My Event Ratings

Overall score		100%
Would you do it again?		Yes
Details:
Scenery		80%
PB potential		80%
Atmosphere		100%
Organisation		100%
Value		80%
Beginner-friendliness		100%

In short: Well done Chester
In full: I can only echo what has already been said.
Silky smooth, over the start line in 8 seconds from the sub 3:15 pen. A bit muddy on the racecourse for the first 800m or-so, through Chester town centre and then out onto a rural loop coming back to the racecourse. More undulating then I thought it was going to be, not maybe not the all-time fastest course out there, but definitely PB potential.
Great organisation, closed roads, loads of well stocked aid stations and decent support and a nice goodie bag and long-sleeved technical T make this one of the best UK road marathons I've done.

Well done Chester, you have a gem of a marathon..l don't go changing :-)
Date of review: October 8, 2012

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Overall score		100%
Would you do it again?		Yes
Details:
Scenery		80%
PB potential		20%
Atmosphere		100%
Organisation		100%
Value		100%
Beginner-friendliness		80%

In short: Just do it...! Adidas-style
In full: I ran solo - words cannot describe the experience... something every runner should try - either solo or part of a relay team.

Everything was amazing - the course, organisation, marshals, fellow runners. Can't wait until next year
Date of review: August 1, 2011

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Overall score		80%
Would you do it again?		Yes
Details:
Scenery		80%
PB potential		40%
Atmosphere		80%
Organisation		80%
Value		100%
Beginner-friendliness		80%

In short: Brilliant trail half marathon
In full: Forget chasing PB's - this one is all about stamina and enjoying the journey through the Wyre forest.

The first 2 miles are downhill, then it's 11.1 miles of uphill with the occasional bit of downhill thrown in.

Surface is hard-packed trail and rough bridle-way which could be muddy in wet weather, though not this year.

Less than a tenner for a quality half - decent medal, flapjaack and water at the finish... What more do you need?
Date of review: July 11, 2011

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Overall score		80%
Would you do it again?		Yes
Details:
Scenery		80%
PB potential		60%
Atmosphere		80%
Organisation		80%
Value		80%
Beginner-friendliness		80%

In short: A great way to spend a Sunday morning
In full: I did this in 2010 and had no hesitation in coming back for this year!

Excellent atmposphere and well marshalled on a course that's just challenging enough - 2 decent hills to tackle with fast downhill sections to look forward to.

I'll definitely be back next year!
Date of review: May 9, 2011

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Overall score		80%
Would you do it again?		Yes
Details:
Scenery		60%
PB potential		80%
Atmosphere		80%
Organisation		80%
Value		80%
Beginner-friendliness		80%

In short: Respectable rolling rural road race
In full: Well organised road race on mainly country lanes which I think were closed - if not were very quiet as I can't remember any traffic passing!

The marshals were friendly and supporting at key locations, great crowd support at the end an a surprisingly decent goody bag for finishers.

Really enjoyable morning and a credit to Lichfield. My only negative comment would be that there was no directions back to the car park at the start, (about a mile from the finish)
Date of review: May 1, 2011

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Overall score		100%
Would you do it again?		Yes
Details:
Scenery		80%
PB potential		80%
Atmosphere		80%
Organisation		100%
Value		60%
Beginner-friendliness		80%

In short: Two laps along the coastal path in the sun
In full: On the same course as the Llanelli half marathon the Great Welsh Marathon is another excellent fairly low-key event from Human Being Active.

The course is a 2-loop out-and-back from the start so very easy to break up into 4 manageable chunks of around 10k a piece. Water stations are frequent - but a couple are too close together for my liking with under 2 miles separating them.

Great scenery, fairly twisty course with some mild undulations which keeps it interesting but not too painful.

Great and very funny personalised commentary at halfway and the finish made me laugh... Friendly support from the marshals and spectators was also great!

As one of the winners said, "why bother with London? Come and do this one instead"!
Date of review: April 10, 2011

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Overall score		100%
Would you do it again?		Yes
Details:
Scenery		80%
PB potential		60%
Atmosphere		80%
Organisation		80%
Value		60%
Beginner-friendliness		80%

In short: Excellent, well organised and fun trail race
In full: Really enjoyed this one - it made a change from running around a city centre or rural country lanes.

Excellent organisation and parking, (for me) 25 yards from the finish line! Chip pickup was quick and efficient, water stations every 3 miles and well marshalled. Crowd support at various points throughout the course was good and excellent at the finish.

Course is undulating with some fairly short, steep sections but otherwise a really good mix of up and down. I thought it might be a bit congested but it seemed OK for me finishing in the 1:40 crowd.

Definitely one to do again next year for a change from the usual road stuff...
Date of review: March 27, 2011

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Overall score		100%
Would you do it again?		Yes
Details:
Scenery		80%
PB potential		60%
Atmosphere		80%
Organisation		100%
Value		100%
Beginner-friendliness		80%

In short: Friendly 20-miler which has it all
In full: I can only echo the praise of others...!

Well organised with friendly and supportive marshals, lots of drinks stations including sports drink and gels and an excellent T-Shirt makes this a brilliant race.

I know the Taff Trail but wasn't expecting the diversion up that hill at Mile 8 - who thought that was a good idea then?
Date of review: March 20, 2011

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Overall score		100%
Would you do it again?		Yes
Details:
Scenery		100%
PB potential		40%
Atmosphere		80%
Organisation		80%
Value		80%
Beginner-friendliness		60%

In short: Almost perfect race on an almost perfect day...
In full: My first time at Rhayader and it didn't disappoint.

Organisation was excellent with race numbers picked up quickly, (though it could have been made more obvious in the sports hall which queue was which?) Parking in the finish area was brilliant - my car was 10 metres from the finish line!

Race started promptly and was excellently kept going by friendly marshals and frequent water stations, (approx every 3 miles) I managed to steal some jelly babies off children on the way around so they helped to keep the sugar levels up!

Now - "that" hill at the start - painful, yes - but worth it... And I'd rather have it at the start than at the end! Somehow I managed to gain back the time I lost in the first 5 miles and come in 3 minutes off my 20-mile PB.

Weather was glorious, perfect for running! Finishers T-Shirt not technical but fits well and is of good quality which makes a change!

Definitely one to put on the calendar to do again...
Date of review: March 19, 2011

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Overall score		80%
Would you do it again?		Yes
Details:
Scenery		60%
PB potential		60%
Atmosphere		80%
Organisation		80%
Value		80%
Beginner-friendliness		80%

In short: Well organised rural road race
In full: One of several 20-milers around this time obviously geared at the big spring marathons.

Out, 3 laps of just over 6 miles and back. A couple of small hills but nothing to worry about really. Run on open roads but with limited traffic it never really was a problem

Easy to get to, well marshalled, water stations every 3 miles and a banana and excellent technical t-shirt at the end. A great session and useful 20-miler in the bag!
Date of review: March 13, 2011

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