My Event Ratings

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

In short: Gorgeous but hard
In full: Loved loved loved this race. It was almost perfect. Amazing scenery, I loved the start and finish and most of the race felt like the kind of route you dream of running on. Just those hills........ but I guess they made it interesting.
Date of review: October 4, 2010

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

In short: Fabulous Course, Great marshalls and volunteers - but the start/finish were stressfull
In full: This is a funny one. The course is awesome, lovely gentle downhill start, plenty to look at, some of it ocean side with trees a plenty and the fabulous mansion house at the turn to oggle. Plenty of water and lucozade and toilets etc.

BUT yet again the finish at Musselborough race course is a NIGHTMARE. No seperation of runners and spectators meant that within minutes of finishing the marathon I was stock still queuing to move ANYWHERE while people milled around me. There were even non-runners wandering about the queue for baggage reclaim (which was fab - top marks for that).

The start was similar. Pretty tight area that was not cordoned off for runners so the stressful queuing for toilets was made much worse by the crowding of the area and spectators mixed up with the runners.

Really and truly - you need to give runners a chance to breathe at the start and finish. Don't let spectators run amok amidst staggering, knackered, just want to go home pleeeease runners.
Date of review: May 25, 2008

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

In short: Hilly but fast - Loved all the down hill bits.
In full: Okay so I got a pb and it's difficult to be objective after that. Very very hilly but lots of lovely downs to rest after the ups. Marshalling brilliant and nice and quiet so easy to run true to the course. Had a ball. Just the right amount of lovely clappy spectators too.
Date of review: May 11, 2008

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

In short: aaahhhh mental note - don't do this one again.
In full: Such mixed feelings about this race. Good start, good finish, lucozade AND water - brilliant.

Course - lovely

But the driving to the finish and then bus to the start and, oh my goodness, despite arriving at 7.30am for a 9am race I was still in the loo when the gun went off AND i still hadn't put my baggage in the truck.

Ended up running right at the back and having to weave past everyone - still got a pb though which shows what a great course it is. THEN the dreaded queue to get home.

Despite the PB I doubt I will be back the toilets and the queue at the end ruined what was almost a really brilliant race. Oh yeah and the t-shirt is nice but the slogan is a bit pants!
Date of review: March 16, 2008

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

In short: Gorgeous, well organised, good atmosphere - perfect except for those hills!o
In full: Well if that is classed as undulating! I guess it wasn't too bad but I did this race with a bad cold and went off too fast. Loved the course and I passed the time counting road kill on the country lanes. Too hilly for a PB for me though.
Date of review: October 29, 2007

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

In short: Amazing experience - totally out of this world
In full: I cannot believe how well organised and how fantastic this race was. I had heard people raving about it and I have done a big city marathon before but it totally surpassed my expectations. It was so easy to get to the start and the atmosphere and the cheering stations around the course manned by the charity I was running for were totally amazing. Okay so i got a PB and I am still on a high one week later. I will be doing this one again for sure. Worth every minute of the hard training I put in.
Date of review: April 29, 2006

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

In short: Relay - but it made me desperate to do it for real soon !!!
In full: Toilets, toilets, toilets - As a relay runner doing the first leg, I had a lot of hanging around to do and the lack of loos (and loo roll) was particulariy dispiriting after a while. The section I ran was gorgeous - apart from the cobbles which made me terrified of slipping. I was no where near the real runners but I saw the a lot of tired marathoners being passed by furiously sprinting team members at the end and did think it must be very offputting after running for 5 hours to have some fresh eejit going hell for leather past you, but I was thrilled to be able to take part in something like this without having to do the whole thing.

I actually thought it wasn't bad value for money as we only paid 20 each but got to experience a bit of the marathon feel. Most of my team vowed to do a whole one in the near future - watching the marathoners crossing the line was a very uplifting experience - even for a spectator.

I thought the expo would have been less of a disapointment if it hadn't been hyped in the emails and on the website and as I am not from Edinburgh I traveled through to get my numbers etc in advance and it seemed a bit of an unnecessary pain in the neck.

Still - they are learning I guess and I will def do it next year. The marshalls were fantastic - despite the ones who were smoking - nearly every one I passed had an encouraging word.

Sugar was very weird thing to have in a goody bag though.
Date of review: June 14, 2005

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

In short: had a ball - will definately do it again and it was a great start to what I hope is a long career in half marathons.
Date of review: September 23, 2004

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