Jen Simone's Staging Area

I have participated in the Toronto Marathon in previous years and recently as a spectator. Unfortunately, the event has some big areas of improvement. The concerns at the beginning of the event were disappointing to say the least. Rather than creating an organized/welcoming atmosphere, it felt chaotic and claustrophobic and runners were corralled within the fencing perimeter. The porta johns also, awful conditions, no toilet paper, runners were urinating outside the Porta Johns. Definitely lacking in many ways.
Crowd flow/space/ better washroom facilities for the runners would greatly improve the beginning of the experience. During the race, the lack of stations and water thru out the race was unacceptable. Cars driving thru intersections id definitely a safety concern.
The end of the race was complete chaos, unable to find your family members or follow them online due to lack of cell phone reception, the runners were then corralled into another fencing area. After running for hours, they again had to stand in line to receive the medals and food. This event has been great in the past, but improvements in logistics and participant comfort and runner safety and basic event planning would make this a more positive experience for runners and spectators.