My Event Ratings

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

In short: Always a great race, but a goody bag for mugs :(
In full: I love this course - my first ever event,as it happens. An undulating first 0.5 miles, followed by a short sharp steep hill before the long steady climb up the Hog's Back. The descent into Compton/Godalming area ensures a fast second half of the race.
A bit of ice this year, but as always a great run. Such a shame when everyone has had a good run and the marshals have worked hard that we get a mug with the wrong event on it - this was Hogs Back 51 not 50! After a £16 race entry (o/d) would a medal be so difficult?

Date of review: December 12, 2010

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

In short: A quickish, slightly undulating course. Disorganised at the start/finish BUT well supported.
In full: I enjoyed this race, but the was a complete failure to marshal runners at the start into sensible groupings according to where they expected to finish. This led to an acute need to overtake in an area of street where there was little room to do so, particularly where crowds lined the pavements.

Not sure why it was entirely necessary to march everyone through the woods up to the start - a process that took a fair while.

Once outside of the town centre, parts of the run were quite leafy, which on a sunny day was pleasant. The marshals and the good people of fleet were very enthusiastic, so just a shame that the start marshalling was poor.

The availability of sports drinks or something more substantial that a sherbert lemon would have been welcome at the finish line, too.
Date of review: March 23, 2010

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

In short: Great scenery, good fun, with some ruinous hills....
In full: Another cracking series, race 2 was cold & muddy, whilst race 3 was overcaset, but easier underfoot - a perfect mix of wather and challenges as it happens.

As usual, there was a mix of hills that were simply hard and ruinous and those that were walking paced killer hills - but thats why most of us keep coming back.... (the view from the top of st marthas is always great too).
Date of review: March 10, 2010

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

In short: Two Loops of Flattish Norfolk Countryside...
In full: I've not done the previous Norwich course, which i'm told did have a "killer" hill.

This course is best described as having the odd undulation and passes through a mix of small villages, countryside and through the Norwich Showground. Well marked on the miles, by the time you're on the 2nd loop you know fully what to expect and can push hard for that PB...

The fact that the rain held off for the race, helps wrap up my happy memories of the day - i'll be back next year.
Date of review: November 30, 2009

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

In short: Sunny for once, but you'd think they'd sort the parking...
In full: This remains a great fast race. A pancake flat course, we had sunshine this year which brought out the crowds - great stuff.

The big wind coming off the coast is always a challenge for the tired legs, but is less of a problem in dry weather.

If this is the 20th GSR however, why make hundreds of cars leave through just one exit? Worse, why allow cars to start using other exits, only to later mysteriously decide to close them, with runners still anxious to leave? Yes, perhaps I should take the train next time - but I think the parking attendants could do better... (no criticism of the enthusiastic race marshals though)!
Date of review: October 26, 2009

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

In short: Sunshine, Silly Hills, Surrey Hills, Snails and Scenery...
In full: Much like the winter G3 races, but mercifully dry this time around. Parking was a doddle at the nearby footy pitches and the course well marshalled and marked through the hills.

You might want to train for those hills though, just when you scaled one another confronted you - snail's pace indeed!

All in all a great day and a great inaugural race. Just what the doctor ordered...
Date of review: August 24, 2009

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

In short: (Perhaps unsurprisingly) A bit like a school cross country.....
In full: The route takes you round the school pitches before it goes onto proper wooded trail. After a wooded section (reasonably well marshalled, with only me only occasionally wondering if I was headed in the right direction) before we were back onto the pitches for a lap before coming back to the finish.

All the running on grassy school pitches did give it the feel of a school x-country race - i'd have preferred more trail. It was certainly not the most exciting course to do.

That said, the (very) club orientated event was led by friendly people full of enthusiasm. The shiny new waterbottle to all competitiors (in place of medals)gets my vote as a good, practical thing for other events to emulate, too. All in all, good fun, but not a definite for next year's calendar.
Date of review: July 14, 2009

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

In short: Beautifully well organised and every bit as tough as they promised it would be - a great muddy day
In full: A mix of terrain (and some challenging hills) meant this had everything, to include the sections where it was closer to swimming than running. The heat of the day soon dried me out, but might have liked one more water station over the 10 mile course. Great goody bag and silly tales from the runners on the course made all the hard work worthwhile.
Date of review: June 1, 2009

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

In short: A little drizzle, but a good morning's work(!)
In full: Fleet is a good little course - mainly club runners so chances are will be a quick pace set, had to consciously slow down soon after setting off.

It's not the most exciting to run and i'll need to rememember that the course is undulating outside of the town centre. It's that element that probably restricts the opportunity to set a PB.

Organisation is top notch. Traffic is stopped for the start and partially restricted over the rest of the course and, I am pleased to give a big thumbs up for the lack of waiting around and starting bang on time.

Glad to have done it and may be back again...
Date of review: October 26, 2008

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