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Bryan/College Station Marathon Runner Comments
Back to Bryan/College Station Marathon Information & Reviews
Course 4.8 
Organization 4.9 
Spectators 4.7
Number of comments: 1274 [displaying comments 921 to 931]
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James Cowan from San Antonio, TX
(12/10/2012)
"BCS belongs on the short list of premier marathons" (about: 2012)
3 previous marathons
| 1 Bryan/College Station Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 Where can I start? First and foremost, in case no one reads past these few lines, let me say this was an amazingly organized race, at every single level. For being the second year, and such a small scale compared to other Texas (and most city) marathons, I was honestly blown away. Please understand this as well: if you are a new half marathoner or marathoner, find me a better race in the world to begin. That's right, WORLD. I don't know how many newbies there were yesterday but I'd estimate around half. Then I realized, as good as they have it here, this race has potentially ruined marathons for them, regarding the organization and support. It was that good. Okay, let's get a little more specific. From almost day one of signing up I was receiving updates via email from Chris Field, the race director. This continued up to race day. The info included everything from packet pick-up to weather. I decided to stay at the Hilton in College Station, where the packet pick-up and pre-race events were located. I made the assumption right from the moment I booked the hotel that they had the support of Bryan & College Station businesses as the hotel 'special rate' was really good (at least compared to A&M football season). This turned out to be completely true regardless. As expected, it was pretty busy at the small expo there at the Hilton. As we were actually staying there, we dropped off gear in the room and headed down to pick up my bib. Volunteers were everywhere and there was zero confusion from there on. This was small but shows precisely the amount of care and attention to detail Mr Field and team had in organizing this race: at my door in the morning upon waking up at 0500, a bottle of water and a brown bag with a banana, a granola bar, and a bagel. I look down the hall, at nearly every door, one or two of these bags! Folks, I paid $80 for this race! And I didn't even make the first cutoff before the prices went up. $80! One point of contention I've had in previous runs is the disaster that turns out to be race day parking. Mr Field and his team obviously took this into consideration starting/finishing the race near a shopping mall on a Sunday morning (nothing opens in BCS on Sunday 'till noon). Crisis averted; zero problems parking and walking the, oh, 200 feet to the start line! And the race began. As I mentioned above, the support was beyond amazing. Roughly every mile and a half were aid stations, all with water and gatorade. The later stations had oranges, medical aid, gummy bears, and other things I didn't use. EVERY 1.5 MILES! One of the later emails from Mr Field explained because of the hot weather (~80°) they were adding wet towels to the later aid stations. I did partake and those were lifesavers! At each station, there were tons of people, a couple dozen. Kids, volunteers, Aggies, all represented, all awesome! There were multiple road closures which multiple police agencies and Aggie corps members had covered. And I cannot neglect to mention the support beyond aid: the families, screamers, sign holders, kids with drums, and just all-around buffoonery in between the aid stations. The signs were great, typical of Aggie wit and humor. My personal highlight was the group of folks who were supporting the bearded runners, somewhere around mile 22 or so, a group of 5 or 6 with signs, oranges, cameras, and beard love! I'll spend some time to find out who these folks were. They made me laugh. The finish was better than expected. Hundreds of people, pics at the line as you'd expect, then the best part of my day, a small girl (maybe 5-6 years old) with Downs Syndrome who put the finisher's medal over my head. Naturally, I held out both hands for some low-fives, which she gave! Best finish ever! Immediately after, I collected my race shirt (a badass Brooks tech shirt) and actually passed on complimentary beer and food. I know, right. I actually passed on the beer! Nevertheless, free beer and food were part of the race package, along with a long-sleeved cotton race shirt, and the obligatory coupons and snacks. Let me say, this is a complete stretch, and quite honestly nitpicking, but I feel it necessary in any proper review to at least cover any details warranting improvement. Again, I'm really going out on a limb to criticize here. I'd say, as far as I noticed, there weren't many porto-potties available, at least starting off. I didn't notice one for the first 5-6 miles. I could be wrong, but I had to pee nearly immediately crossing the start line so I was keeping an eye out for them. There were not toilets at each aid station, not that I'd expect them to be. The only other complaint I had was actually from my girlfriend who met a volunteer who was pretty rude regarding a road closure. She asked the volunteer about alternate routes and the girl both had no response and was rather nasty giving it. I suppose I'd recommend that volunteers at road closures be more knowledgable of alternate routes, not sure anyone can do anything about attitudes however. That is it. | |
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T. R. from Bryan, TX
