My Event Ratings

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

In short: Run by runners for runners
In full: First class organisation that runs London close. Amazing value for the entry fee with brilliant goody bag full of food you want to eat. Great hoodie as well.
Digital clock at halfway and chip timing and an announcer who does their best to call out as many names as he can in the final 100m. Great marshalls and good visibile prescence out on the roads which helped the runners.
Well stocked water stations.
Definite highlight of the year for me
Date of review: March 13, 2011

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

In short: "Ronseal" race - does what it says on the tin
In full: Great race to test the winter form and a good hard workout on traffic free roads. Very well organised by the promoting club, plenty of marshalls, mile markers, traffic free route. More of a club runners event but I guess that's the appeal of it.
Date of review: January 3, 2011

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Overall score		20%
Would you do it again?		No
Details:
Scenery		60%
PB potential		100%
Atmosphere		80%
Organisation		20%
Value		60%
Beginner-friendliness		60%

In short: Organisers have bitten off more than they can chew
In full: Race is far too big at almost 12,000 runners for the start and finish on Broad St. With this amount of runners you need a big open road or split starts like London. Shocking scenes at the finish for the bow-wave of runners in the 2hr to 2h20 slot which could easily have been avoided by better organisation of the finish line funneling.
I got a PB but I won't go back again.
Race starts too early in my opinion - no-one could get in by train as there are no trains into B'ham before 9 a.m. Make it a 10 o'clock start and sort out the start and the pens.
Date of review: October 29, 2010

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

In short: Well organised marathon with PB potential
In full: Well organised event, great use of the greenway and traffic free without shutting down loads of roads. Well stocked drinks stations, all the basics ticked from a runners point of view. This is a wonderful, low-key marathon which has much to recommend. No negatives to report.
Date of review: May 31, 2010

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

In short: Well run event, does all the basics right
In full: Used this as prep for London in 2009 and even though weather awful came back for more this year. Good use of facilities at nearby leisure centre and good start/finish area which was very family friendly. Well marshalled all the way around, good course, very quiet in regards to traffic. Water stations were fine. Low key race which does a lot better in terms of organisation than a lot of bigger races.
Date of review: March 15, 2010

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

In short: Coventry keeps on learning
In full: I've done this race every year since 2006 and it gets better every year. Well thought out route, well publicised locally, great buy in from local council and businesses. Minor irritations about the start from last year were rectified for this year. Very professional finish area, plenty of medical staff en route, LOADS of marshalls. A great advert for the city of Coventry
Date of review: October 26, 2009

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

In short: Race of the Falling Leaves
In full: perfect race organised by a wonderful club and as such retains a homely feel. Well organised, plenty of marshalls, quiet lanes out in the countryside. Minimal traffic. Weather made it perfect yesterday. Plenty of toilets at the sports hall and good to have a shower afterwards. MASSIVE spread of home made cakes when you finished to tempt you. Not as big/corporate as Coventry or Leicester but definitely one for the first timer.
Date of review: October 5, 2009

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

In short: An event for all abilities
In full: Great race, good HQ - family friendly. No problems in getting going and well stocked water stations. All the basics were done right and it had something for everyone. Nice touch to have banana and Mars bar when you finished.
Choice of T-shirt with every pre-entered runner's name on it - way better than the cheap one size fits all rubbish we got at FLM. Big fat WELL DONE to the organisers
Date of review: May 10, 2009

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

In short: Becoming a classic race
In full: something for everyone - course can cope with 1700+ runners and everything went well. Personal favourite
Date of review: April 7, 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		100%
Beginner-friendliness		100%

In short: As organised as FLM (if not better imo)
In full: An abject lesson in how to organise a race:
*great parking for over 900 competitors
*good sized hall
*efficient baggage storage and transporting it to finish for you
*well organised start with plenty of start line marshalls
*tannoy system you can hear at the start
*chip timing
*abundance of marshalls out on course to direct you
* plenty of signage to warn other road users of race
*well stocked water stations with BOTTLES that had SPORTS CAPS. No shitty plastic cups. Easeier to carry with you along the course to regulate your thirst
*gels at the later water stations
*good finish area, announcer calling out your name as you finished
*hoody sweatshirt in your size handed to you as you finished (your size is written on your race number for you)Nocheap rubbish t-shirts that I wouldn't even wash my car with
*goodie bag with batch, cereal bars, water, bananas, crisps
*energy drinks at the finish
*runners shop at the hall selling trainers for between £10 and £30 and plenty of bargains to be had.

No crappy medals, no annoying flyers. It's as though the race was designed around the runner. London could do a lot worse than looking at the clothing this race handed out and the goodie bags
Date of review: March 22, 2009

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