CarolynRenee Newman's Staging Area

Lots of good swag and great party!
Would have liked a better food option for my meal ticket vs four beets. Bite size Bundt cake didn’t seem “meal-like”

Packet pickup, start and finish line all located in same spot. Nice long sleeved shirt and small cooler bag with some goodies. Things for purchase if you forget anything
The course is super flat and beautiful. It’s two loops yet it didn’t seem familiar the second time thru. I had a lot of family and friends there to celebrate my 50th State. Even tho the Isle was closed to traffic, spectators can easily move around to see their people
Plenty of aid stations throughout
Nice nice and a bag at the finish with a subway box and water

Packet pickup at host hotel was simple with no vendors
Bus pick up at library close to host hotel. I stayed at Best Western and easily walked that morning
The course was very well marked and supported with THE most nice volunteers. All cross road had nice traffic control as well
The course was mostly along roads parallel to interstate…. So ok. The second half is rolling hills and lots of them. The finish in downtown along their walking mall was a nice finish. For someone who is a bit faster… be prepared for it to be busy with lots of 5 & 10K as you finish. I was mostly solo on the run until the very end and I too, bumped into walkers
Your bib gets you free drink and food at local spots which was so nice!

Packet pick up was smooth at a host hotel in downtown. Medium size vendor for things you may need for race day.
The course was well supported with friendly and helpful volunteers. Plenty of traffic control and fuel. The course was through the campus and along their trail systems along the Wilmette River! Prepare yourself for mostly concrete which I’ve never experienced and my joints paid for it!
The finish in the stadium along the track was so nice!
They were stingy with heat sheets at the end of the race. Nice touch of having a grilled cheese sandwich and one free beer!
Solid medal and nice quality shirt!

Great communication from RD. Simple packet packet with two different pick up locations. Just a shirt and a license plate cover. I personally stayed in a hostel near the finish line in Lahaina. Caught the FREE early bus just steps away. The views are never ending, a few rolling hills about mid-way thru race. No party that I could tell at end of race. Water and Gatorade is all I saw. I finished towards the end taking my time in the sun and enjoying the views! YES, I saw whales in the distance while running…🐳

Packet pick up at local running store so if you need any last minute fuel or whatever, it’s available.
Shuttle parking and transportation pretty simple. There is tent and goodies at the start/finish.
Plenty of aid support and frequency! Lots of “fun” on the course as far and necessary fuel and other things like food, pickle juice, fireball & beer.
This was a double out and back not a loop. On the shorter out and back there was a smaller loop which to me was just torture to me! lol
The shirt is long sleeve in neon green and medal was okay…
It was rainy for 2022, only 15 minute delay to start. Tents available at start/finish.

I am completely happy with my performance given the hills and my fourth marathon in 22 days!
Nice shirt and bag at bib pick up with a few vendors. Paid parking everywhere in Bar Harbor. Nice medal with ribbon for finishers.
Stunning views through a lot of the course and then the dreaded highway towards end. Support of Gatorade and water every two-ish miles and maybe 2-3 spots for gels.
The first disappointment came with an over two hour wait for the bus ride back to start line to Bar Harbor. Gossip said it was even the same scenario with half marathoners earlier as well.
The after party later in the evening… nothing given. Just a menu with unique names for food and drink at your own cost 🤷🏼‍♀️
The views and challenging course and so close to Acadia National Park is what makes you run this race.

Expo small and simple; long sleeve tech shirt and reusable bag with few vendors for last minute needs. The medal one of the cheaper that I’ve seen
The rain held off for the marathon; however, the wind was steady throughout which made for a rough run (hurricane Ian)
The volunteers and course support of water and Gatorade were plentiful. One spot offered gels in the latter half
The scenery was awesome with two memorable climbs and some rollers
This race has a strict six hour cut off and, YES, finish mats and tables being collected around 6:15
Enjoy the clam chowder; delish!

Packet pick was easy with no vendors; race shirt is ok. Race morning start was on time. The hills came early on and continue all of this race. Ate me alive! So much beauty to pass the time. Well stocked stations pretty frequent with multiple out and backs so hit them both ways. Watermelon with salt on the course this year was yummy. Not much of an after party; however, I was one of the last few to finish so maybe we missed it. Ice cold pool to wade or soak in after is a plus!

This is a very well run race even despite the early start bus driver who didn’t show up for the early start folks. The race director handled everything so well; kudos to him!
Packet pick up was located at one of the host hotels (great price) and close to finish line/bus pickup. No swag, shirt and a bib!
The course was staffed with plenty of water/Gatorade stops. Because the race is completely cupless maybe bring your own handheld or camelpack as they handed out full water and Gatorade bottles.
Buses dropped you off at Liberty Lake for the start. By mile 6-7 you made your way along the Spokane River and stayed along the River for most of the race. I would guess about five miles or less was along the highway before making your way through Gonzaga Campus and back to the River to finish.
The course was very well marked (even for the early starters) and traffic control at a handful of needed intersections.

