Jack Levengard's Staging Area

A good friend of mine turned 50 this year, so she said she was running this 50 miler. I surprised her on race day at the starting line because I wanted to support her. She and I are both marathoners, so 50 miles is a bit farther for me :-).

As a non-trail runner, I had some challenges, so, for me, this was a difficult run. Lots of uphills and roots in the ground. But that’s trail running.

There were 2 drop bag locations on race day. So I didn’t have to carry around a lot of extra stuff, I put socks, GUs, chapstick and vasoline in my bags The bags were collected on race morning by the start and dropped off at the mile 24 and mile 40 aid stations. The best part was the bags were brought back to the finish line waiting for you.

The main thing that stood out for me was the race support. I have run over 25 marathons and I have never had race support like this. There were 10 official (and at least 2 unofficial) aid stations. The food that was provided was fantastic. Tater tots, pb&j sandwiches, hash browns, quesadillas, m&ms, bananas, sodas, pickle juice, soups, etc. I barely used any of my own GUs. Volunteers constantly asking if they could get me something.

The good news is we beat the last cutoff by more than 30 minutes, so my friend got the finish she was looking for.

As a road runner and (until this race) not an ultra-marathoner, I can highly recommend this trail run.

And the only reason the swag was a 3 shoe review and not more (or less) is that it was not what was important for this race. It was a minor item that had no bearing on why I ran or what I liked about the race.

I ran this marathon because I am looking to complete my military service marathons (Marine Corps, Air Force, Coast Guard). It is a quaint little town. Coasties were very helpful and friendly. Don’t be surprised, though, by the Confederate flags you see flying about.

While I will give the marathon communications and engagement an A+, there were a few things I was not happy about. I got to the expo late afternoon on Friday. The vendor spaces had a bunch of empty tables. Not sure if vendors left early or those were extra tables. If vendors left early, shame on them. When I picked up my bid, I was told there were no safety pins available. Serious? I’ve run 20 marathons and that was a first. Normally, I always bring my own, but I left them at home (go figure). Luckily, there was a Walmart nearby where I was able to purchase safety pins.

When I woke up, the temperature said 67 degrees!!! Yikes. I will never fault nor criticize a marathon organization for the weather. That can’t be helped. Thankfully, there were plenty of water stops, which was a blessing because there was basically no shade; the course is wide open (and flat!!). I took extra precaution and poured water over my head at every water stop. The volunteers at the water stops were top notch.

The course took us through the Coast Guard air base twice, including the runway. Sun beating down and running 4ish miles on hard concrete? I didn’t think that one through LOL.

Don’t expect much crowd support. It was great at the start/finish line, but this is a small town and most of the race is through the air base and empty fields. We did run through some housing developments and it was nice when someone came outside to cheer, but that was few and far between.

The biggest issue for me was the wind. I have never faced winds like that. The first 8-10 miles was great, but for the rest of the race, there were headwinds averaging around 20-30 mph with wind gusts around 40. Twice, I was nearly blown over. I kept wondering when I would be blown to Oz. Because this was a flat course (I think the biggest hill was 5 feet!), I was looking to PR, but running against that wind for 15+ miles took too much out of me.

While I normally don’t care about the medal, their medal r was pretty cool. It had a coast guard ship on it that you could move back and forth like it was going over waves.

When I give an overall rating, it is based upon my overall experience. If the wind wasn’t so persistent and fierce, I would have given the marathon a 4 instead of a 3.

This was my 17th marathon. Since I had run the Twin Cities Marathon, I decided it was time to run the Quad Cities Marathon. Nice small towns with very enthusiastic crowds. I have never run a race with so few marathoners (only 370 runners. it’s their half that draws many more runners), but you would never know it by the preparation, volunteers and whole atmosphere. Some beautiful scenery along the Mississippi. You also run by a military cemetery, which is always moving. Course is generally flat. The small hills are toward the first half of the race. One huge warning: there is NO shade. Even though I drank at every water stop (which there were ample) and took nutrition every 4-5 miles, it turned out that wasn’t enough for me. It was warm and the sun was shinning. I cramped up around mile 20 and found I was very dehydrated by the end of the race. Lastly, be prepared to bring your own stuff to refuel after the race. They have a very limited post-race event. By the time I finished (at under 4 1/2 hrs), I only saw some potato chips, water and soda. I heard there might have been other food, which means they ran out early – very bad form. I desperately needed some electrolytes so I didn’t stay long. Went back to my hotel where, from experience, I stash drinks and food to refuel. Would I run it again? Not sure. The actual race was well run and my getting dehydrated was not their fault. I just wish there was something more than water and chips at the finish for the runners.

The Marines know how to run a race. I have run 8 MCMs and 1 virtual (2020). There is a lot to like. Very enthusiastic crowds. Fantastic scenery. Run past national monuments. The Blue Mile where you run past the pictures of fallen soldiers is very moving. I would highly recommend this race to anyone. It is a great first-timers event.