My Event Ratings

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

In short: A brilliant race - superb organisation - I'll be back next year!
In full: Knowing that this race was organised by the local Scout group, I was expecting it to be well organised, but this race exceeded my expectations and I can't fault it!

From the safety pins in the race packs to the free cup of tea or coffee after the race, everything had been thought of. The parking was good, the race didn't start more than 90 seconds late and the marshalls were very encouraging - and there were plenty of them on the way round.

Having run several local races, I thought I knew what to expect, so I was very surprised when I turned the final corner to cross the finish line in front of a large crowd, having my name announced as I crossed the line! The finish field included a catering tent (lots of homemade cakes, drinks and hot food), ice cream van, Moti tent, play park and race HQ.

The course was very scenic, undulating, with only one hill near the start that was a bit draining - a friend managed to PB though! The goody bag included a fabric drawstring bag, medal, mars bar, apple, voucher for hot drink and a Moti discount voucher. Great value for £8 (£10 unaffiliated).
Date of review: September 7, 2010

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

In short: Good first duathlon, shame the distances were quite out.
In full: Overall a good race - brilliant for first timers (like me) and the option of two distances was nice as well (5km/20km/5km or 2.5km/10km/2.5km).

My biggest issues with the race was the measurements and the course. The '5km' run was much closer to 3.5km (otherwise I've mananged to improve from 9:30 minute miles to 7 minute miles in a matter of weeks!) and the '20km' cycle was probably closer to 22km. It would've been nice to have some km markers for the run route as well. The cycle route for the challenge distance was 4 loops, so it got a bit boring after a while, and with 2 180 degree turns per loop, it mean slowing right down eight times over the course.

But the race was well organised - everything was well explained (as for the majority of the entrants this was their first duathlon), free massage before and after was a nice touch and there were a fair few marshalls too - all of which were very encouraging and supportive. The goodie bag was really good (perhaps where the £36 entry fee was spent!), including a medal, t-shirt, magazine, several food samples etc.

I'd really hope that the distance issue would be sorted next time, infact I'd probably try one of the other events in the series (I went to the Bristol one), to avoid the repetitive cycle route. But overall, I would recomend this event to a beginner - a good first time event and a lot less scary than I thought my first duathlon would be!
Date of review: June 27, 2010

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

In short: Superb organisation, excellent marshalling and a great goodie bag!
In full: First time running this race and was pleasantly surprised. The marshalling was excellent - got encouragement from all of them on the way round, and considering the 'twisty-ness' of the course, there was never a junction or road crossing unattended.

Route was interesting, not the prettiest, but a few hills, lots of twists and turns and parks to keep things interesting.

For a relatively small race, the public support was brilliant - lots of residents on the way round and the children at the water/sponge stations were very enthusiastic!

Organisation was great - got a car parking space no problem, route signposted all the way round, started bang on 9am and there were plenty of toilets! Only suggestion would be a couple of port-a-loos on the way round - perhaps at a few water stations?

Goodie bag was great too - t-shirt, medal, re-usable drawstring bag, drink, water bottle, Sweatshop voucher and cereal bar. Results and photos were up by dinner time as well. Great value. Will defintely be back next year. :)
Date of review: May 9, 2010

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

In short: Challenging, but enjoyable. Friendly marshalls and frequent signage!
Date of review: September 7, 2009

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