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Rock 'n' Roll Arizona Marathon Runner Comments
Back to Rock 'n' Roll Arizona Marathon Information & Reviews
Course 3.8 
Organization 4.0 
Spectators 3.9
Number of comments: 401 [displaying comments 231 to 241]
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Gary Craig from Los Angeles
(1/16/2007)
"Flat and boring" (about: 2007)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Rock 'n' Roll Arizona Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 2 Flattest course I've ever run, except maybe the 90's Long Beach route. Could be a PR course. But it is boring and not scenic - sometimes downright ugly through trashy parts of town, like past the "cabaret" advertising the pole-dance competition next week. Bus loading at the finish area for the ride to the start in the morning was simple at 5:20 a.m., but our driver got somewhat lost near the start. Once the race starts, fan support is below average; sorry, Phoenicians. Crowds were small and unenthusiastic except near bands and at very few other spots. Water/gel stops were well-staffed and efficient... thanks, volunteers! The finish line is uninspiring, crammed up against a parking structure on the ASU campus. Gear pickup from UPS vans after the race was a *DISASTER* with hideously long lines: I drove back to the hotel, showered, changed, and had a champagne brunch before returning to collect my gear. I won't be back for this one. More than average junk email received from sponsors from this race. | |
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Mary Drake from Scottsdale AZ
(1/16/2007)
"This was my first marathon (1/2)!" (about: 2007)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Rock 'n' Roll Arizona Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 I had a blast! I was very impressed at how well organized they had it. It would have been nice to have more mountain views... but, maybe the full marathon was that way. I guess I will find out next year because I will definitely run it again and hopefully I will be ready for the full. I love the medal and other goodies I received. They had plenty of water and Accelerade stations along the route. The spectators were awesome... really cheering us on. And I loved the live music along the way. It was a great experience! | |
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L. Q. from Hays, KS USA
(1/15/2007)
"It is my first 1/2 marathon." (about: 2007)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Rock 'n' Roll Arizona Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 4 It was OK. Bilmore of AZ wasn't very helpful with the marathon (they were one of the sponsors). We were 1 hour late to start the race (the weather was cold but nothing we can do about that). Otherwise I had a good time and enjoyed my race. | |
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P. L. from Chesterton, IN
(1/15/2007)
"I loved the course, the weather and the bands." (about: 2007)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 Rock 'n' Roll Arizona Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 The expo had a lot to offer. The course was nice and flat. The fact that it wasn't over crowded was an additional bonus. I loved running toward the mountains. The water stops were nicely spaced. For me the weather was great. I loved the cool temp. | |
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T. W. from New Jersey
(1/15/2007)
"Great Organization" (about: 2007)
3 previous marathons
| 1 Rock 'n' Roll Arizona Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 Great organization. A huge crowd, yet felt that the event was so well organized; everything went very smoothly and information was put out there well in advance. Enthusiastic specatators, especially in Scottsdale! When I got there on Thursday, the local media was full of hype about the marathon and it was a huge success! The course was great and scenic in some areas, but there were some places in neighborhoods where traffic was running in the other direction, and once a car pulled in front of me and others to cross over into a driveway. I thought the water stands were well manned; however, they were a bit stingy on the sports drink, often offering a quarter cup, and I would have to stop and get a second or a third cup. The bannana line was way too long so I passed on it. All in all, it was a great marathon. I highly recommend it. | |
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k. L. from Mesa, AZ
(1/15/2007)
"Great Race" (about: 2007)
2 previous marathons
| 1 Rock 'n' Roll Arizona Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 I had a great time! The course was easy to run, the water stations were spaced nicely, and it was great to see all the people along the race course. One downside: the sports drink was the worst sports drink EVER! | |
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J. D. from Scottsdale, AZ
(1/15/2007)
"Remarkable in its utter badness" (about: 2007)
2 previous marathons
| 1 Rock 'n' Roll Arizona Marathon
COURSE: 1 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 2 I am a Scottsdale resident who decided to try the local half-marathon this year for the first time. Where do I start with this thoroughly disappointing experience. I should have learned from reading prior years' comments about the utter inability to get runners from the parking area to the race. I arrived at the parking area at 7:00. After a 30-minute wait to enter the laughably disorganized parking lots, I stood in line with literally about 2,000 people waiting for buses that did not come. There were stretches of as long as 20 minutes with no bus, just 2,000 people standing there in the pre-sunrise gloom freezing to death and looking at their watches. By the time we got to the race, it was 8:40; the first few corrals had already departed (including my corral 3). Who knows what happened to the 1,000 people in line behind me, they might still be waiting. Let's talk about the course. As a local, I can tell you that it would be tough to pick a less appealing route for the half-marathon. On McDowell, most of your route will literally grant you a tour of Phoenix's finest strip bars, check cashing joints, garbage strewn vacant lots, with only the occasional muffler shop or abandoned motel to brighten your day. Inexplicably, for much of the route, you have traffic coming at you from the other direction, leaving you with an unpleasant choice - do I run near the middle of road where I can consistently get blasted by the headwind from cars coming at me at 40 mph, or would I prefer the vertigo-inducing camber on the outer portion of the road, requiring