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Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon Runner Comments
Back to Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon Information & Reviews
Course 3.3 
Organization 2.7 
Spectators 2.8
Number of comments: 736 [displaying comments 21 to 31]
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j. C. from Louisiana
(11/28/2015)
"Relatively flat - but boring" (about: 2015)
11-50 previous marathons
COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 2 This was my 17th marathon. No spectators for half the race, no mile markers as they were either not there or blown down, boring boring boring. I will not run this one again. | |
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D. R. from US of A
(11/19/2015)
"Rot 'n Roll Vegas lives up to expectations" (about: 2015)
11-50 previous marathons
COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 2 I'm going to start this off with a disclaimer. I hate RnR races and I vowed after San Antonio 2013 to never run one again. The only reason I ran this race was because I was asked to pace it, and pacing comes with a free entry (and I had never been to Vegas). I would personally never fork over money to the scam that is Competitor Group. There is only 1 good thing to say about this race, running the strip is neat and is a one of a kind experience. You can't do it anywhere else. Other than that, hold on to your hats because this is a bad review. To start, Competitor Group needs to stop believing that they produce marathons and live with the fact that they are all about the half marathon. The Vegas 26.2 course (much like San Antonio) has 13.1 miles of utter garbage. It runs through the crummy neighborhoods of parts of Vegas no one wants to see with a lame out and back format. Why do they do this? Because they don't care about the marathon...and why would you when 25,000 people run the half and 2,500 run the full? It's time that Competitor gets out of the business of producing horrible marathons and just sticks to halfs and below. Their lack of care for marathon shows up in other places besides the course. Aid stations on the back half of the race were poorly stocked and didn't have enough volunteers. It was dark, cold, winding and boring. Finding Gatorade was like searching for a pot of gold at the end of a rainbow - it didn't exist. Spectators didn't exist (and who can blame them). When a faster marathon finisher got to the end of the race, their efforts were rewarded by needing to impossibly navigate a sea of slooooooow half marathoners who really didn't give two dangs about the fact that I actually just RAN a race in awful conditions. The finish line stinks, with way too many people and not enough food. I don't care about 'bling' so I'm not even going to discuss it. Be warned, don't give your money to Competitor. Find a race put on by some local race director that cares about a runner's experience and not just about making money. Competitor talks a big game, and does a great job marketing itself with glitz and glare and selfie stations and bling and all the other stuff that is 'wrong' with our sport today. They put far more effort into marketing (and by marketing I mean selling the myth that they know what they are doing and their races are any good) than they do in making sure you have a good race experience. Again, I stress...find a real race to run. Give your money to a great local race that is likely run as a non-profit. Competitor and their crummy races will not go away until you stop giving them your money. Rant over. | |
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B. G. from Maryland
(11/19/2015)
"Marathon is an after-thought to the half marathon" (about: 2015)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 1 Running down the strip for 3 miles, with loads of spectators, is exciting. However, after that, welcome to the seedy part of Vegas. Once the half marathoners split off at mile 9, the marathon continues in commercial parts of town, but the lack of fellow competitors (only 2500 finished the marathon), the darkness, and the wind, makes it almost a lonely experience. Also, it is unexcusable to have at most 4 mile markers on the entire course, and very little GU or any other nutrition handouts. Once the glitz of the start and the strip wears away, you feel that you are running in a low key local race, and not something that is supposed to be a high end, pricey, marathon. | |
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M. C. from NY, USA
(11/18/2015)
"RNR - Vegas - a HUGE Disappointment!" (about: 2015)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon
COURSE: 1 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 1 It is official, the Rock N Roll Marathon operation is nothing more than a money grab. Poor expo (unless you want to buy their over priced garb). The corral start is horrendous. An honor system gone crazy. Folks walking in the first couple of miles blocking the course. The biggest gripe I have is that hundreds think they ran a marathon but DID NOT. Upon reaching the 18 mile mark, I saw people who were at 16 miles and were told to not make the turn on Carrie but to just stay straight on MLK. The same thing happened as I exited the World Market. At this point there were people who had run 3 fewer miles than me. This is unacceptable. I am slow and I know it. But to see results of folks that ran 23 miles instead of 26.2 having a better time makes me upset. It was not a first for me, as the RNR folks did the same thing in DC. Their web page says there are two cut off points at miles 9 and 13. Who the heck just started cutting more down the road and why should those who did not run the full marathon get the honor of being credited with running a full? The only two good things were the Kid Rock concert and seeing the lights of the strip at night. Oh yeah, after crossing the finish line, when cold and tired, they would not let you exit. You had to go about another half mile. And for me, I was staying north so, add a mile. And oh yeah again, the World Market was awful. Blaring techno crap and blinding lights that made running unsafe. It was billed as an athletic event not a Rave. There really was nothing good about this race. I am just glad I liked Kid Rock. Will be my last RNR for sure. | |
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E. G. from Utah
(11/18/2015)
"Running on the strip is a one-of-a-kind experience" (about: 2015)
11-50 previous marathons
| 6+ Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathons
