Back to Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon Information & Reviews
Ma. Barbara from Salinas California
(12/13/2006)
"Runner-Friendly/NOT Walker-Friendly" (about: 2006)
3 previous marathons
| 1 Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon
COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 3 I ran the 1/2 marathon and I was pleased with everything.... However, I was very disappointed at the fact that the marathon wasn't WALKER FRIENDLY.... I'm a mentor with TEAM In Training and the mentees had a lot of complaints about the marathon. 1. Things were being torn down at 9 a.m. (started at 6 a.m.). 2. The volunteers left the water stops and took the tables and LEFT THE CUPS ON THE GROUND WITH WATER FILLED.... 3. People got lost because nobody was there to direct them and the signs were thrown on the ground.... I had to wait 15 minutes to use the restroom. There weren't enough restrooms for the participants to use.... I went back to cheer on the walker mentees and EVERYTHING was already torn down at the finish line, with the exception of a few things. Most of the volunteers had already left. | |
M. H. from MN
(12/13/2006)
"Nice race, mile markers wrong, NO food at finish" (about: 2006)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 4 It was a great race; very fun running down the strip in the morning. Mile markers were more or less all wrong, and there was NO food at the finish. | |
L. Z. from Naperville, IL
(12/13/2006)
"2006 Race Was a Farce!" (about: 2006)
11-50 previous marathons
| 2 Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathons
COURSE: 1 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 1 I ran both the 2005 and 2006 races. 2005 was a great experience. 2006 was a joke. The mile markers were WAY off - some by as much a 1/2 mile. The new half marathon started AND FINISHED with the marathon. I finished in 3:22, and was a mere sideshow to the mass of half marathon walkers who were finishing at the same time. For that matter, the overall winner was a sideshow to a mass of 11 min/mile half marathoners. As a final insult, they allowed spectators into the finish area! If Vegas really wants to be a world-class marathon, as they claim to do, they really need to clean up their act. | |
Kami K. from Corpus Christi, TX
(12/13/2006)
"Wind, Wind, & more Wind!" (about: 2006)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 2 New Las Vegas Marathon, Sunday, December 10, 2006. First of all, strong wind made it a very tough marathon to run and I am not exaggerating. The race started at 6:00 a.m. Temperature ranged from low 40s to low 50s. It rained a little and became sunny after that. The loop course started and finished at Mandalay Bay Hotel and Casino. There were fireworks before the start and the Blue Man Group performed as we took off. We ran northward through the Las Vegas Strip and crossed the 10K run at the end of the Fremont Avenue Experience. The first 10K was the most interesting section of the route. Several couples stopped at a wedding chapel at mile 5 to either get married or renew their wedding vows! It felt as if we were at the middle of nowhere from mile 7 to 14, the wind was brutal, and it began to rain too. We ran westward from mile 10 to mile 14, then southward to mile 20, followed by eastward to mile 23 which included two rather sharp declines that I did not like at all. We ran the last 3.2 miles southward into the wind to the finish line at the parking lot of the Mandalay Bay Convention Center. There were several bands and performers throughout the course, especially alongside the last 3.2 miles. There were plenty of water and Gatorade stations. I liked the wide roads, and with the exception of the first mile, crowd congestion was not a problem. There were a few hills, and those who like to run straight forward for miles would like the route, as it includes few turns. Nice finisher's medallion. Each runner received a short-sleeved cotton race T-shirt and a bag of goodies. Finish line refreshments consisted of bottled water, Gatorade, and bananas. Baggage drop-off could have been a smooth operation if the sweat bags had been distributed at the packet pick-up. Splits were digitally displayed; however, some of the mile markers were wrong. I think that this running event, in its second year, is going to grow even more in popularity. I am a "50 stater" and this was #24. | |
william carter from macomb,michigan
(12/13/2006)
"One of the worst I've run..." (about: 2006)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 2 I have now run marathons in 9 different venues and this was the worst organized. The expo was a mess with very few volunteers or workers to help the runners get their goody bags, etc. Long lines and mass confusion. I stayed at the Mirage and had to walk the roughly 2 1/2 miles to the start because there were no taxis and no shuttle buses available. Thank God I had a seeded corral position at the start because it was chaos. The finish was poorly organized as I had to maneuver through the walkers to get to the finish. Not a lot of food or drinks and all far from the finish line. All that said, I PR'ed and thanks to our 3:10 pace leader, Michael. But this race needs a lot of improving. | |
M. K. from Virginia
(12/13/2006)
