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☰
Valley of the Sun Marathon Runner Comments
Back to Valley of the Sun Marathon Information & Reviews
Course 3.7 
Organization 2.5 
Spectators 2.7
Number of comments: 68 [displaying comments 11 to 21]
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A. H. from Miami, Florida
(3/22/2005)
"Worst race I have ever been involved with" (about: 2005)
2 previous marathons
| 1 Valley of the Sun Marathon
COURSE: 1 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 1 I am so glad to see that people are speaking up about how badly organized this race was. I routinely read this website to see what people say about certain races and make my decisions with their input. Hopefully those who read these posts will stay far far away from this event. I am spending this year running in one half marathon per month and I picked this one for March. The only good thing I can say about my experience was that I improved my time from my previous two halfs. Other than that, the race was a complete disaster. I won't recap what everyone else has said, but the race was a joke. Someone mentioned to me, as we were standing in the pitch black on a cold mountainside watching people wonder around looking for a start line or a bag drop, that didn't you get the memo. It's an adventure race without a compass. They drop you off in the middle of nowhere and expect you to find your way home in the dark, without water, and holding onto your personal belongings. I can kind of laugh about the whole situation now, but when the race organizers showed up to set the start line up at 6:15 (the race was supposed to start then), that is a very bad sign. The poor guy at water station number one trying to do it all himself; I feel bad for him. I can not believe that they ran out of water at the finish. That is the worst thing you can do. Thankfully I ran the half and had water, but I feel horrible for those of you left without water. I cannot imagine finishing a marathon in 80-degree heat and then be told there is no water. Shame on the race organizers. I hope they have learned their lesson and move on the another career. This race will never survive past this year. For those of you brave enough to attempt the race next year, good luck. But I doubt anyone will register for the event. | |
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M. R. from Huntsville, Utah
(3/20/2005)
"Problems" (about: 2005)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Valley of the Sun Marathon
COURSE: 1 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 3 I wanted to run this race because of the good comments from previous years. Now I wonder who could have sent in those comments. When we got to the start area a bus driver told us that the organizers had slept in. Because of the dark, nobody could find the start line, portables or the sweat bag truck. Someone drove a car past with the horn blasting the whole way. I don't think the nearby campers appreciated it and I know the runners who had to dodge the car didn't. The race did get started...a half hour behind schedule. Some of the water stations weren't set up. I saw an irate driver who was honking and screaming at runners and flashing his IQ. To top it all off, early finishers were carrying boxes of water bottles away so there were none for late finishers. I've seen problems like these at other races, but not all at one event. What a mess! I won't be back. | |
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Marty Michelson from Gilbert, Arizona
(3/19/2005)
"How a decent race goes downhill so fast" (about: 2005)
11-50 previous marathons
| 4-5 Valley of the Sun Marathons
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 1 I have run the half here the last 3 years and the marathon this year. To offer more comments about all the problems in this race serves no purpose. It?s all been said. Go back to last few years comments. It?s like Jekyll and Hyde. Let's talk about why a good race suddenly becomes a bad race. You have to look at racing in the Phoenix Valley first. Race directors and promoters here get along like the Earp clan and the Clanton gang in old Tombstone got along. Everything starts with an affront, leads to a war, accelerates into a shootout at the OK Corral, and ends in revenge and retribution. Prior to this race coming on board 5 or so years ago, the Desert Classic Marathon, put on by the mega club Arizona Road Racers was the only game in town in the spring. When the local publisher of a fitness magazine, a prominent local race promoter, and others decided to create a destination marathon around the same time, they triggered an outburst of indignation from certain key figures in the ARR toward primarily this promoter, who was a rival to the ARR, and who also managed race events. This unfriendly relationship between the two exists to this day, goes beyond just this race, and often involves other events and promoters. The Valley running community is small. Logic would say that with limited resources, all of the groups and principals involved in Valley racing would pull together to put on one quality spring marathon multi-event and possibly one in the cooler fall. Instead we have 3 local multi-race marathons all competing against each other in 3 consecutive months for a limited number of runners. Typical Phoenix Valley approach? You got it!! Seeing the benefits of a great climate when the rest of the country is digging out, great natural attractions, the Wild West, dry air, and GOLF, now enters Elite Racing into the oicture. Unlike the locals who cannot get along for long enough to do anything, Elite has the ability to spend money, raise sponsorship and promote, to be able to attract enough out-of staters to hold a mega event, the Rock?N Roll Marathon, right on top of the others. It?s going into its 3rd year! The Lost Dutchman and ARR Desert Classic, ?sucked it in? and have persevered, realizing that not everyone who marathons wants mega-events, and that there is a definite market both for locals and destination marathoners for smaller events. The two aforementioned races this year put on two OUTSTANDING races! By all means consider them for next year. Of the 3, VOTS appeared the most likely to develop a national following. Then comes the OK Corral! There is a rift between the promoter and the other organizers and he is out of the picture. From the turnaround this year it?s easy to assume that perhaps the heart and soul of the event may have been this promoter. Next, some rotund writer from Runners' World named ?The Penguin? (no, not the guy from Batman), who has so many devoted followers that even the Great Galloway must be envious, decides to bring an elite field mega-size half marathon to the neighboring Tucson Valley, ON THE SAME DAY as the VOTS. In an article in January in the Arizona Republic about the 3 competing marathons to the Rock ?n Roll event, the comments from the publisher / organizer of the VOTS sure led me to believe that they were going to throw in the towel next year. Fact is, they seem to have forgotten that they promised 1,500 runners a quality race THIS year. Lack of attention to detail; lack of volunteers, not training and/or instructing volunteers, bus drivers, and police; and having no race officials at the start disaster makes it hard for anyone to deny this. So, does complaining help? Not likely, because they already have cancelled next year?s marathon, although they say the half will continue. I remain skeptical. So let?s move on. The lead runner in the half, who was lead the wrong way, probably because inexcusably there was likely no lead vehicle, costing him a potential world class 1:02, only says he?s disappointed but will come back to do it right. Hey, I?ll come back! The half is a great course. But I?ll be back only if there is a quality race director in place. Until such time as Phoenix-area race people stop playing ?gunslinger? and learn to get along, work together, and start having FUN. I?d advise you locals to ask your race folks to stop the madness, and you out-of-state-ers to set your sights lower, be ecstatic if all goes well, and remember, there?s always another race... and there?s always the Grand Canyon!! | |
