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Lakeshore Marathon Runner Comments
Back to Lakeshore Marathon Information & Reviews
Course 3.5 
Organization 1.8 
Spectators 2.7
Number of comments: 209 [displaying comments 11 to 21]
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A. S. from Chicago
(6/11/2005)
"more or less half marathon" (about: 2005)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Lakeshore Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 3 At one point, a runner asked aloud, 'How much farther do we have?' None of us knew. Runners should not have to ask where they are: that's what mile markers are for. At the bridge near Fullerton, a volunteer sat, saying, 'Marathoners to the right, half-marathoners to the left. Marathoners to the right, half-marathoners to the left. Marathoners to the left, half-marathoners to the right... whoops!' A sign would have avoided this problem. My wife waited for me around a half-mile from the finish. She became an unofficial volunteer, steering runners back onto the path, keeping them from running the wrong way. Then I find out that I actually ran more than a half-marathon. This is real Three Stooges stuff. | |
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A. T. from Minneapolis, MN
(6/7/2005)
"It was fun, but..." (about: 2005)
First Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 2 I did the half this year. It was my first marathon experience, plus an excuse to visit with family in Chicago. My husband and I decided early on to pace ourselves mile by mile. That theory ended after mile 6 when we had no way to gauge where we were. I KNOW that the last mile was more like 1.5 or more, and I almost keeled over when someone told me I had about two blocks to go - and then someone else said, "one more mile!" Aargghh!! The most frustrating thing, though, was dealing with bikes whizzing by, telling me to get out of their way! One person on a bike came up right behind me and hollered that a marathon runner was coming up and to get out of the way. First of all, I wasn't in the way. I was way off to one side trying not to get flattened by cyclists that should have been on the street at the speed they were going. When he looked back at me, I pointed at my number with a scornful look on my face and he looked sheepish. Fine. Moving on. A few minutes later, another bike leader for a full marathon runner came up and screamed, 'Marathon runner on your right!!' We then moved a little to the left, almost plowing into said runner. Huh? Way to direct people, buddy. Do you mean to tell me that someone is running so fast that they can't calculate where people ahead of them are and how to not run right into them? I think we were all much better off without the cyclists 'directing' people. Oh, and I ride my bike every day, so I am not ragging on cyclists in general, just the people I encountered during the run. I have to say, though, the course was gorgeous! Beautiful day! | |
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Laurence Macon from San Antonio
(6/6/2005)
"I will be back." (about: 2005)
50+ previous marathons
| 1 Lakeshore Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 3 I have nothing to add about the distance. I will add it to my marathon war stories. The course is spectacular, both the lakefront and the parks. The volunteers were outstanding, the weather was great and Chicago is a fun city. Mistakes are made. Let's move forward to next year. | |
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Robert Hahn from Houston, TX
(6/6/2005)
"I came from Houston for this?" (about: 2005)
11-50 previous marathons
COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 1 Coming from out of town, I was unfamiliar with Chicago and the lakeshore. From the beginning I knew it would be an interesting half marathon. 1) McCormick place is huge, and not one sign was anywhere telling runners where to pick up a packet. I ended up meeting other lost and confused runners and we wandered around until we finally found another runner that knew. (I even stopped two different McCormick Place security guards and neither one had a clue what I was talking about.) 2) Once back in my room the night before the marathon I was going through the 'packet' and discovered that there was absolutely NO information regarding race starting time, race starting location, participant parking, etc...! Since I didn't have access to internet I had to call a family member and have them look it up for me so I could write it down. Absolutely amazing! How is an out-of-towner supposed to know these things! (I guess I should have just memorized them.) 3) The race itself was decent; the Chicago lakefront is absolutely stunning when the sun is first rising. However, missing mile markers and poor course directions caused for some confusion during the run. This all in addition to the extra mile that was added on! If you're not from the Chicago area I would strongly recommend not wasting your time/money traveling to do this race. Wait a couple of years and see if the folks up in Chicago can get their act together. | |