(12/10/2012)
"First Half Marathon" (about: 2012)
First Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This was my first half marathon, loved it. Great communication and organization. Chris and all the volunteers did an awesome job. The course and spectators were great. Plenty of first aid and water stations, looking forward to next year. | |
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S. S. from houston texas
(12/10/2012)
"Really felt personal to me, not a big group one" (about: 2012)
1 previous marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 I am 16 years old and it was my first half marathon and it realy made me feel comfortable running in it. Thanks Chris | |
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S. D. from TX
(12/10/2012)
"Best Race Out There!" (about: 2012)
4-5 previous marathons
| 1 Bryan/College Station Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This was my second time running in this race and I was pleased as before. They say once you do something twice, it becomes tradition, so you can find me at this race for as many years as these legs will carry me. It is seriously the best race I've ever participated in. Organization is my pet peeve in races and this race always exceeds my expectations. For such a large race, it really does exhibit a small town feel. I love it! | |
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S. K. from College Station, TX
(12/10/2012)
"Great race, great crowd." (about: 2012)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Bryan/College Station Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This was a great race. Pre-race communication with racers was great. Parking was a breeze and the food and drinks after the race were fantastic. | |
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J. M. from Houston, TX
(12/10/2012)
"Most Well Organized/Supported Race" (about: 2012)
2 previous marathons
| 2 Bryan/College Station Marathons
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 One of the most well organized and supported races I've ever run (both 2012 and 2011). Plenty of aid stations, friendly volunteers, well marked course, sweet swag (thank you for providing ladies tech shirts), and a great director who kept us very informed. | |
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Melanie Harlan from Forney, TX
(12/10/2012)
"Best marathon EVER!!" (about: 2012)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 Bryan/College Station Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 I have done many races and this one is hands down the best one in which I have ever participated! The pre-race communication was thorough and consistent. The food was abundant and delicious and there was plenty left for the marathoners when they finished. The course was beautiful and mostly full of spectators (my only slight complaint was that there weren't more people posted throughout the course, but that is not a race organizer's issue) and there were no annoying 'out and back' portions, just one big, continuous loop. Water stations were well stocked and there were even ice water towels at some of the stops. The shirts were super cute and packet pick-up was a breeze. I will be back without question! | |
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W. S. from Austin, tx
(12/10/2012)
"Excelent" (about: 2012)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Bryan/College Station Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 No complaints. Small spectating crowd. Very well organized. Great race | |
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A. M. from College Station, TX
(12/10/2012)
"Very Rewarding Run" (about: 2012)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Bryan/College Station Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 Pros: Planning, communication and organization was fantastic. Chris constantly let us know what was going on. Packet pickup was at a fitness expo - which I LOVED. I was able to grab a sweat band and an spi belt before the race. Aid stations every 1.5 miles were consistent and the volunteers were so enthusiastic! Fantastic signs everywhere. Great food and party provided to runners at the finish line. Suggestions: I wish there had been another water station in the last 2 miles. It was unusually warm and around mile 12 I stopped sweating and that's really problematic. After mile 10 of the half, the cop directing traffic was sounding his siren and trying to compact us into a smaller lane. That REALLY bothered me - I didn't pay that much money to have him corral me into a smaller lane. The course ends with a hill that seems like Mt Everest | |
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T. B. from College Station, TX
(12/10/2012)
"Wonderful Experience- Half Marathon" (about: 2012)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Bryan/College Station Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This was my first race to participate in, and it was outstanding! The course was challenging, but just enough so. The crowd was enthusiastic, cheering for their loved ones and complete strangers. Everything was organized wonderfully, and I didn't have one concern about safety the entire time (plenty of water stations, food stations, wet towel stations, first aid stations, police officers monitoring the runners and traffic, volunteers to help guide... the list goes on). The atmosphere before, during and after the race was upbeat and fun. I cannot image a better race environment and am looking forward to next year! Certainly a huge highlight of my year! |
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