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Marathon Details - Mount Lemmon Marathon

North America Marathons > USA > AZ > Tucson > Mount Lemmon Marathon

Mount Lemmon Marathon

Mount Lemmon Marathon & Half Marathon, 10K

Tucson, AZ USA

~~April 27, 2014~~ - CANCELLED

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Marathon Results

By Year:

2013 2012 2011 2010 Top 3 Finishers

Race Details

Only uphill marathon in the US, 6002 ft elevation gain, all paved and closed to traffic.

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Name:	Ray Andrade
Address:
Phone Number:
Email:	Email the organizers

Runner Reviews (13)

Course 5.0

Organization 3.2

Spectators 2.5

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Number of comments: 13 [displaying comments 1 to 11]

More Comments: [ < 1 2 > ]

L. B. from Arizona (4/29/2013) "Worth the Hurt" (about: 2013) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Mount Lemmon Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 2 This was my first year running Mt. Lemmon Marathon. I live in Tucson and did a few training runs on the mountain so I was fairly prepared for the relentless uphill. The beauty of this race can't be topped by any other marathon in the state of Arizona. I suggest uphill training as well as speed walking as you'll find yourself doing a mix of both throughout the race. Other runners are incredibly friendly and you do get the vibe of, 'We're all in this together.' However, it's a pretty small field so you'll find yourself alone through some of the course. Aid stations were adequately equipped with supplies but I suggest running with water as some aid stations are as far apart as 3 miles. Buses from the start were nice and timely and finish line was very enthusiastic with spectators and announcer. I've never complained about a shirt before but I wish this one was different for the half and full as I feel the full is quite the accomplishment. Save a little gas in the tank for the uphill slant to the finish line. You'll cross with the biggest smile. You will remember the feeling of finishing and its accomplishment forever.
r. m. from AZ (4/29/2013) "Still room for improvement" (about: 2013) 50+ previous marathons \| 3 Mount Lemmon Marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 1 Top notch volunteers Beautiful scenery Not near enough aid stations for a venue such as this....3 miles apart! In April! In Southern AZ! I fyou could not have manned stations, you should've then had water accessible at LEAST every 2 miles. I had not issues with this marathon when it was in October but you've got some issues to address. Medals: Awful....cheap ceramic, not even a date, rival the crummy 2010 stale cookie marathon you gave us on a leather cord; some people did not even get the cord. You tout this as the worlds toughest road marathon so you'd think you'd have the proper hydration and gel packs to go with it. Also, if we are running the 'world's toughest road marathon' why are the medals so cheesy? Not even a date on them. How can you improve so much in 2011 and then regress back to 2010?
K. Y. from Tucson, az (4/29/2013) "tough course, aid stations to mile 14 was horable" (about: 2013) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Mount Lemmon Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 2 The aid stations up to mile 14 should be stoked with stuff other then water and a bananna. a gel would have been good. after mile 14 aid stations were great.
R. J. from Georgia, USA (5/9/2012) "One of a kind race." (about: 2012) 50+ previous marathons \| 1 Mount Lemmon Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 1 This is not a race for whiners. . If you want to be coddled, cheered on by crowds, hear bands every few minutes and/or run a PR then don't run this race. If you want a real challenge, spectacular scenery and a hard-earned feeling of accomplishment, this is definitely the race for you! It starts in the Sonoran Desert at 3000 ft, climbs through scrub oak/grassland and ends in pine/aspen forest at 8300 ft. Along the way you have panoramic views of Tucson far below and mountains hundreds of miles south in Mexico. They claim it's the toughest road marathon in the world and that's probably true, it makes the typical flat road marathon feel like a cakewalk. For 21 miles it's up, up, up, the air getting thinner with each mile, then at 7500 feet you have rolling hills which means you have multiple climbs in the thin air. The aid stations are just rightclose enough so that you can get what you need but far enough apart so that you have to be somewhat self-reliant, they recommend (and I agree) that you carry a water bottle and have some way to carry the gels that they handed out at the start. Some of the aid stations have water, sports drink, gels and fruit. One was just unattended jugs of water. The volunteers were, without exception, very enthusiastic and helpful. Once you finally reach the finish line you will know that you really earned that medal!