Don’t go out of your way for packet pickup day before; you can easily pick up on race day morning. You get a shirt and a bib.
Be prepared for the later 8am start. Race day for 2022 was full sun and got to 69°F.
The views going into the National Park ($25 entrance fee) where gorgeous! The paved trail was tough and hard on the joints; however, the gravel portion and shade from the tunnels were welcoming! I wish this race could have utilized more of the trail vs the concert. (The course description above is not accurate; check their website)
The full marathon does the course twice with two out and backs. Very small amount of participants. The course was well stocked with water, Gatorade and gels. The start/finish area had good music playing!
Tshirt seems like decent material and medal is ok.

My race was deferred from April 2020 and 2021 then postponed to November of 2021.
Packet pick up at the convention center was quick and convenient. Just a few venders.
The race swag was basic. IMO, ugly yellow shirt, breakfast burrito at the finish with water and energy drinks. The medal was pretty nice; however, it has the April 2021 stamped on it. I understand for cost purposes and the strange times with Covid but it kinda sucks.
I love a race that incorporates the use of the city’s trail/bike paths and this race put them to good use! Expect some hills throughout the race, equally up and down. The volunteers/police/city workers were wonderful throughout and felt safe and on course the entire time.
My personal performance has been suffering lately and I’m still working on figuring some heath issue. Overall, I’m happy with my performance at this good runners weather race date!

I just love a race that has great community support and when the money raised goes to something good! This race had both!
The expo was small. The people there were so friendly. I even got a cupcake because my bday was five days earlier….thoughtful! (Appreciated because I had been traveling solo for over a week!)
Small race, so not a lot of people around after the first half. Be prepared for gravel road running. It was particularly sunny and not a bit of breeze on my race. Made for a struggle those last five miles or so!
There were still several people (support) at the end even tho I finished right under six hours. Pizza, chocolate milk and beer still available. Very nice, friendly people!

This race is usually in Feb. I was glad to add this race to my list in Sept 2021. It was HOT!
Expo was simple and nothing too exciting; few vendors. Shirt was navy cotton and true to size.
The race was mostly along the coast except the about seven or so miles. The path from mile 16 til the end was shared with other runners and cyclists. Some were rude and path could be crowded at times.

Post COVID race….
The expo was basically, pick up for shirt and bib. No vendors, just flyers and a protein bar in the bag.
Catching the bus at 3:30, not so bad (we’ve all done this before). Sitting at the top of Big Mountain for 90 minutes is a bit frustrating.
It’s dark at the start, dawn within the first 20 minutes (full moon day of my race was helpful). Steady decline and winding road well into the fifth mile. Yes, beautiful running out of the mountain. Thru some neighborhoods and then mostly highway running. Not all intersections felt safe but most were ok. No crowd support or spectators, so if you like or need this you’ll not find it here! For being over a 50 year race you’d think the community would be more welcoming… quite the opposite as we felt like we were a nuisance.
Because of my poor personal performance, I did not have the opportunity to run with the parade which I think could have been very cool.
I was almost hit by a car (not close) but because of the commotion of that and the police officer I almost missed a turn.
Lastly; there are no other timing mats in the course except for the start and finish. After looking at the map, my friend and I believe anyone familiar with the city and details of the course, could easily cut 3-4 miles off the marathon. We are
Confident at least one person did just that! They’ve only cheated themselves but this could be avoided.

Everything about this race was smooth from packet pickup, morning shuttle to the race itself. I LOVE the ocean so if you’re not a fan it may be slightly boring because this rAce is along the Gulf the ENTIRE time! No post party because of social distance, etc but they had package of goodies and water as you headed out of the park. Glad to get a fourth marathon in for 2020! No complaints here

Great communication. Expo was extremely small. The whole race is mostly beach rentals and then the out and back over the bridge (hwy) between miles 22/23. Well supported with water/Gatorade. Nice finishers jacket and pizza & a beer at the end.

This race was so fun with soooo many “yard parties”…. love when residents come out to support marathons! THE best corral organization I’ve seen; other large marathons should take note! The extra mileage to the Center of the Universe was a cool touch (and added coin)! Ended up with 26.5 miles… considered an ultra marathon! Well done!

It’s been a few marathons ago since I ran this race…. I remember the winding, hilly, beautiful neighborhoods the first half; a little challenging. The thing that stood out the most was the “aid stations” on bikes… I don’t usually need aid but they had a little of everything on their bikes including food, music and motivation! Saw them plenty of times if I was in need!

This race was actually held on December 2, 2017 due to rescheduling following Hurricane Irma! My daughter and I had a wonderful time on the Island!
I loved the early morning start and sunrise while running. Boring out and back; struggled at the end. BUT, because of lower turn out… I GOT 3RD overall Female!! That has NEVER happened! Got a local brewed six pack and a dried, damaged coconut recovered from the hurricane.

Ran for a charity organization – Opportunity Enterprises. The group I trained with sucked me into marathons!

Charity Village was awesome for a first timer.

Great, huge crowd support and plenty of aid stations!