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GO! St. Louis Marathon Runner Comments
Back to GO! St. Louis Marathon Information & Reviews
Course 3.9 
Organization 3.9 
Spectators 3.5
Number of comments: 357 [displaying comments 241 to 251]
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R. M. from St Louis, Missouri
(4/28/2005)
"Last year was better organized" (about: 2005)
3 previous marathons
| 2 GO! St. Louis Marathons
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 4 I wish I could say the race was better than last year, but the first 6 miles I found it really hard to get any water. There were lines waiting for water and no water available. Also the half marathon runners had to cross between the full marathon runners to complete the course. Last year just seemed better organized, and I hope next year things are better planned. The day being warm couldn't be helped, and the sites were beautiful. I loved the bands and volunteers that were supporting the run. They did all they could to make this a better run. The spectators were more abundant than the year before, and they really encouraged the runners. I Also loved the beer stop around mile 24/25. Thought it was a nice gesture. I would recommend running this race for the challenge and the potential for being a great event, and hope next year things are better organized. | |
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S. S. from St. Louis
(4/27/2005)
"Organizers need a lot of learning" (about: 2005)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 GO! St. Louis Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 4 I ran the half marathon in preparation for the OK City Memorial marathon on April 24th, and the contrast could not be much worse for StL. A nice course marred by poor organization and this is not even an inaugural race. The first few miles of water stops were overwhelmed by runners. The organizers forgot that if you have six or however many thousand runners starting out at one time, two tables of water and two volunteers are not going to cut it, esp on the early miles. I pity the poor volunteers. And it was a warm day almost right from the start. Then, in the first 6 miles, the course was such that runners were returning on one side of the road while the greater mass of runners was still heading out. The lead runners were zig-zagging around approaching runners. To add to the chaos, because of the inadequate water station on the outbound side, runners were crossing over to get water from the returning side. The organizers could take a few pointers from another medium size city race at Oklahoma City which was eminently enjoyable, despite StL being my home town. | |
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c. g. from St. Louis, MO
(4/22/2005)
"Pretty good." (about: 2005)
2 previous marathons
| 2 GO! St. Louis Marathons
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 4 What I have to say is nothing more than what's already been stated, but needs to be reiterated. The water stops were a disaster, and the mile markers were obsolete. I was at seventeen miles when the truck with the mile markers passed me. Then too, as I read comments from 2004 about walkers clogging things up for the faster runners, I realized this is still a problem; a lot of walkers walking 4-5 wide during the last several miles. I didn't care for the pick-up in conjunction with the Cardinals game, but I can see how that would be neat for the out-of-towners. The volunteer at the finish told me I could only have one Fig Newton bar, so as to save some for the other runners. But seeing as they had about 123,000 of them, I figured two wasn't being too greedy. Just kind of funny, I guess. I thought the course, although hilly, was excellent. It really shows off St. Louis. There's nothing wrong with a tough course. I'll probably run it again next year. | |
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M. L. from Bonner Springs, Kansas
(4/22/2005)
"Very disappointed" (about: 2005)
2 previous marathons
| 1 GO! St. Louis Marathon
COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 2 I have some mixed emotions about this race experience. First, the location of the start and finish line was great, having the arch in the background was awesome for pictures. Forest Park is beautiful. The volunteers were very helpful and did thier best. The medal is very nice, I ran this race for my daughter and she loves the medal. However that is about it for the good with this race. I had to wait in line for 30 minutes for a 'porta john' and never even got close. Two minutes before the gun sounded I jumped out of line to find my pace group. Found several toilets just before the start line, jumped back out of the race, and waited another 10 minutes. During the first 6 - 8 miles the water stations weren't ready for what was coming. Many times you had to wait in line to get water or Gatorade, possibly putting stations on both sides of the road could help with congestion. The art work was hard to see most of the time. The entertainment was very limited, I don't think there was as much as what was published in the packet. My entire family came and they couldn't find any place to buy something to remember the race experience. The weather was very hot, maybe the race should have started earlier. Prior to running this race, I heard many good things about it, and was very excited to experience them. But, I guess my expectations where set to high. I'm 95% sure I won't run this race again. | |
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J. C. from Metairie, LA
(4/22/2005)
"A good race overall" (about: 2005)
4-5 previous marathons
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 Loved the course. If you want to see different sights of STL, this course will take you on a good tour. Hills were challenging for me, but I am from a flat area. The only problem I saw was with the first 4 water stations. They were just not prepared for the number of participants. It got up to 82 degrees that day so I was getting worried (when I was worried it was more like 70, but I was thinking is it going to be like this the whole time?), but figured that things would get better after the half-marathoners left the course. Sure enough, after mile 9.2 there were no problems obtaining adequate liquids. Overall, I recommend the course. Loved watching the Cardinals over home opening weekend. | |