K. S. from IL (11/2/2010) "An amazing race!!!" (about: 2010) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Mount Lemmon Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 For an inaugural event - up a mountain, no less - I thought this event went very smoothly, as I thought it could get to be rather cumbersome considering the course. I think this is truly a wonderful marathon and even though this isn't a PR race, this is a truly a special event and something I hold dear to my heart. If I could do it every year (now in IL), I would. These are things I felt that could improve (although minor), as I really did love the race. 1. Aid stations. Either mandate marathoners carry water bottles or make the distance between aid stations less than 3 miles. A couple of people I ran along with were not carrying anything with them and were relying on aid stations, which is worrisome as they were looking for them desperately. I offered them some of the drink I run with (as I have two water bottles), but they weren't interested. 2. Finish line shirt. If we registered early, we got a technical shirt, but for the finish we got a white, long-sleeved t-shirt. Would have preferred to not get the training shirt in lieu of a nicer (i.e. technical) finisher shirt as finishing should be more important than starting training. A better option would be to pay for a technical "in-training" shirt in addition to the race fee. 3. For the feat involved, a larger medal would have been nice; it's very small compared to the rest I have. Definite kudos for the finish line. I really wasn't sure how many people would be there, but the support was spectacular. Thank you again for an amazing experience!!!!
S. S. from Tucson, AZ (10/28/2010) "Half Marathon Challenging, Yet Rewarding!!!" (about: 2010) 1 previous marathon \| 1 Mount Lemmon Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 5 Decided on the 1/2 for the 1st year - NO REGRETS!!! Breathtaking views, and a challenging yet rewarding course and experience! Expect a slower pace; it's 90% uphill. For their first year, they had a few "whoopsies" here and there, but if you planned ahead like I did (i.e., bring your own fuel/hydration), you'll leave a happy runner! Definitely not one to miss. I'm certain this event will get bigger and harder to get into once it gains more publicity. Sign up now; you won't regret it!
G. C. from Los Angeles, CA (10/21/2010) "Tough course but well worth it" (about: 2010) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Mount Lemmon Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 Course: You know what to expect just looking at the elevation profile, so be prepared for the constant, relentless uphill for the first 20 miles (there are actually some minor flat or downhill parts but not much). I did not train on the course nor at altitude, but I did reasonably well by just doing uphill long runs and hill repeats. Just make sure you keep some energy for the last hill (0.75 miles) at mile 25, which is brutal. However the course is well worth it, with some spectacular views. For those of you interested in comparing times against a flat course, my PR on a flat course is 3:23 and I ran it in 4:15. I also recommend running the tangents, which is essential on this course. My Garmin showed 26.1, and I made a point to run every single tangent on the course, while other runners complained about a "long" course. Organization: The inaugural race of 2010 went reasonably well; the only major hiccup was that some of the slowest runners could not get a bus down from the finish line at Summerhaven. I would also have liked a couple more aid stations, since they were spaced about 3 miles apart. However, criticisms have to be taken with a grain of salt, knowing how difficult it is since it's a medium-sized race (400 runners finished the marathon, about 3-400 for the half-marathon), and the point-to-point nature of the course coupled to a narrow mountain road makes the organization a major challenge. Overall, I commend the organizers for a great job for an inaugural event. I also loved the technical "in-training" shirt sent before the race. The long-sleeve finisher cotton shirt was not as nice, and I did not like the medal too much, but that's personal. Spectators: It could get lonely out there because there were very few spectators; however, all of them were very encouraging. The main support comes from the other runners and the volunteers who help at the aid stations and who ride the course on their bikes. Overall this is a must-do race if you are looking for a unique marathon. It's labeled the "toughest road marathon in the US." The course is challenging but well worth it, and finishing this race makes you feel that you have accomplished something special. Highly recommended !