"Organizers Need to Focus on the Basics" (about: 2006)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 2 I've run 21 marathons from small ones like the Hatfield-McCoy in WV/KY to large ones like the Marine Corps, Disney, and Honolulu, and I can say without hesitation that the 2006 "New" Las Vegas Marathon was the worst organized when it came to the basics. I finished in 4 hours and there was absolutely no food at the finish - they ran out. Also, many of the mile markers (when there was one) were way off. How hard is it to get that right? The course was certified according to the organizer (Devine Sports). If you were trying to qualify for Boston or pace yourself based on the mile markers, forget it. I could go on about other basics they struck out on - like the complete disorganization for many people trying to get to the start (I had to climb through bushes and down a 20-foot gravel embankment) to the cheap shirt they handed out, but you get my point. While the fireworks before the race were great, and the 8 or so seconds that I saw Blue Man Group were fine, it was clear that the organizer (Devine Sports) forgot about the simple basics of marathon organization. If this had been their first marathon or the first "New" LV Marathon, I could understand somewhat - however, people had the same complaints last year when they took over and brought the race from the desert to the Strip. I ran the "Old" LV Marathon twice, and while that course was not necessarily the greatest, at least the people that organized that race made sure the basics were adequately covered. In short, until I hear that Devine Sports gets its act together in Las Vegas, the "New" LV Marathon is off my calendar. | |
T. C. from Illinois
(12/13/2006)
"Fun race, but a couple issues" (about: 2006)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 The start of the race was great with the Blue Man Group performance (though a stage facing the participants more would be nice), the fantastic fireworks display, and the starting corrals. The run down the strip in the dark and through Fremont street was very cool and went by very quickly. The rest of the course was some desert and then mostly residential area. The last few miles is not on the strip but that is understandable given the time of day. There was plenty of entertainment and crowd support in this stretch though. The biggest complaints are: cotton short-sleeve T-shirt, non-spinning finisher's medal, mile markers did not align with the plentiful clocks on the course, and there was only water and bananas in the finisher's area. I walked all over the huge parking lot with expo vender booths and a band playing on a stage, and there was no other food or drink available. Suggestions: skip the open bar at the nightclub but keep the free entrance passes (it appeared to me that everyone in the nightclub was taking advantage of the open bar whether they were marathon participants or not, thus long lines and not everyone getting any drinks). Have a lot more variety of food at the finish area. Provide some type of seating in the huge parking lot to allow people to sit somewhat comfortably (sitting or lying on asphalt is not fun). In general spend more money on the general participants, and make a smaller prize purse if needed. On last comment: the quantity of photos taken on the course by MarathonFoto was very generous. | |
Ethan Gucfa from Iowa City, Iowa
(12/13/2006)
"Growing Pains..." (about: 2006)
First Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 1 Nothing more needs to be said than the NEW Las Vegas Marathon is experiencing severe growing pains. There need to be some upgrades to this event to make it "Las Vegas-like." Pros - The volunteers were incredible along with the expo. There was an enormous amount of energy surrounding this race and it showed. The people involved in helping this event take place did a fantastic job. Start of the race was spectacular! Typical Las Vegas style. Could not be any better than that. Cons - needs to be improvements: 1) The course - great start, bad finish. Understandably, you can't shut down the strip for hours but there were parts of Las Vegas I hope I never see again... rough looking neighbourhoods! 2) Mile markers and clocks were way off. Difficult to get an accurate reading on how well you were doing. Frustrating... 3) Post-race amenities were nonexistent. No food! Not even a banana. Unbelievable... I don't know how you can expect people to run 26 miles and not have a bagel or piece of fruit for them at the finish. This marathon is sooooo close to becoming a major event. With some slight modifications, this marathon would absolutely rock! | |
S. B. from Minnesota
(12/12/2006)
"Accurate mile markers would have been nice" (about: 2006)
4-5 previous marathons
| 1 Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 3 I think the race as a whole was very disorganized. The course was not well marked for mile markers; many mile markers I came to twice. Please, for next year's sake, have the race clearly labeled with accurate mile markers, large signs, balloons, something.... That was my main complaint. But other things were disorganized also. there were a lot of bathrooms and water stops, which was nice. But marathon runners need to know exactly what mile they are at at all times, so please do this for next year (if you read this). A decent course, but if you're going and you care about your finishing time, make sure to bring your GPS. | |
don bohling from Chicago, illinois
(12/12/2006)
"poorly administrated but has potential" (about: 2006)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 1 As a former race director I may be more sensitive than some to logistic issues but here goes: The good: 1) Gatorade/water stops and general support such as Gu and vaseline were very good. The bad: 1) Course should lend itself to fast times as it seems you're almost always flat or going downhill, but headwinds were pushing 30 mph for much of course - this isn't any sort of complaint just an observation. The ugly : 1) Several mile markers weren't at the right spot - and I mean as much as a 1/2 mile offm not a hundred yards. There were at least 4 incorrectly marked miles. 2) Crowd support was minimal. 3) Race starts at the south end of the Vegas strip, so most runners were entering from the start (north end) of the course. This led to some frantic police officers trying to clear the course for the first start wave. 4) Distant mountain scenery was very picturesque but much of the immediate scenery on the course was very basic. 5) Streets were reopened and street sweepers sent through prematurely. |
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