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Madison Marathon (Mad City Marathon) Runner Comments
Back to Madison Marathon (Mad City Marathon) Information & Reviews
Course 4.0 
Organization 3.6 
Spectators 3.8
Number of comments: 223 [displaying comments 121 to 131]
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A. J. from WI
(12/29/2006)
"Great fans, poor organization" (about: 2006)
2 previous marathons
| 2 Madison Marathon (Mad City Marathon)s
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 5 The race followed a nice course through a great city, although the "solitude" of the Arb could be a killer. The fans were great, as they offered encouragement, water and cooling sprays. The race was disorganized with a delayed start. Trucks spit exhaust at finishers as they crossed the finish line. Brat Fest was the main attraction and the needs of the runners seemed to be put aside in favor of the festival goers. The post-race food is subpar. I will not run this one again. The people are great but I cannot tolerate the lack of organization and all that comes with finishing at Brat Fest. | |
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T. R. from Wausau, Wis. USA
(11/10/2006)
"Disappointed" (about: 2006)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 Madison Marathon (Mad City Marathon)
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 1 I just received my e-mail to sign up for the '07 marathon. Please sign me up, as I can't wait to stand at the starting line in 80-degree heat, while being told to wait for an extra 30 min. as they sign up more runners; and then to run 26.2 miles as it climbs into the 90's; and to finish at the World's Largest Brat Fest, next to the semi loads of garbage, while watching the spectators drinking beer and eating brats in the only available shade, drinking the warm water that was privided to the runners - as I'm scorched by the mini-medal. I've read multiple negative reviews over the years before signing up for this race, and they apparently don't listen. I won't be returning to this wonderful city to run the Mad City again. | |
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P. K. from Chicago, Illinois
(11/3/2006)
"Madison is nice" (about: 2006)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Madison Marathon (Mad City Marathon)
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 4 The city of Madison is really nice and the food is great. I enjoyed the marathon but it was not a smoothly run event. The starting area was too crowded and there were not enough port-a-potties. They were also placed in a location that interfered with the starting line. Pretty much I think the race outgrew the space of the starting area. The finish area was also disorganized, though there is a lot of space available. The course is scenic and has some hills. Pretty much the first 10 miles are flat, the next 10 have hills and after that it is flat again. The hills were not too long but they were steep. There were also a few odd moments like when I was nearing the end and the course went up and over a pedestrian overpass. In terms of motivation that was not a good moment. The race was also an oven. It was in the 70's when we started and mid-90's when we finished. I reduced my goal to 4:00 at the start line. The heat took a toll though as the pacer and many others dropped out. I finished a few minutes over 4:00. Oddly my time improved from my previous marathon by about 10 minutes. I even stopped at every drink station and walked up a few hills to alleviate some cramping in my quads. In hindsight this probably helped me finish. While I liked the race I am not sure if I'll run this one again. | |
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G. V. from Salem, WI
(10/31/2006)
"Unofficial finisher" (about: 2006)
2 previous marathons
| 1 Madison Marathon (Mad City Marathon)
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 5 The course for this marathon is beautiful and the fans were wonderful. Many, many of the residents brought out their sprinklers and hoses to cool us down. I was one of the unfortunate "unofficial finishers." I ran the race much slower than planned, but paid my money and damn if I wasn't going to finish the race. I finished 15 minutes after the race was called. I understand that my time was NOT good, but being told at the end that I didn't count at all left a bitter taste in my mouth. There were half-marathoners who took 4 hours to finish and their names were printed in the paper. After struggling through the heat for 5+ hours, mine was not. In addition, the finish area was poorly organized. There was little room for the runners to mill around and I never found any sort of food at all. I understand that the weather is out of the organizers' hands, but the circumstances surrounding the race could have been handled in a better way. I will probably not race this marathon again, though it was a pretty one. There were a few small hills. I recommend the Paavo Nurmi up north. It is a beautiful, well organized, small race. | |
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P. C. from Madison, Wisconsin
(7/13/2006)
"I only run it because I live here." (General Comments)
6-10 previous marathons
| 3 Madison Marathon (Mad City Marathon)s
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 3 The fan support is okay and the aid stations are adequate, but there is little else positive about this race. I have run the full three times and the half once, and have been disappointed every time. I live in Madison, so I run the race because it is convenient. The t-shirt is cotton (I would prefer technical) and this year it was handed out at the expo (I would like to EARN my shirt, not just buy it with my entry fee). The food at the finish line is disappointing and the water is not cold; in 2003 they actually ran out of food after 4 hours! Madison is a great city for food, but you would never know it by the finish line food. I run Mad City because I can sleep in my own bed and eat from my fridge; if I had to travel, I would run somewhere else. If you are a 50-stater in need of Wisconsin, try Whistlestop in Ashland. | |
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D. P. from Hartland, WI
(6/6/2006)
"Try the Fox Cities Marathon in Sept." (about: 2006)
