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		60%

In short: Great race with definite PB potential
In full: Well organised, great marshalls and support with a good mix of runners. Nice undulating route on mixture of urban and rural roads, no significant hills though and last 2km all downhill which makes for a fast finish. Really enjoyed this race and will definitely do it again. Only negative, which might be other people's positive, is the mug instead of a medal.
Date of review: February 5, 2012

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

In short: Muddy fun!
In full: Lots of hills and mud, very well organised with a good mixture of people doing it for a laugh as well as those taking it seriously. Only downsides are that it's more like a run/walk as some of the course is so narrow you can only go as fast as the people in front of you. I think I walked almost as much as I ran which was pretty frustrating. Also, although we arrived early the car park must have already been full as we were told to park on a side road which was a good 1.5 mile walk to the start/finish. Not what you need when you're tired, cold and wet.
Date of review: November 28, 2011

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

In short: Great atmosphere
In full: This is the third time I've run this race which is one of my favourites although didn't enjoy it quite so much this year. On the plus side it's a realy friendly race so suitable for all abilities and the organisation and support is good too. On the downside the race is expensive (more than the London Marathon), the route is congested with too few waves so maintaining a pace is hard and some of the route is quite dull being through residential and back streets. Too few loos as well with 30min queues. For the entry fee it should be better, but I would still say it's worth doing.
Date of review: November 1, 2011

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

In short: Nice varied flat route but wrongly measured distance
In full: Great turnout and mix of runners. The route is completely flat and quite varied with road, grass and shingle sections along the seafront and park. Marshals were brilliant, thanks in particular to the lady that stopped the grumpy
resident from driving out into the path of runners!

Two problems with this race - my Garmin measured the route at 11.4km so either someone forgot to include the park section in their measurements or the turnaround point was at the wrong place. Very frustrating if like me you were otherwise on course for a PB. Also, the chip recorded runners time from the gun, not from when we all crossed the start line so times recorded were not accurate.

It is organised by a charity so the main thing is it raises money for a great cause, but for anyone running for a time it was pretty disappointing.
Date of review: September 11, 2011

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Overall score		60%
Would you do it again?		No
Details:
Scenery		40%
PB potential		80%
Atmosphere		40%
Organisation		60%
Value		60%
Beginner-friendliness		80%

In full: Well organised and friendly run. Completely flat so great for PBs as long as the wind isn't too strong. Only downsides are the route is quite dull- 4 laps up and down the seafront with few spectators although the marshalls are great. Also, if like me you're used to running with music, theres a no-iPod rule which seems unnecessary given the entire route is on the pavement. This makes it all the more dull. Lastly, the drink station wasn't very well managed as drinks were poured as runners went past which meant waiting, and there was only one station every 3 miles.
Date of review: August 14, 2011

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

In short: Tough hilly race, stunning views and great atmosphere
In full: Very friendly race with great marshals encouraging you all the way. The hills are tough and varied but the views from the top are worth the effort. Would definitely do again. Only criticism is the lack of chip timing, a lot of half marathoners had their times incorrectly recorded, and a few missed off the results altogether. Other than that, brilliant race.
Date of review: May 2, 2011

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Overall score		60%
Would you do it again?		No
Details:
Scenery		60%
PB potential		60%
Atmosphere		40%
Organisation		80%
Value		80%
Beginner-friendliness		80%

In short: Well organised race, great support, not flat though!
In full: This is a really well organised race with great support in both the town centre and the more remote sections of the course. I entered this race as it was advertised as fast and flat but I would question this - definitely not flat although the hills are not steep there are a lot of them so I would recommend some hill runs in your training. Also, the first 5 miles are 2 laps of the same route which isn't great, but the final 400m is a very welcome downhill section.
Date of review: March 21, 2011

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Overall score		40%
Would you do it again?		No
Details:
Scenery		40%
PB potential		60%
Atmosphere		40%
Organisation		20%
Value		20%
Beginner-friendliness		60%

In short: Badly organised, the route was dull and not 'flat' as advertised
In full: Badly organised - the starting line was not clear at all, no signs to know which starting pen to queue in, too few marshalls, signage to get to the event was almost non-existent

Music - this was the main selling point of the race but it was virtually non-existent and audible only for a few seconds as you ran past.

Route - the route was advertised as flat but had a few fairly steep hills, runners don't mind hills but some advanced warning would have been nice! The route was also a little dull although the bad weather probably contributed to making it worse.

Finish - no countdown in the final mile, only saw the finish line from 200 metres away.

Goody bag - dreadful. No dry t shirt to get changed into, no drink although these were handed out separately.
Date of review: October 9, 2008

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