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Whidbey Island Marathon Runner Comments
Back to Whidbey Island Marathon Information & Reviews
Course 4.1 
Organization 4.1 
Spectators 3.5
Number of comments: 90 [displaying comments 61 to 71]
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B. S. from Boise, Idaho
(4/21/2005)
"Do not stay at the Coachman Inn!" (about: 2005)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Whidbey Island Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 I ran the 1/2 marathon and the course was beautiful. I trained for hills but still found them a bit challenging because the just kept coming and coming. While no single hill was overwhelming, by mile 9 I was a bit worn out. Don't be scared off by these hill comments however; this course is very doable. As a side note, do not stay at the Coachman Inn in Oak Harbor. The management and staff absolutely refused any late checkouts to accommodate the runners but were happy to charge you for an additional night. | |
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H. V. from Fort Langley, B.C.
(4/17/2005)
"Whidbey Islanders are wonderfully hospitable folks" (about: 2005)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Whidbey Island Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 My wife and I ran the Half Marathon.It was our first time running Whidbey and we had a great weekend. I can't say enough about the spirit and friendliness of the organizers, volunteers, restaurants and merchants. Whidbey is a wonderful place to visit and we'll be back.The bonus was my wife and her friend both finished second in their respective age groups!! | |
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J. S. from Bellingham Washington
(4/12/2005)
"Even Better This Year!" (about: 2005)
3 previous marathons
| 2 Whidbey Island Marathons
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 Last year's (2004) weather was better, but who can control that? The spectators this year were fantastic - happy and noisy! Support folks were as agreeable and helpful as always. Even offered us some nuts and cheese and crackers from their lunch table. Great idea to move the start line back; and good idea to 'jog' down that path, off the main road, by the construction area... much better than the busy road. We had the added fun this year of seeing someone running their horse on the beach - spectacular! Also, we looked forward to seeing the fake, life-size horse on the porch just after mile 23 mile mark... weren't disappointed. Since my only training run was a 1/2 marathon a month before this marathon, I was pretty miserable by the time we reached the fake horse. This is a great event, though, thank you to all involved in putting it on. | |
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S. C. from Vashon, WA
(4/12/2005)
"beauty & brawn" (about: 2005)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Whidbey Island Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 Really lovely course - it was my first marathon and all the discussion re: hills in comments from the 2004 race made me really nervous. Turns out that they weren't too terribly bad - although I had made a point to train for a hilly course. The course is lovely, although I found myself wishing that more of it happened around the Deception Pass Park - that would have been truly spectacular! The support teams were AWESOME, the random cheerers were a delight, I had plenty of water, sports drink & gels, and had no problem following the clearly marked path. The end was a fantastic feast!!! Thanks to everyone who helped make it such a great event! | |
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Mark Cook from Clinton, Washington
(4/12/2005)
"I loved it!" (about: 2005)
4-5 previous marathons
| 2 Whidbey Island Marathons
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 Although it was a windy day for the run, I had a great time. The course was better than the course in 2002 because we ran less on Highway 20. The water stations were great. There were many enthusiastic volunteers. There were also less hills than in 2002 (or so it seemed). Speaking as a Whidbey Island resident, this marathon provides a good tour of the island. If you want a challenging, scenic marathon, this one is great. | |
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M. W. from Seattle, WA
(4/11/2005)
"Tough course, few spectators, hidden gels" (about: 2005)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Whidbey Island Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 1 This is the smallest marathon (of 9 different courses) I've run in terms of number of participants, the second smallest being Cincinnati. Still, I wasn't prepared for how few spectators would turn out; even Oak Harbor was empty. Maybe it is because the weather was cold and windy. The 1st half of the course was very pretty. The 2nd half, closer to the water, would have been prettier on a sunnier, less windy day. There were supposed to be 3 aid stations handing out gels. None of the volunteers were offering it when I ran by, though. Only after I started asking at the last stop did someone point me to a box at the end of the table. The sports drink provided on the course was very strong and bitter, and the 13 water stops weren't really enough. I would be dead if I hadn't carried my own Gatorade and gels. I was depending on getting another gel past the halfway, and the one at mile 23 was too late to help me. In the end, this race showed me how much more I enjoy the bigger marathons. If the organizers hand out the gels efficiently around miles 8, 16, and 21, mix a more palatable sports drink, and increase the frequency of the water stops, I think this race would be fun for those who enjoy the small, challenging marathons. | |