6-10 previous marathons
| 3 Madison Marathon (Mad City Marathon)s
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 5 I keep coming back to Mad City because I love the city/course. But, they suffer terribly from Murphy's Law. 2004 was a downpour for the entire race, and now 2006 was an oven. I agree with the comments on the poor finish line area. Even with BratFest next door, we still need some decent post-race food and cold water bottles. For a much better experience, try the Fox Cities Marathon in Appleton/Neenah in September this year. I've run several times up there and they absolutely know how to organize a race. Mad City staff should also go take a look! | |
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L. A. from Poynette, Wisconsin
(6/5/2006)
"Nice course, poor support during & after the run." (about: 2006)
4-5 previous marathons
| 1 Madison Marathon (Mad City Marathon)
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 4 This is in RE: to the 1/2 marathon. The first problem occured at check in. Waited in line to pick up packet and when it was finally my turn, I was asked 'What's your bib number?' Excuse me, you've got it in my packet how am I supposed to know? You had to go over to a posted list. As it turned out when I went back with my bib number they did not have it - seems there was some computer malfunction and they had to reassign. They told me to go check my chip. There was a laptop pc set up on a table and a bunch of other runners standing around scratching their heads wondering just how to check the chip - no one was there to assist. T-Shirts were handed out to anyone who asked. You did not need a claim or proof-of-entry. Bus ride was quick but, once on the square it was quite obvious that I was not going to get to use a bathroom. The lines went half-way around the square. Finally somewhere around mile 7 the line for 1 john was only 3 deep. There also seemed to be a discrepency in the course mile markers. 1/2 marathon was supposed to be yellow and at some point more yellow balloons were used to mark miles (for the 10k?) I don't know. But, there were two sets of yellow mile markers. At the finish line I felt invisible. As I approached I did not hear my name or number announced, as I crossed I was handed a warm bottle of water and that was it. I stopped and stood there looking around as were other finishers. There was a lady tending to a table full of marathon finisher medals and we asked where were the medals for the 1/2? She said 'we ran out, if you want one go to the web site and send an e-mail' and turned back to what she was doing. I looked around and did not know where to go. The area was surrounded by big, smelly trash dumpsters and crowded with people. I did not see a food tent, or a medical tent I was so hot & tired out I did not have the energy to go looking. I set out to make my way back to my car where I had gatorade & bananas. Don't expect any pampering on this run. | |
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J. B. from Madison
(6/5/2006)
"Madison is a nice town" (about: 2006)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Madison Marathon (Mad City Marathon)
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 3 Madison is my hometown marathon. Having Memorial Day off to recover from the race on Monday is really nice. I feel for those who didn't finish in less than 5:15 but I think closing the course was the right thing to do. Local runner's have to take into account that a Memorial Day marathon can be hot, much hotter than mid-westerners will be used to after training in cool spring weather. Friends of mine who ran the 5K really enjoyed the food that should have been reserved for the marathon finishers. Cold water at the finish would be nice. Consider the expo a place to pick up a chip. There was no other reason to go. If you like running in a pretty place, you will probably like Madison. If you are into the marathon experience that goes with monster marathons, Madison will disappoint. | |
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J. F. from South Milwaukee, Wi
(6/2/2006)
"My Patience Has Run Out" (about: 2006)
6-10 previous marathons
| 3 Madison Marathon (Mad City Marathon)s
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 3 This was my 3rd and last time running the half-marathon in Madison. Why can they never correctly mark the miles on this course. They were supposed to have red balloons to mark the full-marathon and yellow balloons to mark the half. I saw no red balloons anywhere. Some of the half miles were marked with yellow ones and some were not. At least one mile of the half was not marked at all. Some of the full miles were marked with yellow ones. What is this? It led to a lot of confusion. We train hard for these races and we deserve a properly marked course. I am through with Madison. They were totally unprepared for the weather. The possibility of heat was predicted for several days before the race. I passed several water stations that were running out of gatorade or had none at all. At mile 9 I passed a medical tent and observed the workers trying to set up the tent. This was 90 minutes into the race, people were dropping in the heat, and the medical tent was not set up! Are you kidding me? This should have been done way before the race even began. And the finish line. I just love to walk around the semi-trailers next to the stinking smell of bratwurst after I run a race! Adios Madison! | |
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J. S. from Kentucky
(6/2/2006)
"Runner from Kentucky" (about: 2006)
11-50 previous marathons
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 This was my thirteenth marathon and my very slowest but I have to say it was one of my favorite courses. The only downside was the weather, which the race director has no control. There were not a lot of fans but I have seen less and the ones that were there were great and very supportive. I really appreciated the folks that took time out of there weekend to stand out in the heat to spray us down with water hose's. Madison is a beautiful city with lots of nice folks. I highly recommend this race on a cooler day. Thanks to all the volunteers for sticking it out to the end. |
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