BUPA Great North RunHere's how RW members rated this race in the past (1517 votes). 2011 race reviewed by: phil Lowry
 | | Overall score | | 80% | | Would you do it again? | | Yes | | | | Details: | | Scenery | | 80% | | PB potential | | 60% | | Atmosphere | | 80% | | Organisation | | 100% | | Value | | 40% | | Beginner-friendliness | | 80% |
In short: 9th year of doing it- love it every time In full: the numbers that do it and the atmosphere make it a special race, yes it is challenging with the profile, but very worthwhile with the support that is equal to the VLM. Depending which zone you start from the course has PB potenial. Date of review: September 22, 2011
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2011 race reviewed by: Derek Brown 7
 | | Overall score | | 100% | | Would you do it again? | | Yes | | | | Details: | | Scenery | | 60% | | PB potential | | 40% | | Atmosphere | | 100% | | Organisation | | 100% | | Value | | 80% | | Beginner-friendliness | | 80% |
In short: Fabulous In full: Great atmosphere,fabulous music in the finishers tent have a beer and a dance after the race! Date of review: September 22, 2011
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2011 race reviewed by: Kathryn Booth
 | | Overall score | | 100% | | Would you do it again? | | Yes | | | | Details: | | Scenery | | 40% | | PB potential | | 60% | | Atmosphere | | 60% | | Organisation | | 80% | | Value | | 40% | | Beginner-friendliness | | 100% |
In short: Love the GNR In full: 7th time out and a pb of 1.43...god I love this race. And the red arrows at the start were pretty special. I agree with other posters though that even starting from orange c (2nd pen of the masses) I encountered people walking after half a mile. Generally however, it's well organised. I wish they'd make you meet family in the athletics stadium at the end where you could stand on the bank and look for people like they used to. Current system does not work. Date of review: September 21, 2011
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2011 race reviewed by: N Render
 | | Overall score | | 100% | | Would you do it again? | | Yes | | | | Details: | | Scenery | | 60% | | PB potential | | 60% | | Atmosphere | | 100% | | Organisation | | 100% | | Value | | 80% | | Beginner-friendliness | | 80% |
In short: Simply the best, largest and half marathon that is supported 100% by the people of the North East. Fantastic Date of review: September 21, 2011
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2011 race reviewed by: Bryan Bentley
 | | Overall score | | 60% | | Would you do it again? | | Yes | | | | Details: | | Scenery | | 40% | | PB potential | | 60% | | Atmosphere | | 100% | | Organisation | | 100% | | Value | | 60% | | Beginner-friendliness | | 100% |
In short: Just lie about your expected time to get a chance of a time In full: Once again disappointed by the amount of people that lie about the expected race time just to get an earlier start nearer the camera's. I made this mistake in Manchester too. I will be knocking at least 45 mins off my expected time next year. I mean people were walking after 1 mile who were in the first group. Apart from that gripe it was a good day out and would recommend it to anyone. Date of review: September 21, 2011
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2011 race reviewed by: Anch
 | | Overall score | | 100% | | Would you do it again? | | Yes | | | | Details: | | Scenery | | 60% | | PB potential | | 60% | | Atmosphere | | 100% | | Organisation | | 100% | | Value | | 40% | | Beginner-friendliness | | 60% |
In short: The Biggest and the Best Half Marathon! Date of review: September 21, 2011
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2011 race reviewed by: lizzielizard
 | | Overall score | | 100% | | Would you do it again? | | Yes | | | | Details: | | Scenery | | 60% | | PB potential | | 40% | | Atmosphere | | 100% | | Organisation | | 100% | | Value | | 80% | | Beginner-friendliness | | 100% |
In short: Very special race In full: My 5th time , definately best !! High fived Mo Farah at start ,gave me such a buzz i ran my fastest first 5km ! Pb 2.17, crowds sensational as ever ,Red Arrows gave me goosebumps , nearly fell over when i saw Tammy Gray at the water station ! Hot and sunny , then torrential downnpour ! A day ingrained in my memory for ever ..... Date of review: September 20, 2011
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2011 race reviewed by: david archibald 2
 | | Overall score | | 100% | | Would you do it again? | | Yes | | | | Details: | | Scenery | | 100% | | PB potential | | 60% | | Atmosphere | | 100% | | Organisation | | 100% | | Value | | 80% | | Beginner-friendliness | | 100% |
In short: The only half marathon in the Date of review: September 20, 2011
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2011 race reviewed by: Paul McGrath 4
 | | Overall score | | 100% | | Would you do it again? | | Yes | | | | Details: | | Scenery | | 40% | | PB potential | | 60% | | Atmosphere | | 100% | | Organisation | | 100% | | Value | | 80% | | Beginner-friendliness | | 80% |
In short: Great atmosphere, great race, great people. In full: Great race. I di it in 2hr 30 mins which is not to bad for me. The atmosphere was fantastic giving me support all the way. I have done a few races now. This is definately my favourite. I stayed at Newcastle university which was very good value and so close to the start. Date of review: September 20, 2011
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2011 race reviewed by: Andy C 350
 | | Overall score | | 100% | | Would you do it again? | | Yes | | | | Details: | | Scenery | | 40% | | PB potential | | 60% | | Atmosphere | | 100% | | Organisation | | 100% | | Value | | 40% | | Beginner-friendliness | | 100% |
In short: 1st Half Marathon and 1st GNR - absolutely fantastic In full: Got down to the first White pen (E) about 1 1/2 hrs before the start, great atmosphere from then onwards, saw some of the "celebs" and enjoyed all the razzmatazz pre-race. Did not get stuck in too much traffic and the support from the locals was fantastic. Before the race I was hoping for a time of 2h 15m which I thought was a bit optimistic - actually finished in 1h 51m so over the moon. The finish area was very good too - still with a good atmosphere and was topped off by the Red Arrows display. Could not recommend this race highly enough. The only downside is I know I can never run this for the first time again so the surprises will be gone!!! Date of review: September 20, 2011
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