David Smith's Staging Area

Last year the race was somewhat unorganized at the finish line with the new post-COVID route. This year however they rocked it! This is Detroit!!!

Overall I really enjoyed participating in the race experience here.

THE EXPO:
Pretty good overall with a large variety of vendors… Garmin, Nuun, Air Force, Army, local service providers and running stores. Most booth gave away swag. There are a few things they could do to improve the experience: 1) give the shirt and check bag with the bib to eliminate cues and congestion… as is, the runner needs to hunt these locations down at the site.

THE RACE:
It was every thing I expected. The race routed across the 3 rivers using 3 separate bridges. It also took you by every professional sports venue in the city (Acrisure Stadium, PNC Park, Highmark Field and PPG Paints Arena) and past the 2 iconic inclines.

The final 3 miles were TOUGH!!! A major incline on the final bridge. It was devastating to see the marathoners start their decent while I was only half way up the bridge. Shortly after the bridge there is a pretty substantial hill where they had hill runners to motivate and challenge you.

Since the race website did not include the elevation graph for the event I did not know how to train properly.

Improvement points:
1) Please add the elevation charts to the race website.
2) Please allow runners to shift to later corrals. I registered the same day using the same estimated time as a friend and we got place in different corrals. The race marshal did not let us switch and run together.
3) A printed race guide would be appreciated… it is handy and could be kept as a momentum.

Nevertheless, this is an iconic race… and one of my favorite races so far! Thank you Pittsburgh for putting on an amazing event.

I was pumped for this even… but leave somewhat disappointed. Below are my notes:

PACKET PICKUP & EXPO:
It was located near St. Paul and hard to get to. I took a train and bus from downtown. At the expo I was given my shirt and bib only… no bag to pre- pack for morning drop. No printed race guide. Small table selling extra race apparel.

RACE AID STATIONS:
Everyone was very nice and helpful. I think the organizer may have added aid stations because of heat and humidity.

SWAG:
Nice tech shirt. There was 1 common medal for all events… 5k, Half Relay & Half.

FINISH LINE:
Strong effort. Water, Gatorade, Chocolate Milk, choice of ice cream, bananas and hotdogs. Also provide a beer of choice from Summit brewing.

VIP EXPERIENCE:
This was a great addition. Bag check was good… but had to walk 0.2 miles each way from Half start to drop off. Extra beer, free massage, fruit bar. Special gift was a beach mat.

One of the best races I’ve participated it. Majestic views of the Casco Bay and Back Cove. Weather was cool sub-60 at the start with a few bouts of rain.

Course itself was half road and half cinder trail (around Back Cove). Stay on the inside around the cove… I hit a root on the outside and ended up pulling a muscle trying to maintain balance. Watch out as there is about a 0.1km stretch of cobblestone before the finish… slow down to avoid an ankle injury.

This race is extremely well organized… everyone was excited that the start & finish wash relocated to the old port this year. After crossing the finish line you had 2 beer garden options… one with a live band! 2 free beers, pizza and ice cream topped the post race food offerings along with fruit, kind bars and maple water.

Swag included a tech tank (ran large) and a stained glass medal.

Highly recommended race!!!

Everything was first-class. Shuttle bus to remote start location was smooth. Start area well staffed & supported (toilets, bag drop, carbs & drinks). No shortage of aid stations… all with Powerade and water… 3 with Cliff shots. Great finish line food.

Best medal ever! Mediocre shirt. Cool Big 3 Challenge award.

A special note should be add to thank the residents of Missoula!! It seems the whole city is involved as volunteers or on-course support. I lost count of the number of families offering motivational support. Many had sprinklers on the road to keep runners cool. Some even set up their own aid stations stocked with tastes treats (water, ice, gummie bears, pop sickles, etc.)

Great 1st marathon. Pretty dry the entire race but got caught in downpours the last 4 miles.

Race expo was at Cobo Hall… simple parking and very well organized. Unfortunately there was a big issue with participant shirts as they were not available from the selected vendor… cool design… but as of April 2017 I have yet to receive mine!!!

My only complaint is that the post race party was closed down 5:30 minutes after the start of the marathon… 1 hour before the official cut-off.