My Event Ratings

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

In short: Nice race, shame about the heat!
In full: Well, this was my second Edinburgh marathon (i did it last year too) and organisation-wise things seemed to be a bit better. The end of the race was much better than last year - definitely a big plus. However, i did have a couple of complaints...

1. No sports drink stations was really annoying. I don't use High 5 gels so stayed clear of them. My parents brought me powerade as no sports drinks were offered.
2. The water stations in Gosford house ran out of water. I had to pick up someone else's discarded bottle. Not good on a hot day.

The heat yesterday was insane. There was little shade on the route and with virtually no breeze, it was torture. Why wasn't it a week earlier like it was last year? It would have been a bit cooler - in fact, the only way i'd consider doing it again is if it was earlier in the year. I never want to experience running in those conditions again.

Here's another suggestion. The Half marathon started at 8 and the marathon at 10. If you started the marathon at 8 - fewer runners would be caught in the sun for as long. The haar was out at 8 and it would have helped. Why not do the shorter race earlier or on the Saturday?
Date of review: May 28, 2012

Report this rating to the moderator

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

In short: Good race, some nice hills and a PB for me!
In full: I enjoyed this race.

The problems:

1. There was a few too many countdowns at the start, but that's liveable.
2. The pacers were wrong and there were no mile markers for the first 5 miles (which meant i was pushing myself too hard thinking that i was behind target when i wasn't)
3. By the later stages water was handed out in cups rather than bottles - when will organisers learn that this is useless? You can't run and drink from a cup at the same time!

What i enjoyed:

1. The race route was nice, a good mix of hills and flat - very enjoyable
2. The organisation was good - i liked that you picked up your race tee the day before so no confusion at the end.
3. The commentator at the end was brilliant.

Overall i enjoyed it, i'd do it again. I didn't think the stages with live music were needed around the course though!
Date of review: April 18, 2012

Report this rating to the moderator

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

In short: Nice route, shame about the organisation
In full: This was my first marathon and having done half marathons before (including the Edinburgh Half Marathon) i thought i knew what to expect.

Living in Edinburgh, i'd trained on the race route and knew the course inside out. Its a lovely route with nice scenery. If it wasn't for the 35mph headwinds against us in the last 5 miles i think i'd have thoroughly enjoyed it.

Apart from the organisation. Edinburgh let us down on the day. The mile markers were small and located high on lampposts - so much so that i didn't even spot one until maile 7 (i'm presuming they were there before that) - but you know, that's not too much of a tragedy. My biggest disappointment was the finish area. My spectators were not allowed anywhere near to the race finish line - so i crossed the line alone. For your first marathon, this is very demoralising. Then i had a 15/20 minute walk to the reunion area. The pack/medal/t-shirt stands were ramshackle to say the least and spread out down an entire street. I took over 5 hours to finish (damn wind) and by the time i got to the t-shirt stand, they only had small or extra-large left. Its not difficult to order the correct number of tshirts and ensure everyone takes the right size - it was written on your running number!! I luckily was in the right place at the right time as they found the last box of mediums and fought for mine amongst the crowds. Once you'd walked the length of this street, we were all squashed single file through a barrier and left to find the reunion area. We runners had no idea what was going on or where to go! My mum climbed a wall to meet me at this point as it was so inaccessible for spectators. We then had to find my dad and boyfriend in the reunion area. Mobile signal was a complete wash out. By the time we were all reunited, it was half an hour after i'd finished. Not good. This race definitely lacked the grand finish - if ony they'd left the end in Musselburgh Stadium. I know that had its problems too, but i was a spectator last year and thoroughly enjoyed it!

I'll be doing it again next year to improve my time, but to be honest i'm only doing the Edinburgh one because i live here. I wouldn't necessarily make the trip otherwise!
Date of review: June 1, 2011

Report this rating to the moderator