My Event Ratings

Overall score		80%
Would you do it again?		Yes
Details:
Scenery		100%
PB potential		20%
Atmosphere		80%
Organisation		60%
Value		80%
Beginner-friendliness		40%

In short: Great route between the Dart and Salcombe Estuaries
In full: I did the "marathon" distance - definitely the best option for experiencing the coastline.

Like many trail races it's not for the feint hearted and experience of uneven terrain, hills and mud are all but essential.

Given the level organisation, amount of marshalls required, etc. I think the pricing is very reasonable.

Ideally I would have liked to have had something more than water and jelly babies at the checkpoints e.g. Coke, bananas, cake (the sort of things endurance runners love but find it hard to carry with them).

Didn't quite go to plan for me, so I'll probably be back again to do it justice.
Date of review: February 13, 2013

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

In short: A great run through part of Newport's hinterland
In full: This race is impressive on so many counts - and it keeps getting better.

Pre race instructions were clear; On the day organisation was slick; The flat course is equally good for beginners or as a tempo run; The race t-shirt is fantastic.

Changes to the start/finish arrangements and chip-timing were great improvements for 2013. The latter no doubt facilitated the very quick results service. Well done Lliswerry Runners!
Date of review: January 29, 2013

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Overall score		80%
Would you do it again?		Yes
Details:
Scenery		100%
PB potential		40%
Atmosphere		80%
Organisation		60%
Value		100%
Beginner-friendliness		20%

In short: Great race for experienced trail runners
In full: Despite suffering from cramp in the second half, I really enjoyed the race and will definitely consider it again. The route takes you through a lovely area and it's probably all runnable if you're in good condition.

Kurt & the other organisers didn't lack enthusiasm. In terms of constructive criticism:

I'd prefer having all information available from a single webpage rather than the mixture of emails, attachments and embedded links alongside the website, a company Facebook page and a separate Facebook event page.

The spacing and contents of the aid stations should be reviewed. I didn't see anyone stop at the first and I'd have been grateful for something like a banana at the third. Would also have liked some nutrition immediately on crossing the finish line (as opposed to inside the hall after having to remove muddy shoes).

The race is not really targeting beginners or charity runners, so I'm not sure we needed medals. Good quality t-shirt.

Nice touch providing route maps in so many formats so that we could print them out or upload to our own devices. Reassuring, particularly once it thinned out, to know I was still "on course".
Date of review: January 15, 2013

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Overall score		100%
Would you do it again?		Yes
Details:
Scenery		100%
PB potential		20%
Atmosphere		80%
Organisation		100%
Value		100%
Beginner-friendliness		40%

In short: A hilly bit, an easy bit and a very muddy bit
In full: I joined this sell-out race after some previous entrants couldn't make the new date. Organisation before, during and after was really good. Thank you Emma and everyone else.

The course involves varied terrain so I decided to wear "hybrid" shoes. The hilly bit was OK, the easy bit was great, but I really struggled on the muddy bit. Good trail shoes are *essential*.

Marshalls were encouraging and quite a few were handing out sweets on the climb. Two water stations: One after the big hill and one before the mud.

Engraved shot glass as a memento. The school PTA were there selling refreshments, including pretty decent hot dogs.
Date of review: January 7, 2013

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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		80%

In short: Lovely route and great organisation
In full: Despite flooding affecting the towpath and the car parks, the event went ahead with an altered start / finish.

Lovely route predominately on country lanes. The undulations make it interesting and mildly challenging.

Well organised with a friendly atmosphere and speedy results. Good changing facilities & showers. Nice slate coaster as a memento. Thank you to all involved.
Date of review: January 4, 2013

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

In short: Enjoyable and worth doing if you fancy something different.
In full: Rare opportunity to do a relatively short night race, accessible to anyone with a sense of adventure.

Note to organisers: Please don’t say they’ll be km markers or a water station if there won’t be, and there’s not much point providing a map / description of the route if you’re going to change it completely.

Because it is so unusual I’ll almost certainly do this race again next year. I'd recommend two torches, in case one fails - the field spread out quickly and it was really quite dark.
Date of review: September 11, 2012

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

In short: Essentially a shorter version of Bristol Half Marathon. Well organised, apart from the baggage tent.
In full: Strictly enforced coloured pens, chip timing and a two wave start makes running with 10,000 others really quite manageable. The course is pretty flat, quite wide and running through the gorge is reasonably scenic. Water bottles (without caps) were provided just after half way. Km markers were big and bold, helpful if you're using them to gauge your pace. There was reasonable crowd support at the beginning and towards the end of the course. Great for beginners or more experienced runners chasing a PB.

Water, foil blankets, medals, t-shirts and goody bags were all provided at the end. Depending on how much you value the t-shirt and medal, they could justify the fairly high entry fee.

Unfortunately, the baggage tent was incredibly disorganised this year and it took half an hour to collect bags afterwards - lucky we had those foil blankets to keep warm! Hopefully this was a one off: I have run this race before, and Bristol Half Marathon, and never had to wait more than a few minutes.

Something for future participants and spectators to be aware of: The course creates an almost impenetrable barrier around the event village - which means queues to get across it at the designated points - allow plenty of time.

Overall this is a very popular and well orchestrated event which is organised along the same lines as Bristol Half Marathon. Not sure if I will do it again personally, but only because there are so many other races at this time of year.
Date of review: May 21, 2012

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