Baxters Loch Ness MarathonHere's how RW members rated this race (442 votes). 2011 race reviewed by: Stu_G
 | | Overall score | | 100% | | Would you do it again? | | Yes | | | | Details: | | Scenery | | 100% | | PB potential | | 40% | | Atmosphere | | 80% | | Organisation | | 80% | | Value | | 100% | | Beginner-friendliness | | 100% |
In short: A Memorable Marathon Experience
In full: This distant sounds of highland bagpipes in the misty hills above Loch Ness....Does it get any better than that. Great undulating course, did anyone else notice the hills at miles 19 & 21 or was that just me?
Warm support from many locals coming out of their houses along the way. Great organisation and Marshalling, good facilities Showers/Baggage handling at Bught Stadium. A wonderful Event Village with Massage. Plenty of things to buy/see/eat.
Thank You Loch Ness!
Date of review: October 3, 2011
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2011 race reviewed by: Teuchter
| | Overall score | | 80% | | Would you do it again? | | Yes | | | | Details: | | Scenery | | 100% | | PB potential | | 60% | | Atmosphere | | 80% | | Organisation | | 60% | | Value | | 80% |
In short: Bus journey very long - fantastic atmosphere once you get going :-)
Date of review: October 2, 2011
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2011 race reviewed by: Laura Homer 2
| | Overall score | | 100% | | Would you do it again? | | Yes | | | | Details: | | Scenery | | 100% | | PB potential | | 60% | | Atmosphere | | 80% | | Organisation | | 80% | | Value | | 60% | | Beginner-friendliness | | 80% |
In short: Fantastic race....
In full: Great race... Was highly enjoyable, but the last 6 miles were really tough. The scenery, the conditions, the atmosphere... Wow. I would do this again. Only moan is that the buses take longer than I expected to get to the start and the women were ready to burst by the time we stopped.... Blokes got to relieve themselves when the bus stopped enroute!
Date of review: October 2, 2011
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2010 race reviewed by: hillrunner.org.uk
| | Overall score | | 100% | | Would you do it again? | | Yes | | | | Details: | | Scenery | | 100% | | PB potential | | 60% | | Atmosphere | | 100% | | Organisation | | 100% | | Value | | 80% | | Beginner-friendliness | | 80% |
In short: Great and well organised marathon, no loop just one streightish run with a few little hills along one side of the Ness with a great finish!
In full: A wet Sunday morning and over 3,000 competitors started the 2010 Loch Ness marathon including myself, words cant describe how much I enjoyed this marathon set in a beautiful location and started around 8 miles north of Fort Augustus. The marathon followed Loch Ness north bound until the finish at Inverness. A well organised fantastic run saw me finish in a time of 4 hours 17 mins 44sec (1372 place), not my fastest marathon but the course did have a few climbs along the way and I must admit that I concentrated more on the scenery instead of pushing myself along, despite this I ran all the 26.2mile with a smile on my face.
Date of review: January 31, 2011
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2010 race reviewed by: DEREK Neill
| | Overall score | | 100% | | Would you do it again? | | Yes | | | | Details: | | Scenery | | 100% | | PB potential | | 60% | | Atmosphere | | 80% | | Organisation | | 80% | | Value | | 80% | | Beginner-friendliness | | 100% |
In short: Great location, few spectators, well looked after at finish
Date of review: January 27, 2011
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2010 race reviewed by: Leo H
| | Overall score | | 80% | | Would you do it again? | | Yes | | | | Details: | | Scenery | | 100% | | PB potential | | 40% | | Atmosphere | | 60% | | Organisation | | 80% | | Value | | 80% |
In short: Really enjoyed it but some tough hills
Date of review: January 14, 2011
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2010 race reviewed by: Claims Monkey
| | Overall score | | 100% | | Would you do it again? | | Yes | | | | Details: | | Scenery | | 100% | | PB potential | | 40% | | Atmosphere | | 80% | | Organisation | | 100% | | Value | | 80% | | Beginner-friendliness | | 80% |
In short: Wonderful race in glorious scenery - just a bit wet at the beginning
In full: Thankfully I was staying in Fort Augustus which meant that my bus didn't come until 8.40am - a nicer time to be starting the day. It was a little chilly on the top waiting for the start and I did feel for the Ethiopian elite woman (it was her first trip outside her own country). The pipe band were a nice touch that brought a smile to most faces and the first mile was super fast, you just need to rememeber to put the brakes on. First half was wet and very rarely flat. Loved the guy with Scottish music blasting from the back of his 4x4 on his drive. The sun came out and the course flattened out until mile 18/19 and that was a long mile. Lots of smiling faces along the route, especially a couple on bikes who cheered me through about 4/5 times. Thank you for that! Loved the finish down the riverside. Overall, this is a race that everyone should do at least once.
