The course was pretty good overall, although I thought the first 9 miles on Mullan Rd. were fairly uninspiring... seems like they could find someplace better around Missoula to show off to out-of-towners. Once the course got into Missoula, there were a lot of turns, but the course was very well marked, including a couple of spots where somebody had originally marked the turn wrong and it was very clearly marked in the correct direction. There were also volunteers at all the turns and excellent traffic control at the appropriate intersections. The mile markers were well marked with sculptures from local artists and balloons (why don't more race directors use balloons??). Aid stations were plentiful and well stocked with water and Heed (which tastes horrible by the way). The course was advertised as having "just one hill" but be forewarned, that hill is a good two miles long and can turn your race from good to not so good really quickly (believe me). The finish line on the Orange St. Bridge was great... tons of spectators and a good finisher's area well stocked with food, water and PowerAde. The finisher's medals weren't anything spectacular, but were original (in the shape of a sheriff's star). The finisher's shirt was okay but wasn't exactly what I was expecting. The website said we were getting a long-sleeve Dri-Fit shirt and they were actually short-sleeve, 70% cotton/30% polyester. Spectators were almost non existent for those first 9 miles along Mullan Rd., but as we got closer to the finish they got more abundant and were very supportive. Special thanks go out those folks who had their sprinklers on for us - it was a hot day. There are two big things I would like to see change for next year. First, they've got to use chip timing. With over 1,000 full and half marathoners, it took them a long time to tabulate results... so long that the post-race awards ceremony never really happened (besides the top 3 in each race). Also, I'd like to see this race run at a different time of year. While this year was certainly hotter than normal for July (I finished in 3:30 and it was already in the mid-80s), it would be a little more runner-friendly to have this event in either May or October. Overall, this event was very well done and has the potential to get even better in the future. Missoula went much too long without a marathon and this is definitely a good start. | |
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J. H. from Tacoma, WA
(7/18/2007)
"Great Run - Great Time!!!" (about: 2007)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Missoula Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 For a first-time race, the organizers did a wonderful job. I would definitely run this one again. The last-minute early start was a blessing to us slow runners!!! The spectators were very supportive with sprinklers and aid set up everywhere (once you got near town)! Can't think of anything to be done different - other than maybe turning down the heat just a little bit. | |
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J. B. from Missoula, MT
(7/17/2007)
"Great organization and support" (about: 2007)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Missoula Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 Fabulous organization for the inaugural event. Fans were great - loved all the sprinklers! First 2/3 of course was wonderful and scenic. Last five miles of course were brutal because of the heat and lack of shade. Could have used another aid station there. Overall a fantastic experience! | |
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G. M. from Missoula, Montana
(7/17/2007)
"Great first marathon but some big kinks" (about: 2007)
First Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 Overall, the marathon was great. I have a few issues I'd like to address. First, consider starting at 5:30 if the weather is this hot. Second, you definitely need more water stations and offer Gu earlier in the race. Also, consider bigger water tables so folks aren't standing in line to get water and/or waiting for volunteers to pour more cups. Third, revamp the last 5 miles. That portion of the course was too sunny and didn't portray the best scenery Missoula has to offer. The last five miles are hard enough without having to run along the tracks. Finally, having the results organized is important. My sister traveled here from Boise for her first marathon and came 9th overall for women. I believe she placed within her age group. She was so bummed out she didn't get to find out and possibly receive an award. Other than those issues, it was a great time! | |
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J. H. from Tennessee
(7/17/2007)
"Greatly Enjoyed Myself in Missoula" (about: 2007)
3 previous marathons
| 1 Missoula Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 I had a great time completing the "1st Ever Missoula Montana Marathon" - even if the area was in the midst of a heatwave and I had muscle cramp issues. While I didn't set a "personal best," the folks in charge of arranging this event sure were "the best." They were well organized, plentiful and I didn't see anything go wrong. The fans were not always large in number, but they were very plentiful over the entire 26.2 miles. More than half of the first part of the race was run outside of town, with a scenic mountain range to enjoy! The course was mostly flat, with one 2-mile-long hill at the midpoint. The only suggestion I would have is more "free food" for the finishers. There was not a lot of selection provided, so I had to purchase most of what I ate from the vendors who were in the park. BUT, that wouldn't stop me from telling everyone to "go experience Missoula." Thanks guys/girls for a "great event"! | |
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M. W. from Kansas
(7/16/2007)
"Good Marathon" (about: 2007)
11-50 previous marathons
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 This was my 40th marathon. It was a nicely organized race. The website could use some enhancements. I could not find an address for the expo so it was kind of hard for out of town people to find. The buses worked well and the starting area were nice. It was a hot day but they had water stations. The aid stations needed to be about every mile the last 10 miles because of the heat. The aid stations need to have Vaseline. This was the first marathon that I needed Vaseline but none of the aid stations had Vaseline. The course was pretty nice. About mile 12 we climbed a mountain but it was nice and had a great view. I did not mind the hill however once we came back down to level ground the course was pretty boring and curved around a lot. Otherwise, the course was fine. The streets were not blocked off from traffic but it really was not a problem. There were very few cars on the course. I would definitely run the marathon again. | |
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P. P. from Stevensville Montana
(7/16/2007)
"A thoughtfully planned course for all abilities" (about: 2007)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Missoula Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 Thanks to all who planned this marathon and to all the volunteers along the way. I'm so proud of our Missoula community. |
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