Dublin Marathon 2008

Just arrived back from running the Dublin Marathon and while the race was fine, the organisation certainly was not. This event falls short of the professionalism of the London Marathon.
For a start, I found collecting up my race number at the RDS centre to be a chaotic experience. Once I had picked up my number and programme from the registration desk, I wandered down to the exhibition. Many other people were walking around with black and white race bags. I asked one guy where he got his bag from and he said from the registration point. I hurried back upstairs to be told I should have continued walking around the balcony, down to a bag collection point hidden around the back. But no one told me at the time. So on to the race day, where our race bags were left out in the open at the bag drop (good job it didn't rain) and then an almighty crush trying to get to the start. Quite why thousands of runners were being forced through a tiny gap in the barriers, god only knows. Then with minutes to spare, I have to hop over another barrier into the start pen. Why were there not a series of race pens depending on your predicted finish time, like at London? And at the finish, what happened to the repatriation points A, B and C which were marked in the programme? They were not marked at the finish and groups of people seemed to be wandering around not knowing where to meet their friends. Glad to get that off my chest. Did anyone else have a similar experiences?

agree with all your points, esp the last one about where to meet up with friends/family afterwards.  My girlfriend was with me, and we were annoyed that not only could she wave me off, but there was nowhere to meet at the end - even the marshalls knew nothing off the supposed meeting zones, which were not to be.

Thought the race number & chip collection at the RDS was bizarre, as it took as an hour to walk there from the town, but was good once there, and there were buses back (as long as you had correct change!)

Was a good run on the whole, and a nice course, but can't say I'd rush to repeat it there.

Have you passed your complaints onto the organisers?  It's ultimately the only way things will improve.

To be honest I can't see the point of running Dublin, if the British Olympic Comittee won't accept performances on it - i.e the British bloke who ran 2:10 last year and 2:13 this year because it is an unratified course.

I thought it was a great race with a few organisational issues but nothing that couldn't be easily fixed.

I certainly wouldn't characterise it as a shambles.

As for the BOC issue - erm I am so far from 2 hour times its immaterial to me and, i suspect, 98% of the other runners.

Um, I was told exactly where to get the black and white bag when I picked up my race number.  I got  through the expo quickly, got there and back easily on the DART, and had absolutely no problem getting to the start (maybe because I wasn't fussed about starting quite far back, as it was chip timed). Mind you, I travel light so didn't need the baggage section, and arranged to meet people away from the repatriation points as I thought it might be chaotic given the number of entrants. But I agree with Johnny Blaze - what I saw wasn't a shambles by any stretch.

Yes I agree with spike 95, this was my first marathon experience supporting my husband.

I was  quite surprised that local people and the local Garda, did not seem to have a lot of knowledge that the event was taking place. I thought perhaps my expectations were probably high because of London and what I had seen on the TV. The EXPO information contradicted with important information contained within the souvenir program and website, so which is right.

As a result the overall impression was of disappointment with the organisation.  Well done to the runners shame about the organisation

I enjoyed every moment of the day but do feel that the familys of the runners felt let down like i did.

Very surprised that it is an unratified course.

The start and finish could have been better . Good point on the bags being out in the open I hadn't even realised that would have been a problem.

Great course apart from the silly bottlenecks in the first mile , good water stations at the right points and great support .

Not a shambles but room for improvement.

Funny really cos I thought the organisation was pretty good. I breezed through the Expo and then on race day I thought the Baggage Collection was well ran - I was dealt with immediately and all the bags were laid out in numerical order so I got it back instantly too. I thought the one-way system to make your way to the start worked well as did the stuff immediately after the finish. All in all I left feeling quite impressed by the whole thing, so surprised to hear other people had a less than satisfactory experience.

My only complaint was the first half a mile or so was too narrow really. Oh and the bloody walkers who insisted on starting just behind the elite pen and then walked 5 abreast immediately off the start - causing complete havoc for lots of people behind them

That was probably cos you weren't local LS21

fnar fnar!!!

Yeah probably!!

 Not sure if you noticed but that filter at about the half mile point was caused by two cars parked up inbetween all the 'No Parking' cones the Garda had set up!!

Genius!

I was also told exactly where to get the black and white bag when I picked up my race number.  I got  through the expo quickly and enjoyed the buzz, I had absolutely no problem getting to the start  and what I saw wasn't a shambles, the race was well supported with water stations and gels in all the right places (water in bottles not cups).  Like LS21 I also left impressed hoping that someone from the Belfast Marathon team attended to see how it should be done.