My Event Ratings

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

In short: Tremendous debut for this event: awesome scenery, excellent facilities (loos, showers, food, beer). Some novel touches - morris women, start and finish on the racecourse. Sparse but vocal support, good marshalling. HEFTILY RECOMMENDED
In full: It has found out muscles and bits that have been dormant for months, but this was a really special event. I was never going to be near the front, but thoroughly enjoyed the whole thing, even the bits where I - and quite a few others - were reduced to walking. With start/finish at the racecourse grandstand, we had access to working loos, showers, changing rooms; and 2 imported attractions: a good organic fast food bar and a female morris side (morrissettes?)
The course was difficult without being silly: it took us up and down just over 800m by my garmin (which also tells me we did more like 13.7 miles). More to the point, it took us to two breathtaking vantage points. Kelston Round hill was as good as it gets in the SW surely?
One little stretch of dull suburbia was also the only place where marshalling went a bit thin; the rest of the time they were encouraging smiley folk, well supplied with water and jelly babies. I didn't get the Trionium trademark carrots at the finish, but there were crisps, flapjack and a choice of water or Stella (not a choice really IMHO).
One of those events where, despite the pain, you find yourself smiling most of the time. Came away with a limp, a quality t-shirt and medal, and, after a restorative pint, a determination to return.
Date of review: November 27, 2011

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

In short: good-natured and fun, if mucky
Date of review: November 14, 2011

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

In short: lovely route. rubbish medal this year
In full: A generic off-the-peg medal was a major disappointment after last year's designer lion's head. There was one cattle grid without a cover or a warning sign. Otherwise, LOVELY
Date of review: February 6, 2011

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Overall score		80%
Would you do it again?		Yes
Details:
Scenery		80%
PB potential		20%
Atmosphere		100%
Organisation		80%
Value		80%
Beginner-friendliness		60%

In short: Fun, filthy, friendly. Full of good humour and mud
Date of review: November 14, 2010

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

In short: splendid organisation, stunning course and - as it turned out - ideal weather. Faultless!
In full: Acres of car parking, plenteous loos, good marshalling, a taxing but not silly course. Two wee niggles: there ought to have been a marshal at the cattle grid that wasn't boarded, just for safety's sake; the pace boards should have been more visible at the start, to avoid some of the, ahem, unrealistic start positions some folk awarded themselves. BUT the whole event had a great feel about it: worth getting up at silly o'clock! Liked the 'Lion King' style medal too.
Date of review: March 1, 2009

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

In short: smashing event: people really enjoyed it and went for it!
In full: Marshals everywhere, clear signage on approach and round the course; a good mixture of serious performers up front and hundreds of fair-to-middling folk further back (like me). Not at all as scary as I'd feared, and regulars were very welcoming and didn't mind telling me what I was in for and when! It's a good mix as courses go, with space to recover and appreciate the surroundings. Memento is different, and none the worse for that. Lots of pubs, cafes etc for afterwards; and parking not too hard to find. I loved it!
Date of review: February 22, 2009

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

In short: never an easy course, and not made easier by the weather. But well organised asnd marshalled. Just a shame about the shortage of men's loos, an the bottleneck at the start
Date of review: February 1, 2009

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

In short: purposeful , professional but friendly
In full: Permanently-plumbed loss; a warm building with catering in; plenty of spaces to keep out of the wind; plenty of parking: all this made it logistically straightforward. The route itself is a bit dull by dint of being laps, but that has its advantages in pacing/strategy as well. It was only a shame that we didn't all know about the way to go round the sensor that would have recorded our splits. Ghastly Soviet-style trophy is so awful that it's already a talking point. Parky up on that plateau, but I shall give it another go next year!
Date of review: November 27, 2008

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Overall score		40%
Would you do it again?		No
Details:
Scenery		40%
PB potential		80%
Atmosphere		60%
Organisation		20%
Value		20%
Beginner-friendliness		60%

In short: Even by Bath standards this was badly organised. It has got too big and they are complacent and greedy. .
In full: The inability after so many years' experience to sort out an adequate way of getting runners onto Pulteney street shows a lack of forethought; the scrum involved at start and finish was not only claustrophobic but downright dangerous. The attempt to put runners in some sort of order broke down almost immediately. The finish was similar: no clarity about where goody bags, shirts etc were being handed out, and it was virtually a free-for-all. That is probably how they ran out of things. The weather wasn't their fault, but the lack of preparedness for such eventualities was (March in England - not always dry!). NOt having the First Aid tent ready was one reason given for the 1 hour delay - as was the demand put on the Park & Ride scheme. Could neither of those have been foreseen? Of course they could - by a halfway competent organising team. It's such a shame: the event has such potential, and the course and crowd are fine; but everything about the start and finish needs reviewing, and the field must be limited.
Date of review: March 17, 2008

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

In short: really lovely course visually, with quite a number of ups 'n' downs. Real village atmosphere at start/finish; sadly little support on rest of course
In full: It will never be PB country, but it's tremendous scenery and there are plenty of pubs not far off. A good sense of camaraderie evolves in the village hall over registration with homemade sarnies and cakes; the start and finish are on the village playing filed; and it's very well marshalled throughout. This year's coaster memento was a nice touch, and the website and info generally about the race is well done. Will sign up again
Date of review: February 4, 2007

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