C. V. from Houston Texas (10/20/2010) "I'll be back" (about: 2010) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Mount Lemmon Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 2 Tough, TOUGH course - 22+ miles of uphill. Great challenge. This promised to be the toughest road marathon in the world, and it was. Since it was a first-year marathon, there were some logistical problems. Don't sign up if you are looking for adoring fans lining the length of the course. Spectators were few and far between, but those who were there were boisterous. Bring you own water and gels.
J. O. from Tennessee (10/19/2010) "great course, great weather, lack of organization" (about: 2010) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Mount Lemmon Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 3 PROS: + Beautiful course. It really can't get much more scenic than this gorgeous course up Mt. Lemmon on Catalina Highway. You go from the desert with cacti on either side to pine trees. + Perfect weather. My boyfriend was a little concerned about it being too hot, but it was in the 60s when we started and there were a few hot spots, but overall it was great weather - cool, but not too cold! + Nice volunteers. They could have gotten bored, but they still cheered and smiled as we passed. + Funny finisher's shirt. :) CONS: - No shuttle for people after a certain point... (I think it was after the half marathon people finished?) We were told we'd have a shuttle to get down the mountain; trying to hitchhike after you've run 20+ miles up a mountain (and paid over $100 to do it) is ridiculous and took close to an hour. We got yelled at by the sheriff and he told us we'd get citations. - No cords for the medals. Some people who finished before us had gotten cords, but it was my boyfriend's first ever marathon and he couldn't even wear his medal for finishing the "toughest road marathon in the world." - No food at aid stations until the last three, which for full marathoners was after mile 15. I brought my own food so I was fine, but if I hadn't, it would have been bad news. - No ice cream (not much selection of post-race food). After I run, I like having more than just cut fruit that's turning brown in cardboard boxes. I didn't even see bagels by the time we got to the top. There was some Muscle Milk and XOOD, but other than the fruit, that's about it. - No checkpoints? The website said there would be cut off checkpoints for slower runners... but we didn't even see one sign for time cutoffs. Maybe that's good and it just means we were doing fine, but it's nice to have some sort of reassurance if you're tired and unsure of where the time checkpoints are. Its a beautiful course, a great place to host a marathon for sure. Once they fix the cons, I'd definitely recommend it to others. I'm hoping that because it was the first one they didn't have much funding or foresight to prepare for everything. I felt especially bad for the people who had been waiting over 2 hours to get down the hill because there was no shuttle. (There weren't many spectators, but it's up a mountain in the desert.) P.S. If you do plan on running this race, look up Jeremiah Inn. Its a little over a mile from the starting line and you can walk to the base of the mountain. Bob and Beth are GREAT! There is a hot tub and swimming pool - definitely take advantage of this cute little Bed and Breakfast.
D. C. from London, Canada (10/19/2010) "Challenging course; very scenic" (about: 2010) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Mount Lemmon Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 The course was all uphill until close to mile 20. Great views. Nice running weather. Should have more water stops. Loved the sweater after - it's nice to have a warm long-sleeved cotton shirt to put on right after the race. Lots of volunteers. Post-food selection could have been better.