Date of review: October 10, 2010
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2010 race reviewed by: stuart mutch
| | Overall score | | 100% | | Would you do it again? | | Yes | | | | Details: | | Scenery | | 100% | | PB potential | | 60% | | Atmosphere | | 100% | | Organisation | | 100% | | Value | | 100% | | Beginner-friendliness | | 80% |
In short: My first Marathon - Absolutely Fantastic!!
In full: This was my first marathon and it was fantastic! Having being plagued by injuries I still managed a great time. Loved the route, but then i quite enjoy hill running. The atmosphere was great and the supporters at Dores gave a great boost just before the "hill". There were a few supporters along the route which was great to see, especially the guy playing Scottish music from his car. After that the second half seemed to go by much quicker than the first half. My kids took part in the Wee Nessie while i was doing the marathon which was a great way of passing the time for them at a very wet and muddy Bught Park! They were delighted with their medals. Once the sun came out they had a great time on the bouncy castle and slide. There was great support along the final 100mtr and the commentator did an excellent job of shouting out as many runners names as he could. The post race meal was good - a nice touch and the goody bag and medal were worth the effort. Went to the pasta party the day before which was ok but perhaps not worth the money. Doing Edinburgh Marathon in May - it will have a lot to live up to. Definitely coming back to this event next year.
Date of review: October 10, 2010
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2010 race reviewed by: Claire Wylie
| | Overall score | | 100% | | Would you do it again? | | Yes | | | | Details: | | Scenery | | 100% | | PB potential | | 40% | | Atmosphere | | 100% | | Organisation | | 100% | | Value | | 100% | | Beginner-friendliness | | 80% |
In short: Made my first marathon extremely enjoyable
In full: I loved the scenery, the medal, the wee groups of people handing out sweets and chocolates, the other runners cheering you on, the fantastic organisation. All we needed was buses for the long (over an hour!) trip to the start with toilets on them to stop us all rushing into the woods when we (no pun intended) arrived! I loved the police escort and the pipers playing us off. Some tough hills - especially at mile 5 and 18 but if you're willing to walk it's a good chance to take on some fluids and eat some gels. I thought I'd only ever do one marathon but this was so enjoyable I might be back!
Date of review: October 10, 2010
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2010 race reviewed by: Hackers
| | Overall score | | 100% | | Would you do it again? | | Yes | | | | Details: | | Scenery | | 100% | | PB potential | | 40% | | Atmosphere | | 100% | | Organisation | | 100% | | Value | | 80% | | Beginner-friendliness | | 60% |
In short: There is a reason that this race is on everyones to-do list.
In full: A fantastic spectacle for both the supporter and participant. Everything from the bus convoy to the marshallers to the cheering spectators to the finish in the city centre is first class and extremely well organised. Having experienced both Edinburgh and Loch Ness I would recommend this over it's sibling in Edinburgh!
The day itself had a little of everything: a wet, windy, cool start that blossomed into a gloriously sunny afternoon finish. That seemingly endless hill at mile 18 was a bit cheeky! My apologies to the young lady running next to me for the expletives when I first clapped eyes on the hill. It was a toughie after 18 undulating miles.
You may not achieve a PB running Loch Ness but I guarantee that it will put a smile on your face from the moment you start to the moment you finish.
Date of review: October 9, 2010
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