My Event Ratings

Overall score		60%
Would you do it again?		No
Details:
Scenery		80%
PB potential		80%
Atmosphere		40%
Organisation		60%
Value		20%
Beginner-friendliness		100%

In short: Ticks many of the boxes but overall a bit so what
In full: The Royal Parks is a notoriously expensive half marathon, which is presumably down to the costs involved of closing down a chunk of central London. Having shelled out nearly £50 most entrants will be making this their A race for the autumn, but bearing that in mind it doesn't have much buzz about it. It's hard to find real faults with any of the organisation but for me the whole event is a little flat. Running a race in central London inevitably means losing out on local support and this does impact on the atmosphere for an event that's try to sell itself as a "big deal". Probably a nice day out for out-of-towners looking for a first marathon but certainly not worth attempting to get a place for a second time.
Date of review: October 10, 2010

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

In short: Excellent potential to become a real marathon staple
In full: I did this as my first marathon which makes some criticism difficult. Overall I think it was a really good effort for an inaugural race.
The course was probably one of the better routes you could carve out of Brighton and the hills really weren't that bad and it did seem to be a fast course. I wasn't a fan of the switchbacks especially around mile 17 so maybe with a bit more council backing the route could be improved somewhat. The power station area wasn't as bleak as I was expecting but the various banners welcoming you to "hell" and "the wall" should be ripped down for next year - not encouraging in the slightest.
The marshals were excellent but crowd control could have been better, especially along the final few miles where spectators dodging in front of runners who were tired and confused really wasn't welcome. The crowds were encouraging though and it's great how many people turned out for the first year.
Water stations were frequent and seemed well stocked but I'd have welcomed more fuel stops, potentially starting earlier on the course.
More loos were definitely needed at Preston Park, the queues were long despite the high number of no-shows.
The finish area was well organised but the climb back up to the main road afterwards was horrendous.
Definitely one to consider though for anyone looking for a spring marathon in the south.
Date of review: April 19, 2010

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