Jennifer Vieira's Staging Area

I was so disappointed in the race this year! I have participated previously and really enjoyed it, but there were so many let-downs this year. I felt like I (and other participants) had to drag information out of the race organizers (How can friends and family track me? When will the medal/t-shirt designs be revealed? Are there water stations?). The great expo that had happened in the past, was totally non-existent. I liked the Karbach location for packet pick up, but there was only ONE vendor there, no free swag, and no guest speakers; it was a total let-down. Previous years, there was discounted parking made available to racers, but not this year. On race day, the only bathrooms that most people were aware of were the ones inside of the park where the race began and ended and they were horribly overcrowded and gross. There was road construction that was beyond the race orgainzers’ control, but to not work with the city to find an alternative route, much less to wait until only FIVE days before the race to notify participants of the change is inexcusable. I know, by contacting the Mayor’s Office of Special Events, that the closure/reroute was in discussion for at least 3 weeks before the race. There is no reason that racers shouldn’t have been notified sooner and given the opportunity to defer. The reworked course was neither fast nor flat (Fast, Flat, and Philanthropic IS the race motto) and was overcrowded. All of the hand cyclists and faster runners were getting caught up when they made their second loop and were stuck behind the slower runners still on their first lap. Additionally, it was poorly marked; my friend missed the second loop and only ran 8.5 miles instead of 13.1 and another friend missed the turn around for the 10K race and ended up running 8 miles instead of 6.2. At the conclusion of the race, I did not speak to a single person whose GPS reading was remotely close to 13.1 miles. I know that watches are not exact, but there is no way that that many people’s records were .3 – .8 miles more than 13.1 unless the course measurement was off to begin with. I have looked for the recertified USTAF course for this year’s half, and have been unable to locate it. The only good thing about the race is the nice medal and t-shirt and the fact that the beer line was short.