Back to Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon Information & Reviews
r. p. from pacific northwest
(12/17/2007)
"A once-fun run, now a mish-mash" (about: 2007)
4-5 previous marathons
| 3 Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathons
COURSE: 1 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 5 This is the 3rd or 4th LVM course I've run, and by far the worst. The course - through some areas the average Las Vegan will not go - is forced. The course from near the CA state line was, IMO, better, more fun, and spectacular in its own right. I understand the urge to run past all the big casinos, but at the expense of a quality event, it's not worth it. The chip scoring did not work (for me - I am not recorded), and the start area was chaos. To be fair, the race gets points for aid stations and those cool fireworks at the start. | |
Brandon Lee from Clovis, CA
(12/16/2007)
"Race Director/Staff - Truly a Class Act!" (about: 2007)
3 previous marathons
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 Without going into excess detail, my girlfriend and I had an "emergency" arise. If not for the accommodations made by Terry Collier, "Elvis," and the rest of the staff at the New LV Marathon, we would have been out of luck. The staff came through for us. They are classy individuals and we are thankful. I am going to be back next year! Terry, "Elvis'" whoever you are, and the rest of the staff. We are indebted to you and are truly thankful! | |
C. S. from Alberta, Canada
(12/15/2007)
"Great race, easy course, lots of supporters" (about: 2007)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 Could not have asked for a better day to run. Great support from the crowd, and plenty of water stations and porta-potties. The course was flat and easy. Would recommend this race! | |
J. F. from South Milwaukee, WI
(12/12/2007)
"Good, Not Great" (about: 2007)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 I think in general that this was a good race and well run for the most part. I also have issues with the new timing system that was used. My chip initially gave me a time of 4:11:00. No way was I that slow. My watch had me at 3:58:00. The walkers were a big annoyance over the final couple of miles when I was trying to sprint to the finish. There were also a couple of miles that I do not think were measured correctly. I got a 10:56 split for mile 11 and a 7:41 split for mile 12? In spite of the glitches, I was happy overall with this race. I loved running the Strip, and though the spectators were sparse, the ones out there were enthusiastic. They need to start this race at a more reasonable time if they want the city to get behind it. | |
J. K. from Des Moines, IA
(12/12/2007)
"a work in progress" (about: 2007)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 2 I have to say I was fairly disappointed with the overall race. There was no one at the turn for the half (I ran the full) when I went by so I can understand how some could have missed it. And it became pretty difficult at 24 when the races recombined.... The last thing you want to do in a full is add on distance weaving in and out of people. On the plus side, the weather and course were ideal for a fast time. As a whole, though, it seemed pretty unorganized (they were asking for volunteers the night before on TV) - especially compared to the other big-city races I've done (Houston and LA). | |
K. L. from New York, NY
(12/11/2007)
"Fun and flat, but watch for the walkers at the end" (about: 2007)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 2 I really liked this race. It was cold, flat and fast, which is exactly how I love a marathon. The Strip was fun and interesting, especially with all those Elvi, the marriage booth and the pink tutu man granting wishes (to fix our split times). The mountain views that followed served as a picturesque backdrop to the run. The spectators were few but friendly. The water stations were well-manned. My only complaint is that it was hard to maneuver around (and stay inspired to run quickly) the walking half-marathoners where they rejoined us in miles 24-26. Otherwise, this was a really nice run and I'd consider doing it again. | |
J. B. from Chicago, IL
(12/11/2007)
"A fun marathon, but could use more organization" (about: 2007)
4-5 previous marathons
| 1 Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 This was the first time I ran Vegas. I thought it would be a fun marathon to run. It did meet my expectations in many ways. It was easy to find the start and there were ample port-a-potties. All the Elvis impersonators were fun to watch and there were quite a few entertainers on the course. The water stations were many and well run. However, there were many parts of the race that had very few crowd participants. I was surprised at the lack of organization at the expo. First, the bib number they e-mailed me was incorrect. When they did find the correct bib number for me, it was in the wheelchair division. The gentleman there said someone had marked it that way. But, they did fix the problem and placed me in the right division. I also had requested a sub-4-hour corral start, but they had no record of this. At the start line there were no obvious corral markers and no pace groups. Overall, I enjoyed myself and had a good time. I would do this marathon again. | |
Big Al from Spencerport NY
(12/11/2007)
"Much Improved" (about: 2007)
6-10 previous marathons
| 2 Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathons
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 Very nice bounce back from last year. I could not give them a perfect score since the half/full split was not adequately marked. Otherwise it was great. | |
Ashley Young from Canada
(12/10/2007)
"One of my best marathon experiences" (about: 2007)
1 previous marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This was my first "big" marathon. Weather was perfect, and I loved the fireworks and Elvis singing the national anthem. Slow getting to the start line, but that's to be expected with +12,000 people. Entertainment and spectators along the way were great. Special thanks to all the volunteers - they did a fantastic job. Course was good (especially down the Strip); however, once past the Strip, it sort of felt like we were in the "hood." Lots of water stations, and never had a problem with porta-potties (after 20 KM). Loved the running expo too - got lots of goodies. Couple of minor problems I had: Not sure what happened, but the information I had written on the back of my bib completely rubbed off and left little shredded pieces of paper on my shirt. I don't think they were waterproof, and pretty useless if something had happened. Also, is there not a course edict for people who are walking to move over to the side of the road?? There were a few times where people would stop right in front of me and I nearly ran right into them. Urrrrrgh. One thing I noticed is that runners don't cheer on other runners. Is this an American thing? Every race I've been in (half and full), the runners always encourage each other as they go. Would definitely run in this marathon again. | |
R. P. from Acton, MA
(12/9/2007)
"Overall, a positive experience" (about: 2007)
50+ previous marathons
| 1 Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 I had a lots of fun participating in this marathon, running as one of the group of 208 Elvises. A PR was out of the question, as most of the Elvises were delayed 20 to 30 minutes to act as witnesses in the group wedding of 36 couples just short of the 6 Mile mark, and just shy of the full/half split. However, the full/half split was poorly organized. I had re-entered the flow of runners on the left hand side of the street after departing from the wedding chapel, and heard a volunteer saying something about the full/half split, so I kept my eyes open for the signs and group of volunteers assigned to make sure that each group (full and half) of runners remained on course. Apparently, if there was a sign or signs, they must have been on the right hand side of the street, because I never saw it/them. When everyone around me took a left at the corner, so did I, as I was still looking for the signs or group of volunteers. As I ran down the street, I observed 3 runners going in the wrong direction, retreating from a point that they had been on further down the course. At the time, I didn't understand why, but I found out shortly thereafter when the course took another left turn two blocks later, and I asked a policeman on the sidewalk where the split would happen. When he told me I missed the turn, I went back to where he told me that the split had been, and looking around and seeing no signs, I asked the policeman standing at the split about the signs directing the runners to their appropriate course. He told me that there was no sign. There should have been a group of volunteers checking bibs to make sure that runners were headed to their appropriate courses along with lots of signs and cones/ropes (the way its done at other full/half marathons) to keep runners on the right course. This situation needs to be corrected next year. |
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