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R. W. from New York City
(3/19/2005)
"Folly in the Sun Marathon" (about: 2005)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Valley of the Sun Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 1 The name of this unfunny comedy of errors should have been The Folly in the Sun Marathon. From the expo through the post-finish area, runners learned to appreciate events that are professionally managed, unlike this one. For very well-organized marathons or half marathons featuring the natural landscape of Arizona during the winter, try The Lost Dutchman (hot breakfast burritos at the finish) and Desert Classic (this year relocated to a beautiful undeveloped part of Surprise). | |
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J. B. from Chicago, IL
(3/18/2005)
"Pure Chaos " (about: 2005)
2 previous marathons
COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 4 I ran the half-marathon associated with this race. It was my first (and last) point-to-point race. The buses didn't know where the start line was and so didn't know where to drop us off. That's probably because there was no start line set up prior to the start...no gear check, no water available, nothing. The disorganization led to a 30-minute late start - not good when the early start is to combat the heat of the surrounding desert. The (half-marathon) course is 3 miles of gentle downhill followed by 2 miles of steady uphill and then a steady mix of mini-hills until the end. Aid stations were not well stocked, but the few folks there were trying as hard as they could to keep up. I saw that they ran out of water at the finish line by the 3-hour mark - pity on the marathoners not done yet. The medal is cool (shaped like a chili pepper), but the rest was so lacking that even if I'd signed up for the full, I would have scaled back to the half. | |
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m. j. from phoenix, arizona
(3/17/2005)
"Start Line" (about: 2005)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 Valley of the Sun Marathon
COURSE: 1 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 5 Took the bus to start line and it was pitch dark. NO WORKERS were there, no lights and it look liked the night of the living dead with everyone walking around in the dark. The course had to many turns in it and had water stops with no workers to pass out water at a few stops. Dropped off my bag with a sweat suit and car remote in it, and they lost it and still can't find it!!!!!! WHAT A JOKE OF AN ORGANIZATION!!!!!!!!!! | |
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P. P. from Omaha, NE
(3/17/2005)
"Fast course, poorly organized" (about: 2005)
50+ previous marathons
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 2 The course is very fast. Poor organization. There was no water at start, no course marshals, turns without course officials, runners required to pour their own water at three stations, mile markers were off up to 3 minutes in distance, ran out of water at finish, and allowed non-runners to eat finish food leaving little or nothing for later finishers. | |
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Krayton Kerns from Montana
(3/17/2005)
"Needs help!" (about: 2005)
3 previous marathons
| 1 Valley of the Sun Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 2 The weather was great. The course was fast. The police held traffic... but... the race morning organization was a disaster. Busses were lost enroute to the start. Five busses drove several miles past the start twice. The most vocal drivers screamed directions to the milling entrants. At least that gave us direction; however, it was also wrong. (We were lost in the darkness and wandering in the wrong direction, but we were making great time.) A race representative did show up about daylight and set up the start-line timing mat. She apologized about the porta-poties being in the wrong place, and then off went the starting gun. The race went well other than a few water stops without water, cups, or volunteers. The final race day surprise was the bus ride back to the host hotel. If there were busses at the top of every hour, they didn't exist at 11:00... we caught a ride with a reporter who asked for directions back to the Marriot. Skip this race! | |
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J. C. from Los Alamos, NM
(3/16/2005)
"A confusing start to a great course" (about: 2005)
4-5 previous marathons
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 4 Like many races we were bused to the start. The buses left us on the side of the road, in the dark desert. No one pointing out where to be or where to go. Most people walked to the only visible lights before we were locked out of the Usery Park area. After sitting around for better than an hour with no hope of a race ever starting, the start line was quickly rolled out and the race started a few minutes late. Several of the aid stations were ?self-serve?, cups and water, but no volunteers. For the most part, the aid stations with volunteers were well ran. I was one of the earlier finishers in the marathon and the finish was already out of water. The course was great. Starting in the unusually green desert, running through parts of town, and a few orange groves, smelling of fresh orange blossoms. At times, the course really made you forget you were running 26.2 miles. The few fans along the course were always in good spirits, as were the MANY police controlling traffic along the course. If they weren't there, road rage may have taken hold of a few rushed drivers. | |
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M. G. from Chicago
(3/16/2005)
"Disaster... avoid" (about: 2005)
6-10 previous marathons
| 2 Valley of the Sun Marathons
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 1 Something happened this year (2005) because this was reasonably well organized last year. Busses arrived at the start and there was no gear truck, no water, no starting line set up, no race officials. Race started 35 minutes late, getting us into the hot mid morning. There was no attendant at water stops at 2 mi and 15 mi and inadequate assistance at 3 others. Additionally, there was no water for finishers. Strangely enough, there was a band at the finish. Seems like organizers have lost their focus. Because of this, the entire event (including the half marathon) is dangerous for any competitor. Please do yourself a favor and compete elsewhere. |
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