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E. W. from usa
(6/5/2005)
"A real joke." (about: 2005)
2 previous marathons
| 1 Lakeshore Marathon
COURSE: 1 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 4 This race was so poorly organized that I have to laugh in retrospect. An extra mile accidentally added to a marathon? Come on, that's got to be the biggest joke in marathon history! Reminds me of a surgeon who leaves an instrument inside of his patient. I feel sorry for the race organizer because a marathon production requires a tremendous effort but there's just no excuse for this kind of mistake. | |
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A. S. from Belleair, Florida
(6/4/2005)
"extremely disorganized, disappointing race" (about: 2005)
2 previous marathons
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 1 The course was poorly marked, and volunteers were not helpful in directing us. In fact we were given wrong information despite trying to confirm what we were told. We did the half marathon [we think - no one could tell us if we made the correct turn around]. Judging from those that did the full race we may have been lucky that we only did the half, since there were problems with water stops and more issues with directions and course marking farther down course. It was so upsetting to have spent months training for the marathon only to find such a disaster in organization. And how terrible for all those trying to qualify for Boston. We did have a wonderful time in the city so the trip from Florida was not a total waste. | |
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M. G. from Chicago
(6/4/2005)
"Ripped off!!" (about: 2005)
11-50 previous marathons
| 4-5 Lakeshore Marathons
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 1 I've run all four of these races (my 15th in all). The only reason I keep coming back is the course! I'd hate to lose such a great venue but I can't see how the running community can support it, especially after the negative story on the front page of the Chicago Tribune as well as mention on the evening news!!! What a black eye for Chicago running. I can't add anything to the other comments without using obscenities, so I won't. My beef: I paid an entrance fee for a "USATF Certified" Marathon. I believe that according to Regulation 6 of the USATF operating manual, this was NOT in fact "USATF certified." The "last minute changes" obviously were not submitted and approved by the USATF. In short... I paid for a 'certified course' but it was not delivered. I believe I am owed (legally speaking) a certified marathon for my entrance fee. I'll take a refund or other reasonable restitution such as an entrance fee for a "real" marathon. | |
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Rob Halliday from Chicago
(6/3/2005)
"Why fuss? Marathon's about dealing w/ adversity" (about: 2005)
11-50 previous marathons
| 4-5 Lakeshore Marathons
COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 1 I've run this race all 4 years now so I knew what I was getting into. Brought my own water bottle, Gu, etc. Unfortunately forgot the foot pod that goes with the Polar to measure the distance. Last year it was too short, this year too long. I enjoyed every race especially the first, which was basically an adventure race due to weather, and (of course) lack of direction. But what can be better than running along Chicago's lakefront at 6am? It's the complete opposite of the Chicago Marathon and that's the attraction. Enjoy it for what it is, a do-it-yourself marathon. | |
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t. w. from Chicago area
(6/3/2005)
"Isn't it ironic?" (about: 2005)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Lakeshore Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 2 I ran the full marathon. It was my first. I had heard at the finish from people with GPS watches that the course was long, but actually didn't mind that much because it made the achievement of finishing a little sweeter. I wasn't really shooting for a time. I got home and showed my medal to my kids who said, 'Hey Dad, it says congratulations on completing the half-marathon.' I guess they ran out of the others, or the guy handing them out didn't know what he was doing and I just didn't notice. I know it's just a medal and the numerous other problems mentioned are much more serious. It's just the rotten cherry on top of a lousy event. You run a 27.2-mile marathon and get a half-marathon medal. How ironic. | |
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Eli Mercer from Fox Lake, IL
(6/3/2005)
"double pr" (about: 2005)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Lakeshore Marathon
COURSE: 1 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 5 This was only my 2nd marathon and not only did I improve my time but I also improved my distance! F-ing awesome man, f-ing awesome! (What-up Tbone!?) |
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