More Comments: [ < 1 2 > ]



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L. B. from Arizona (4/29/2013) "Worth the Hurt" (about: 2013) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Mount Lemmon Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 2 This was my first year running Mt. Lemmon Marathon. I live in Tucson and did a few training runs on the mountain so I was fairly prepared for the relentless uphill. The beauty of this race can't be topped by any other marathon in the state of Arizona. I suggest uphill training as well as speed walking as you'll find yourself doing a mix of both throughout the race. Other runners are incredibly friendly and you do get the vibe of, 'We're all in this together.' However, it's a pretty small field so you'll find yourself alone through some of the course. Aid stations were adequately equipped with supplies but I suggest running with water as some aid stations are as far apart as 3 miles. Buses from the start were nice and timely and finish line was very enthusiastic with spectators and announcer. I've never complained about a shirt before but I wish this one was different for the half and full as I feel the full is quite the accomplishment. Save a little gas in the tank for the uphill slant to the finish line. You'll cross with the biggest smile. You will remember the feeling of finishing and its accomplishment forever.
r. m. from AZ (4/29/2013) "Still room for improvement" (about: 2013) 50+ previous marathons \| 3 Mount Lemmon Marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 1 Top notch volunteers Beautiful scenery Not near enough aid stations for a venue such as this....3 miles apart! In April! In Southern AZ! I fyou could not have manned stations, you should've then had water accessible at LEAST every 2 miles. I had not issues with this marathon when it was in October but you've got some issues to address. Medals: Awful....cheap ceramic, not even a date, rival the crummy 2010 stale cookie marathon you gave us on a leather cord; some people did not even get the cord. You tout this as the worlds toughest road marathon so you'd think you'd have the proper hydration and gel packs to go with it. Also, if we are running the 'world's toughest road marathon' why are the medals so cheesy? Not even a date on them. How can you improve so much in 2011 and then regress back to 2010?
K. Y. from Tucson, az (4/29/2013) "tough course, aid stations to mile 14 was horable" (about: 2013) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Mount Lemmon Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 2 The aid stations up to mile 14 should be stoked with stuff other then water and a bananna. a gel would have been good. after mile 14 aid stations were great.
R. J. from Georgia, USA (5/9/2012) "One of a kind race." (about: 2012) 50+ previous marathons \| 1 Mount Lemmon Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 1 This is not a race for whiners. . If you want to be coddled, cheered on by crowds, hear bands every few minutes and/or run a PR then don't run this race. If you want a real challenge, spectacular scenery and a hard-earned feeling of accomplishment, this is definitely the race for you! It starts in the Sonoran Desert at 3000 ft, climbs through scrub oak/grassland and ends in pine/aspen forest at 8300 ft. Along the way you have panoramic views of Tucson far below and mountains hundreds of miles south in Mexico. They claim it's the toughest road marathon in the world and that's probably true, it makes the typical flat road marathon feel like a cakewalk. For 21 miles it's up, up, up, the air getting thinner with each mile, then at 7500 feet you have rolling hills which means you have multiple climbs in the thin air. The aid stations are just rightclose enough so that you can get what you need but far enough apart so that you have to be somewhat self-reliant, they recommend (and I agree) that you carry a water bottle and have some way to carry the gels that they handed out at the start. Some of the aid stations have water, sports drink, gels and fruit. One was just unattended jugs of water. The volunteers were, without exception, very enthusiastic and helpful. Once you finally reach the finish line you will know that you really earned that medal!
K. S. from IL (11/2/2010) "An amazing race!!!" (about: 2010) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Mount Lemmon Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 For an inaugural event - up a mountain, no less - I thought this event went very smoothly, as I thought it could get to be rather cumbersome considering the course. I think this is truly a wonderful marathon and even though this isn't a PR race, this is a truly a special event and something I hold dear to my heart. If I could do it every year (now in IL), I would. These are things I felt that could improve (although minor), as I really did love the race. 1. Aid stations. Either mandate marathoners carry water bottles or make the distance between aid stations less than 3 miles. A couple of people I ran along with were not carrying anything with them and were relying on aid stations, which is worrisome as they were looking for them desperately. I offered them some of the drink I run with (as I have two water bottles), but they weren't interested. 2. Finish line shirt. If we registered early, we got a technical shirt, but for the finish we got a white, long-sleeved t-shirt. Would have preferred to not get the training shirt in lieu of a nicer (i.e. technical) finisher shirt as finishing should be more important than starting training. A better option would be to pay for a technical "in-training" shirt in addition to the race fee. 3. For the feat involved, a larger medal would have been nice; it's very small compared to the rest I have. Definite kudos for the finish line. I really wasn't sure how many people would be there, but the support was spectacular. Thank you again for an amazing experience!!!!
S. S. from Tucson, AZ (10/28/2010) "Half Marathon Challenging, Yet Rewarding!!!" (about: 2010) 1 previous marathon \| 1 Mount Lemmon Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 5 Decided on the 1/2 for the 1st year - NO REGRETS!!! Breathtaking views, and a challenging yet rewarding course and experience! Expect a slower pace; it's 90% uphill. For their first year, they had a few "whoopsies" here and there, but if you planned ahead like I did (i.e., bring your own fuel/hydration), you'll leave a happy runner! Definitely not one to miss. I'm certain this event will get bigger and harder to get into once it gains more publicity. Sign up now; you won't regret it!