me to step-hop along the route under the watchful eye of the wild-eyed vagrants that formed the only "fans" for much of the route? Some have described the route as fast; I would say fair or neutral is probably more accurate, with modest uphill grades on much of the course; I did set a PR on the route of 1:38 (my 1st "official" half marathon, but faster than any half-marathon training runs or marathon splits for me). What's disappointing is that because there are so many potentially fun and beautiful runs in this area, the fact that they chose this route is a total joke. I felt bad for anyone who traveled to visit our city and got treated to Phoenix's skid row. What was good about this race? Well, the smattering of fans once we left skid row were modestly enthusiastic, and I could understand the low numbers given the unseasonably frigid weather. Water stations and post-finish line services were pretty well organized, although it was totally hit or miss on the post-race baggage trucks (my line had 3 people, but others had easily 100). However, any chance of redeeming my organization grade was shot by a 2-hour fiasco trying to leave the horrific parking/shuttle area. The expo was average at best, with the goodie bag nearly devoid of goodies, other than flyers for other (almost certainly better) races. For the money this race charges (about the same as the NY Marathon), you will probably feel like you were fleeced. More than anything, I sense a total lack of respect for the event participants - the whole event and website has a smug attitude about how great their event is, then you get there and find they pretty much treat you like crap. It's just a classless event. | |
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M. G. from Scottsdale, AZ
(1/15/2007)
"A little bit for everyone at this race" (about: 2007)
11-50 previous marathons
| 4-5 Rock 'n' Roll Arizona Marathons
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 The race continues to grow and handles things pretty well. There are a full and half - 13,000 for the full, 25,000 for the half. Expo is adequate, packet pick-up easy, and race-day transport is getting smoother. Plenty of water stops, friendly volunteers, and splits at every mile. Few spectators, but this race is spread out and weather was exceptionally cold this year. Post-race area was organized and had plenty of food; and they gave out Spencos again and gave $10 P.F. Chang's gift cards, too. Reunion area had beer and was pretty organized considering the the huge number of entrants. Bands were numerous along the course and the race started right on time. Corrals were policed well. Start Village had plenty of bagels, fruit, coffee, water, medical, porta-johns, etc. Medal was good as usual. This race continues to grow; it's not real fancy, but it delivers on what is promised. This year's temps made it a bit more challenging - probably because most expected the normal weather of the 40s/50s instead of the 20s. Still, it was sunny and there was almost no wind. | |
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David Terrill, Sr. from Tarentum, Pa.
(1/14/2007)
"I really enjoyed my RNRAZ experience." (about: 2007)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Rock 'n' Roll Arizona Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 For me, I have no complaints. Although most folks I train with know how much I don't care for seemingly endless straight stretches, the mountain views compensated for that. CamelBak looked outstandingly rugged and proud in the cool, clear air. The road surface condition was great. Minimal crowning, and virtually free of contamination such as broken glass, gravel, etc. While the run was almost entirely on asphalt, the traffic circles and brick sections through Scottsdale provided a nice touch of variety. I also noticed that the sewer covers were on the same plane as the road surface, which eliminated a potential footing pitfall. The course was litter-free, also. The fluid station volunteers kept the roadway cleaned up. They were highly supportive, vocal, and seemed to genuinely enjoy giving up their Sunday morning to support the cause. I appreciated their efforts. We had perfect weather conditions this day. Cloud-cover moved off after sundown Saturday, and winds were calm, visibility unlimited, and the sky cobalt blue. Although chilly at 30 degrees, lack of wind dictated shorts and singlet for many of us. Once I started to generate body heat when the race started, I was quite comfortable. There was a good variety of musical genres lining the course. They sounded pretty good, too. I thank all the musicians for putting the "RNR" in today's run. Some were loud, but they were jammin'. That's what bands are supposed to do. Nice touch being identified by name, home town, and age as you crossed the finish line. We were spread out enough to permit this. Gets mighty hard to do once groups start finishing together. The fans were vocal, lining the approach chute. I got them to really pump up the volume by cupping my hands to my ears in an, "I can't hear you" act. Works every time I've done it. The fans like to be acknowledged, too. Plenty of food at the finish area, which was the sports complex at Tempe. Stadium looked awesome nestled among the rugged landscape. This was my first visit to this great state. After the expo, I took the opportunity to drive the course, so there would be no "surprises" today. Next, I did some sightseeing by driving up the Superstition Mountains. Landscape is gorgeous, with the various cacti everywhere, my favorite being the saguaro, standing like sentries on post. Oh, the stories they could tell. Also saw 4 Dahl sheep, 2 rams and 2 ewes. Got some great digital pictures to prove it. The dominant ram had a full-curl horn. The juvenile's horn was only a couple inches long. Can't see things like that back home. Arizona falls as number 17 in the 50-state quest and number 40 overall. Stayed in Mesa with my sister and her family. Was a nice time with them. This was their first experience with a marathon, as finish-line spectators. They really enjoyed it. | |
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C. C. from Phoenix AZ
(1/14/2007)
"Great weather - nice run" (about: 2007)
First Marathon
COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 4 All the comments are true - DO NOT TAKE THE BUSES and DO NOT expect to use the port-o-potties. Great running weather. The best part had to be the homeless people cheering us on where were we running. Second had to be the church people telling us we were running the wrong way and so on - too funny. |
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