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S. C. from toronto, ont Canada
(4/20/2004)
"Canadians run the hills of Whidbey " (about: 2004)
1 previous marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 This was my 2nd 1/2 marathon in 1 month. I am a new addict to this sport and was looking forward to the scenery and a little worried about the hills. My west coast running partner picked this destination based on travel mags and neither of us knew what to expect at all. The time just flew by for us - we had a guy chasing us with a movie camera which helped pass the time but mostly we were just enjoying the countryside. Every turn brought something new to see: airstrips, horses, lemonade stands, forests, seascape, you name it and this run has it. I train in High Park (Toronto) and my partner trains in Victoria B.C., which has similar terrain, so we were prepared for the hills. Ample water and support. Definitely recommend it and would love to try the scenery on the full marathon some day. This was a celebratory run for us - our first together, mom and daughter. | |
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M. B. from Sumner, Washington
(4/16/2004)
"WOW! Not what I expected." (about: 2004)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Whidbey Island Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 2 This is the first race that I have ever run. I ran the half marathon and wish I could have had some on-line support on what the course was like to help me train. I am going to come back next year for the full marathon. I didn't know what to do, so for a first-timer, I loved it. The hills were a challenge though. | |
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J. P. from Portland, Oregon
(4/14/2004)
"A lovely, LOVELY marathon!" (about: 2004)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Whidbey Island Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 While this is a good-sized event (about 2000 runners), only a few hundred were running the marathon! That made it feel cozy, yet astoundingly well-supported: lots of water, plenty of port-o-johns, energy gels (Clif SHOT), and good aid station volunteers. I, personally, enjoy an uncrowded route (I've run LA, with 40,000 others, and it's OK, just very different) and THIS ROUTE IS SPECTACULAR. I train on hilly trails, so the hills were no problem (OK, I'll admit to walking up that steep section around mile 8 -- I'm no fool!). The weather was perfect the whole weekend, with scenery that makes you want to move to Whidbey Island immediately. The race begins before the first ferry crossings, which meant WE HAD TO SPEND THE WHOLE WEEKEND ON THE ISLAND. To us that was NOT a drawback! The B&B we stayed at (may I make a plug here for the Morris Farmhouse B&B?) was just a couple miles from the finish line, and was very reasonable $$-wise. Less than a mile from the finish we were thrilled to watch a bald eagle land in a tree about 20 feet from us. Amazing. When we reached the finish line, we heard our names announced over the PA (always a joy!), and before we had walked very far the volunteer at the clothing pick-up WALKED OVER TO US WITH OUR DROP BAGS. Now, is THAT good service or what? I'd recommend this marathon to anyone; it isn't the easiest, but it's one of the BEST I've run. The only reason the 'organization' got less than 5 stars was because there was a little confusion over the departure times for the buses, and because there was a LONG wait if you caught that 1st bus until the race began (we arrived at the start at 6:30, race began at 8:00. Good thing the nice guy at the marina shop was open and let us stay warm inside.) | |
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s. r. from Seattle, washington
(4/8/2004)
"Organization???" (about: 2004)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Whidbey Island Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 2 I have run 11 marathons. This was the worst organization for a race as far as water stops that I have ever seen! It was a spectaculary beautiful course - and yes, very hilly. There was only water at all stops but 2 and at those stops it was Ultima. I realize that lots of people drink Ultima, but most races stick with Gatorade, Powerade, etc... It takes a while to adjust to the metallic taste of Ultima. Why would you put on an event like this and not plan for better water stops? I was very disappointed. I will say that the people manning the stations were super, but they were the only crowd support. |
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