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D. T. from Ohio
(4/22/2005)
"Needs work" (about: 2005)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 GO! St. Louis Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 3 This was my 7th race and my first time in St. Louis. I couldn't believe there were NO CLOCKS!! For a race this size, thats unbelievable. Also, the first few water stops were so congested, that you had to actually stop and stand in line to get a drink. In certain areas of the race there is no clear distinction between directions. The faster runners running toward the finish line had to fight through the slower runners heading to the turn-around point. I witnessed a near collision that could've been very ugly. The mile markers weren't exactly visible at some points. I missed a few. The finish line area was so small and congested, I had to slow down do avoid running over the walkers. Again, for a race this size, I was very disappointed. I won't be back. | |
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R. W. from St. Louis, MO
(4/21/2005)
"Poorly Organized Race" (about: 2005)
6-10 previous marathons
| 2 GO! St. Louis Marathons
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 4 I hate to bash the biggest marathon in my hometown, but I have to wonder if the people who organized this one have ever run a marathon themselves. No question about it, this is a challenging course. Throw in the heat and humidity, and it?s no wonder people were dropping like flies. With better planning, though, I think a lot of problems could have been avoided · First things first, water stations were every other mile for the first 18 miles. This would help to explain why the runners were struggling so much with the heat. In the future, put them every mile. · Simple logistics lesson: next year turn the bathrooms around so that the people waiting in line aren?t standing across the starting line. · About 100 yards into the race there was a barrier blocking the course. We had to get out of the way or run it over. · Mile markers were well hidden, small and at ground level. Raise them up higher, and make them big and bright colored. · Encourage spectators to use the MetroLink to get around the course on race day. There was way too much traffic on the course, very dangerous · Police support was sparse and the volunteers were woefully outnumbered. I had to skip a couple of water stations because people were backed up waiting for water. · Gu was handed out at miles 20 and 23. 20 and 23? By that point, the damage is already done, and no amount is Gu is going to help. My body is normally starting to shut down by mile 20, so I can?t digest anything at that point, anyway. · The website was missing a lot of what I would consider critical information. For instance, I couldn?t find on the website how much it cost to register. Maybe it was there, but I couldn?t find it. St. Louis has to make a serious commitment if it wants to become a respected marathon city. Other cities have made that commitment, and it shows. This was my second Spirit of St. Louis Marathon, and probably my last. | |
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a. b. from Memphis, TN
(4/20/2005)
"a beautiful race through a great city" (about: 2005)
3 previous marathons
| 1 GO! St. Louis Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 I really enjoyed running this marathon. St. Louis is such a great city and what a way to see it! My favorite part was the run through the Anheuser Busch Brewery. I wouldn't change a thing about the course...there were rolling hills but it made things more interesting. The medal was great and the food supply at the end was ample, even though it took me four hours to finish. My only complaint is that I couldn't get Gatorade for the first 10 miles. Seeing as how it was about 20 degrees warmer that day than what I had been training in, it would have been nice to get some Gatorade earlier. However, after mile 13, the aid stations were very plentiful and well staffed. The volunteers did a great job and I thank you very much! | |
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D. G. from Kaukauna, WI
(4/18/2005)
"Nice Race!" (about: 2005)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 GO! St. Louis Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 4 Overall, I think it was a very nice race. The expo is quite small, but that may be due to the fact that many sponsors or people who would set up are already in Boston. The course is either up or down hill. By the time I finished I was happy to have run up my last hill! It wasn't bad at all though - the way the course was set up the half marathon went very quickly - before I knew it I was at mile 12 (with one more hill to go!) The mile markers were difficult to see - but I figured out that if I looked for the port-a-potties the marker was probably around there somewhere. The water/gatorade stations were very difficult to get to - but like others have commented, the volunteers were very nice and tried to get the liquid out as fast as they could. The weather was quite nice and we had fun exploring the city - it was great that the Cardinals were in town! Thanks St. Louis! | |
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K. H. from Cary, Illinois
(4/18/2005)
"Hot, hilly, and poorly organized" (about: 2005)
6-10 previous marathons
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 3 While I had a fun day overall running the half, as I had trouble getting water at the first couple of water stops, I was very glad I was not running the full marathon. Things that I think could be improved are: 1. More bathrooms at the water stops. There was always a line and many people taking matters by the side of the road instead of wait in a line of at least 5-7 people. 2. More tables, more water, and more volunteers manning them. I don't think I got any water at the first two stops which meant I ran 5 miles without any water. 3. Clocks at at least a few places along the course, if not at every mile. I liked the city of St. Louis and thought the people were friendly, but wouldn't have minded some loud cheering from the crowds. I've run in several Chicago marathons where the cheering is constant. This crowd seemed a bit quiet. I don't think I will ever return to run the marathon. |
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