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 This was my 7th time running the full marathon for the Las Vegas marathon. At first, I was disappointed in hearing that the full marathoners wouldn't get the privilege of running down Fremont Street. That was always the highlight of the race getting high-fives and hearing the cheering people. It is my hope they somehow make this happen again. That being said, the organizers did make up for part of it by allowing us to run around a Vegas open air market that was decorated with lots of strobe lights and techno music. I found the music at times to be too loud and grating, but at other times it was good to give you a good jolt of energy. If you are into club music, than this is your 'zone' They really did a good job here in giving it a party-like atmosphere. The course was well supported with Gatorade and water stops every few miles. The volunteers were cheery and appeared to be well organized. They could've used a lot more bathrooms on the course especially early on. The first few miles there were lines at each of the stops and I wound up having to postpone my visit until later in the race (particularly after I had left the half marathoners). Running on the strip is just incredible and I liked the vibe. There was a decent fan base cheering you along here as well. The course got really lonely later in the race as there was minimal fan support. The north side of Vegas isn't the most inviting and I could tell some of those stuck in traffic were less than happy with our presence. Also the area behind the Stratosphere is really bad. I got a bit of a crowd boost as I approached the finish line, however. There were mile markers but I noticed, especially the second half, they were either absent or hard to find. I wound up running well over 26.5 (my Garmin read 26.79) miles on account of crowd weaving and getting to bathrooms. If you aren't happy running in dimly lit streets (at times) this race may not be for you. The course is fairly flat but has some long inclines in the second half. However, you do get to go down all the hills you climb. I liked the t-shirt and the medal is a typical heavy-duty one that featured a slot machine. I paid $99 for the race, which is a bargain considering what I got. My goody-bag was pretty thin but they had plenty of vendors at the Expo. I miss seeing the Flamingo girls to get your picture taken with, though. Corral management is always hit and miss. There were people clearly lined up in the wrong corrals and it can cause some frustration if you are shooting for a fast time. It wasn't uncommon to see walkers and 14+ minute milers in the first 8 corrals. This is a big race, though, so expect to be hampered for the first few miles. The finish line consisted of Gatorade, chocolate milk, bananas, pretzels and protein bars. Fairly typical for this kind of race. Would've been nice to have a heating lamp or two. They also had ample medical support on the course and at the finish line. Overall I like this race and will likely run it again. If you are shooting for a fast time, however, you may want to select a different race (or get in one of the first couple corrals). There is a lot of energy here and if you like running at night and on the strip, this race is for you. | |
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C. C. from Canada
(11/18/2015)
"Embarrassing to call this VEGAS." (about: 2015)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon
COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 1 With all the hype and glitz/glamour of Vegas, this course was extremely disappointing. | |
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R. h. from New Jersey
(11/18/2015)
"my 1st and last rock and roll marathon" (about: 2015)
50+ previous marathons
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 2 A very disappointing marathon...a banana, a bag of pretzels, and a beer??? a rock and roll marathon should have good music...the sound systems for ALL THE DJs were horrible...nothing but loud noise...and yes, there was the wind problem..I did not know which mile I was at times..you could have done something better to mark the miles along with some kind of lighting at each marker. | |
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W. D. from Dallas, Texas
(11/17/2015)
"Just Run LV BLVD" (about: 2015)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon
COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 2 About half of the LV Marathon course is run in the dark in North Las Vegas. This is unpleasant and unappealing, so I would not recommend this marathon. I think a better course would be to start at the same place on LV Blvd. In front of the Mandalay Bay, but run about 7.5 south on LV Blvd before the turnaround (currently about 1 mile) and upon returning to the Mandalay Bay, follow the half marathon course. Better lighting, less dangerous, less turns, and better psychologically because running past the hotels on the strip would happen during the last half of the marathon. | |
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D. G. from Boston
(4/22/2015)
"I ran the half marathon and was impressed." (about: 2014)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 I ran the half marathon and I was worried that I would have to carry my own Gatorade but was surprised this drink was on the course and freshly poured. The corrals were awful - too many runners with slower times were in the top 15 corrals for a better start time. I was not prepared for the very cold weather and the 20 mile per hour head winds made the run more difficult. I was pleasantly surprised that all the problems that the 2013 marathon and half marathon was addressed and corrected by RNR sponsors. I was able to relax and catch my stride running along the strip and into the neighborhoods, it was dark but well lit and I just followed the person in front of me. At the end of the race the food was great, power bars, real bananas, chocolate milk was really good, other snacks, not so much for the warm beer after the race. The pick up gear trucks perfect and putting on warm clothing after the race was better than the beer. I was overall impressed with the run and the organization, the helpers and all the spectators that stayed and cheered the runners on was very special. I plan on running the full marathon in 2015. | |
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N. N. from The Villages, Florida
(4/1/2015)
"Like a red-headed step-child" (about: 2014)
First Marathon
COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 That's exactly how it felt. The organization will gladly take your money but not provide you with the amenities of full marathoners. Ran the half of a half. After the strip, the course was dark and a bit worrisome. Few amenities after leaving the strip It was cold. After the finish, we got a bus ride back to strip. After drop off by bus we had to walk about a mile to get back to where we needed to go. Marathoners & half marathoners got mylar blankets to keep them warm while they were on the strip. The half of the half runners got no such thing. Yes - it was cold. A mylar blanket would have been a nice touch. But guess the organizers are more interested in the money rather than making runners feel like they had a good experience. |
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