G. C. from Los Angeles, CA (10/21/2010) "Tough course but well worth it" (about: 2010) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Mount Lemmon Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 Course: You know what to expect just looking at the elevation profile, so be prepared for the constant, relentless uphill for the first 20 miles (there are actually some minor flat or downhill parts but not much). I did not train on the course nor at altitude, but I did reasonably well by just doing uphill long runs and hill repeats. Just make sure you keep some energy for the last hill (0.75 miles) at mile 25, which is brutal. However the course is well worth it, with some spectacular views. For those of you interested in comparing times against a flat course, my PR on a flat course is 3:23 and I ran it in 4:15. I also recommend running the tangents, which is essential on this course. My Garmin showed 26.1, and I made a point to run every single tangent on the course, while other runners complained about a "long" course. Organization: The inaugural race of 2010 went reasonably well; the only major hiccup was that some of the slowest runners could not get a bus down from the finish line at Summerhaven. I would also have liked a couple more aid stations, since they were spaced about 3 miles apart. However, criticisms have to be taken with a grain of salt, knowing how difficult it is since it's a medium-sized race (400 runners finished the marathon, about 3-400 for the half-marathon), and the point-to-point nature of the course coupled to a narrow mountain road makes the organization a major challenge. Overall, I commend the organizers for a great job for an inaugural event. I also loved the technical "in-training" shirt sent before the race. The long-sleeve finisher cotton shirt was not as nice, and I did not like the medal too much, but that's personal. Spectators: It could get lonely out there because there were very few spectators; however, all of them were very encouraging. The main support comes from the other runners and the volunteers who help at the aid stations and who ride the course on their bikes. Overall this is a must-do race if you are looking for a unique marathon. It's labeled the "toughest road marathon in the US." The course is challenging but well worth it, and finishing this race makes you feel that you have accomplished something special. Highly recommended !
C. V. from Houston Texas (10/20/2010) "I'll be back" (about: 2010) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Mount Lemmon Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 2 Tough, TOUGH course - 22+ miles of uphill. Great challenge. This promised to be the toughest road marathon in the world, and it was. Since it was a first-year marathon, there were some logistical problems. Don't sign up if you are looking for adoring fans lining the length of the course. Spectators were few and far between, but those who were there were boisterous. Bring you own water and gels.
J. O. from Tennessee (10/19/2010) "great course, great weather, lack of organization" (about: 2010) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Mount Lemmon Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 3 PROS: + Beautiful course. It really can't get much more scenic than this gorgeous course up Mt. Lemmon on Catalina Highway. You go from the desert with cacti on either side to pine trees. + Perfect weather. My boyfriend was a little concerned about it being too hot, but it was in the 60s when we started and there were a few hot spots, but overall it was great weather - cool, but not too cold! + Nice volunteers. They could have gotten bored, but they still cheered and smiled as we passed. + Funny finisher's shirt. :) CONS: - No shuttle for people after a certain point... (I think it was after the half marathon people finished?) We were told we'd have a shuttle to get down the mountain; trying to hitchhike after you've run 20+ miles up a mountain (and paid over $100 to do it) is ridiculous and took close to an hour. We got yelled at by the sheriff and he told us we'd get citations. - No cords for the medals. Some people who finished before us had gotten cords, but it was my boyfriend's first ever marathon and he couldn't even wear his medal for finishing the "toughest road marathon in the world." - No food at aid stations until the last three, which for full marathoners was after mile 15. I brought my own food so I was fine, but if I hadn't, it would have been bad news. - No ice cream (not much selection of post-race food). After I run, I like having more than just cut fruit that's turning brown in cardboard boxes. I didn't even see bagels by the time we got to the top. There was some Muscle Milk and XOOD, but other than the fruit, that's about it. - No checkpoints? The website said there would be cut off checkpoints for slower runners... but we didn't even see one sign for time cutoffs. Maybe that's good and it just means we were doing fine, but it's nice to have some sort of reassurance if you're tired and unsure of where the time checkpoints are. Its a beautiful course, a great place to host a marathon for sure. Once they fix the cons, I'd definitely recommend it to others. I'm hoping that because it was the first one they didn't have much funding or foresight to prepare for everything. I felt especially bad for the people who had been waiting over 2 hours to get down the hill because there was no shuttle. (There weren't many spectators, but it's up a mountain in the desert.) P.S. If you do plan on running this race, look up Jeremiah Inn. Its a little over a mile from the starting line and you can walk to the base of the mountain. Bob and Beth are GREAT! There is a hot tub and swimming pool - definitely take advantage of this cute little Bed and Breakfast.
D. C. from London, Canada (10/19/2010) "Challenging course; very scenic" (about: 2010) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Mount Lemmon Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 The course was all uphill until close to mile 20. Great views. Nice running weather. Should have more water stops. Loved the sweater after - it's nice to have a warm long-sleeved cotton shirt to put on right after the race. Lots of volunteers. Post-food selection could have been better.

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Marathon Details - Mount Lemmon Marathon