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☰
Tucson Marathon Runner Comments
Back to Tucson Marathon Information & Reviews
Course 3.8 
Organization 3.7 
Spectators 2.3
Number of comments: 233 [displaying comments 81 to 91]
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A. S. from San Diego
(12/14/2009)
"Good race; organization could be improved" (about: 2009)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Tucson Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 2 Decent race, well worth running - but not quite a must-do. Tougher course/conditions than the downhill profile would indicate. Seems a somewhat better course would be possible in this area and/or greater Tucson. Few nits: no technical shirt, not enough on-course porta-potties, and post-race shuttle bus problems. Not quite as well organized or with as much attention to details as other top/favorite races, but Tucson is still a great place to visit and run. | |
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C. W. from Arizona
(12/14/2009)
"Pick almost any other marathon over Tucson!" (about: 2009)
11-50 previous marathons
| 2 Tucson Marathons
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 1 The start was beautiful and the course is relatively fast, but the course drink, XOOD, was horrid and the aid stations were mostly drastically understaffed and overwhelmed. At one aid station, I observed that they had mixed up the XOOD in a trash can and then placed it such that runners thought it was a trash can. Despite the spent cups, used Kleenex, and GU packages being tossed in, they continued to scoop out and serve XOOD. It was disgusting. At other aid stations, I had to pour my own water. But the worst part was the finish and the interminable wait for a bus to take runners back to the host hotel. Note: I didn't even mention the unrelenting headwind because organizers have no control over that. | |
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J. L. from Dallas, TX
(12/14/2009)
"Good course, okay organization, no crowd" (about: 2009)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Tucson Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 1 I just ran the 2009 Tucson Marathon yesterday. Review follows...: * Course: The course is very good, although not as downhill as the advertised 2,200-foot drop implies. Yes, it does drop that much, but there are some significant uphills along the way - especially at miles 8 and 24. My biggest complaint about the course was that you had to make a turn on loose sand 50 yards before the finish line! Also, the published elevation profile is CLEARLY not correct. * Organization: The race-day organization before the race is VERY good. The race-day organization after the race was terrible! Not much food. Hard to locate the shuttles back to hotels. There was a 45-minute wait for a shuttle once we found them. Also, the race shirt was pathetic for a marathon that I paid $97.50 for! All we got was a plain, white, cotton, short-sleeved t-shirt! * Spectators: Do not run this race if you want crowd support. There are very few spectators and most of the ones there are only cheering for their friends/family, not the runners as a whole. I know I said a lot negative, but this actually was an enjoyable race. It could just SO easily be so much better. | |
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A. D. from Livermore, CA
(12/14/2009)
"Enjoyable southwest experience" (about: 2009)
6-10 previous marathons
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 This was a well done marathon, and the chance to experience a beautiful part of the southwest made it memorable. The course (although tough) was scenic; no one could help this, but the biggest contributor to the toughness was the headwind from miles 14-22. Felt like I was running uphill, and took huge determination to run through. The uphill portions in the first 9 miles were harder than I expected, especially the one-mile stretch from miles 7 to 8. But in the context of experiencing the Tucson scenery, this was a course I enjoyed; the challenges made it interesting, and reinforced the sense of accomplishment. Well organized overall. I had fun at the expo, which was small, but I managed to find more than enough stuff to overrun my planned budget. Not keen on the race t-shirt, but I liked the hoody I bought, and the price was reasonable. There were enough spectators to encourage me when I needed it. I do not get too caught up in needing a huge fan club when I am tackling these races, but for others, they may have felt a bit sparse. The only recommendations for improvement are: 1) Provide more bus transportation back to the hotels at the end of the race. We were all tired and cold, and the wait for buses when in this condition not fun. I would gladly have paid more for the race registration to accommodate better ending transportation. 2) I was disappointed that I did not have the chance to meet Pam Reed in person; I had read her book this year, and was very inspired by her story; in fact, that is much of what brought me to this race. I understand she was busy at expo time, out evaluating the course - and at the finish line, I believe she was there, but I was too torn up physically to devote energy finding her. Plus, with the long wait for a bus, I had to opt to get in line since I was too cold to spend much more time outside. Realize she had 1.5 million things to manage as race director, but it would have meant a lot to me to let her know she has motivated me to keep up with this sport we both love. One additional positive note: the Hilton El Conquistador is a top notch resort. The accommodations and staff were just wonderful. Gorgeous setting - nestled into the hills - and I really enjoyed my stay there. | |
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L. Y. from Tucson, AZ
(12/14/2009)
"Fast downhill course, but..." (about: 2009)
2 previous marathons
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 1 This is no doubt a fast course (up until mile 19). From miles 19 to 22, it is a small incline even though the course map indicates a downhill course. Make sure you do downhill training, or your quads will be feeling it during the latter part of the race. Organization was good enough for a small race. I was trying to qualify for Boston, but missed it by six seconds, thanks to the strong headwind that we experienced from miles 13-24. | |
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D. S. from Montana
(12/14/2009)
"Some improvements; many more needed" (about: 2009)
11-50 previous marathons
| 3 Tucson Marathons
COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 1 A few things in the '09 edition of the Tucson Marathon were improved over '08: The bus system seemed to work well, and the drop bag system was great - i.e., a fenced area for bags at the finish meant that no one could accidentally walk off with your stuff. And the post-race feed was better than most. But the downsides again outweighed these upsides. The most consequential goof was the total absence of any sports drink at four consecutive aid stations in the critical period from about mile 4 to mile 10. Other things were amiss as well, among them: 1. Being told there's a course map in my goody bag, and finding out at home there's no such thing. 2. Course changes on top of prior course changes, making it difficult to guess which segments are in or out. 3. An unusually deceptive course elevation profile: yes, there's an 1,8000foot net drop, but most of it is in the first 10 miles; and the 2-mile uphill at some 5-6% grade around the 6 to 8 mile marks rivals the hills of the SF Marathon. 4. Mile marker signs were poorly anchored, such that the day's considerable headwinds had blown over about half of them. 5. No elapsed time clocks anywhere on the course - not even at 13.1 miles - and, in a related development, two separate and unequal digital displays at the finish, with no apparent labeling, so you couldnt know which was the full and which the half. 6. Finally, my opinion on this as a BQ is negative, unless you happen to be a runner who does well on uphills. I always run an early December marathon, and will sadly remove Tucson from my eligibility list till I see more uniformly positive runner comments. Competing races have their own bags of rocks, but their pluses will make them my choice in the future. | |
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E. W. from Phoenix, AZ
(12/13/2009)
"Still a fast and solidly run race" (about: 2009)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 Tucson Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 I had previously run the Tucson Half in 2007 and was glad to make it back this year for the full. The previous Tucson Half remains my half-marathon PR, and the full also provided both a PR and BQ today. That said, the race is not a cakewalk. The predominant downhill, with uphills thrown in, give some unique challenges, as did a headwind this year. The expo was small, but check-in and bag-check were well organized. A big plus for this race is the fact that the buses remain for participants to stay warm in prior to the race. Start line porta-potty lines were fairly long, but moved quickly. Having toilets on some of the buses offsets some of this demand. The weather for this race has been pleasant for both races I've participated in. I think the water stops were well spaced. However, the first 2 stops were ill equipped for the initial onslaught of runners (before the spread out) - the volunteers here were working hard, but were understaffed. Finish line featured massages and leg rubs, which appeared to be appreciated, although I did not partake. Race results posted VERY quickly. I rated the desert scenery 4 stars as an AZ native, but if you haven't spent much time in the desert, it may be 5 stars. The desert really is beautiful Medals are OK, but shirts were cotton; it would be nice to have a tech shirt option - without having to buy separately at the expo. Fans are fairly sparse (probably due to the relatively rural location), but those out there were motivational. Overall, a very good weekend and race - thanks, volunteers and organizers! | |
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R. H. from Midwest, USA
(1/11/2009)
"Definitely A Good Boston Qualifier" (about: 2008)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Tucson Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 2 I would not hesitate to recommend this marathon. The course is challenging in spots but overall fairly fast. Organization was good. There were very few spectators, which is not important for me. Those who commented previously that this is not a Boston qualifier are flat wrong, as I qualified and was not in top condition. There are some challenging hills in the first 10K and the Biosphere Road area was pretty difficult. From there it was a nice gentle downhill until we had some uphill at the end. I did not do extensive downhill training and found it was not necessary as most of the downhills are gentle enough that my quads were not beat up. I think this is a great course with lots of variety. One commenter wrote that if runners knew the extent of the hills, this would scare runners away. I don't agree with this comment. There are hills but they aren't that bad, and there is a net downhill of nearly 1,800 feet. What more could you ask for? Challenges here and there give character to a course. We had nearly perfect weather for the race with very little wind and temps from 45 to 55. I would recommend staying at the host hotel, the Hilton El Conquistador. The price was reasonable and it had a festive holiday atmosphere. | |
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D. E. from USA
(12/20/2008)
"Are marathons supposed to be easy?" (about: 2008)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Tucson Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 2 I honestly don't understand the complaints about the difficulty of the course. I came from out of state, having never seen the route, and it matched my expectations perfectly. There were some rolling hills between 2 and 4, between 10 and 14, and near the finish - just like it showed in the profile. None of the hills were particularly difficult - I can't believe a bunch of marathon runners are complaining that a course with nearly 1800 feet net downhill, and just a few short uphills, isn't fast enough. Marathons aren't supposed to be easy, or they'd be called 5K's. The start was on-time, the course was well marshaled, the aid stations were perfect, and my 4-year-old daughter loved the finish medal (she gets all of my medals). My only wish was that there was more substantial food at the finish line, given the entry fee. All in all, it was a well run race, and I would definitely consider running it again. | |
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B. H. from South Jordan, Utah
(12/12/2008)
"Overrated for speed" (about: 2008)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Tucson Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 1 My brother-in-law and I decided that we needed a fast late 2008 marathon. First the positives: 1) Arizona is always a nice place to be in December. 2) I enjoyed the Arizona weather and landscape (although it does lack variety). 3) I enjoy the small-race feel. Now the problem. 1) Be honest in your description of the course, especially the elevation mapping. The website and all info regarding the race seemed to portray this as one of the fastest courses anywhere. Apparently the course has changed from previous races (it is only that now I am reading about it after the fact). I have run about 40 marathons. I like to train specifically for what I am going to see on the course. If the course has hills early then I will train running hills early in a long run, etc. It was a long way to travel for us to get to Tucson and I wish we had been accurately informed. 2) Non-existent crowds. Does anyone in the area even know that the races are occurring? |
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