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The Montana Governor's Cup Marathon Runner Comments
Back to The Montana Governor's Cup Marathon Information & Reviews
Course 3.7 
Organization 4.1 
Spectators 2.7
Number of comments: 31 [displaying comments 21 to 31]
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Jim Daigneau from Calgary, AB, CANADA
(6/11/2006)
"Well organized and Worthwhile Montana Experience!" (about: 2006)
4-5 previous marathons
| 1 The Montana Governor's Cup Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 This was my 5th marathon and ran it 'back to back ' after Coeur dAlene, ID the weekend prior. This time...great weather (actually perfect!!!)sunny starting in the 50's and low 70's F at the finish. A VERY scenic and unusual course featuring: a ghost town, downhill on a dirt road, out & back past a saloon, then a rolling run through the pastures west of Helena (lots of cattle as spectators), then...a great distance view looking towards Helena and rolling run for the final 6 miles. Enjoyed every minute of this race (despite doing another marathon the week prior!) and highly recommend the trip to Helena. Very well organized, open & friendly people and a fun 'small race' experience. Montana at it's best!!! One suggestion: Registration process should be made easier for Canadian registrants on-line. Alberta, Canada is close by! | |
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Jim Andrews from Columbus, OH
(6/7/2006)
"Well Run Event, Friendly City" (about: 2006)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 The Montana Governor's Cup Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 This was my 34th Marathon. It wasn't the toughest course, but you can't fake it. I should have had a few more long runs in addition to the hill work I did. Everyone I met in Helena was very friendly. The weather was perfect. Good support along the course. And a Finisher's Medal when you cross the line. I'll be back. | |
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J. A. from Fridley, Minnesota
(6/6/2006)
"Wonderful race but beware the downhill run." (about: 2006)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 The Montana Governor's Cup Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 2 This is a nice small race with less than 100 runners in the marathon with a half/10K/5K as part of the overall event. It has a scenic course which is mostly downhill, with the exception of a big incline at mile 14-15. It is mostly rural with the finish in downtown Helena. There are no spectators until the last mile or two, unless you count the cattle. The race directors did a good job of taking care of us with lots of port-a-potties at the start, decent amount of water stops and great volunteers. My only suggestion would be to shorten the amount of time between being dropped off by the buses (45 min.) and the start of the race. I went thinking that I would set a PR, not realizing how steep it really was. I burned out my quads in the first few miles without even trying and struggled over the second half of the course. That being said, I couldn't have asked for a better weather day and the folks in Montana were great. Thanks for everything. | |
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M. B. from Billings, MT
(6/5/2006)
"nice course" (about: 2006)
First Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 2 This was my first ever marathon, and I would do it again. Course is mostly good with about 1,000 feet of net elevation loss most of which is in the first 10K. One 4-5 mile dirt road section of out-and-back, but it wasn't too bad because I got to see who all was ahead of me and figure out what place I was in. Some uphill in 13-16 was much harder than anticipated. Only thing I really didn't like was marathon relay had same start as marathon, and some of the relay runners took off at a good click which kind of pulled a lot of full marathoners out too fast. | |
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Kamika Smith from Kauai, Hawaii
(6/12/2005)
"Small, Downhill and Rural - Montana at it's best!" (about: 2005)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 The Montana Governor's Cup Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 Perfect cloudy weather, start in the mountains outside town and somewhat rolling hills made for a good run. One little boring section for an out and back spur, but everything else offered some nice scenery. The view of downtown Helena at around mile 20 was great as it helped push us on to the finish. After finishing and while walking to the car, I watched the Special Olympics run which was over the last 100 yards of the marathon course. What a great feeling to see the kids putting their all into their run. Yes, other races are going on at the same time, but hey, these runs need to make money for their charities and it also allows other members traveling with the marathoners to participate ~ maybe becoming marathoners themselves. All in all, an enjoyable stay in Helena and a good run down the hill. | |
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T. S. from Seattle Washington
(6/8/2005)
"A Mixed Bag" (about: 2005)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 The Montana Governor's Cup Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 1 You get a little of everything with this marathon. A few hills, some altitude, a couple of stretches of dirt road, buffalo grazing and mountain vistas. This was my 21st marathon and 14th state. I have run marathons with much more prestige, tradition, glitz, glamor and showcase. However I don't know if I have run one any better than this. As mentioned, it is small, there are more grass grazers spectating than people, no bands, no costume competition and no special guest stars. If you require these things, look elsewhere. This is one of the better small race experiences that I have had. The course is a nice representation of what I envision Montana and the West to be, although not the fastest course in the country. The course was marked better than some of the 'prestigious races,' aid stations were numerous, and volunteers were superb. The only complaints to keep this from a 5-star organizational or course experience are the occasional car/truck encounter (as most of the course is open to traffic). Also the ever-emerging walker threat that has evolved in many marathons in the past several years continues. I remain puzzled how some - not all - walkers can stroll 4-5 abreast, blocking the course, oblivious to all things around them. It was all for a good cause so I will stop there. There are also other running events going on simultaneously. I finished in a hoard of walkers pushing baby strollers/runners from the shorter events which I must say kind of of detracted from the marathon finish. The marathoners do have their own finish chute and recovery tent which was very nice. With that said, I want to emphasize what a nice race this is. I recommend this race with a little reservation that if too many runners find out about this little suprise it will ruin the small-race appeal. | |
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Michael Smith from Orofino, Idaho
(3/25/2005)
"My first and last" (about: 1999)
1 previous marathon
| 1 The Montana Governor's Cup Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 2 (Ran in 1999.) Living in Missoula, Montana and a runner of local events, I got the wise idea to run a marathon, the Govenor's Cup, and my first. I had no idea what to expect. I agree with all about the course hills, etc. I ended up with a time of 3:06.11; not bad for a first-timer, I was told. the hills hurt a bit. I was unaware of teams running the event, so was passed several times and couldn't figure out why (hurt the ego some). I got a little sick in the medical tent after the race, missed the awards and had know idea I took 6th overall and 3rd in my age group (28). Hats off to the nurse that told me it would be ok when I puked. They were great. Let me sleep there awhile until I had the strength to walk the mile back to my hotel. Thanks ladies. It's now 2005, and that is my only marathon. I wanted to share my experience. It was an eye-opener. | |
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A Runner from Virginia
(7/18/2002)
"Fun race if you go in with the right attitude" (about: 2002)
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 Having read all the comments from last year's race, I went into the race with a lot of questions. After running the race, I sure felt a lot better about the race. This is a very small race. You will not get a lot of crowd support. But the course support was great. And the people running the race were wonderful. The start was a fast downhill and you must really work to slow yourself down. And the three or four hills between 12-16 are real killers. But overall it is a downhill course. And if you run it correctly, you can run a decent time. (To prove it, I had a friend get a Boston qualifying time here on her fifth try) And if you take the time to look around, it the the most beautiful scenery I have ever seen in a marathon. It is not a spectator friendly course. Your friends/spouse can only see the race at the 6/10 mile mark and the finish. Really worth doing as a change of pace to the large city races. | |
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A Runner from Great Falls, Montana
(9/5/2001)
"Tough Race but well organized" (about: 2001)
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 Tough marathon. Not a place to PR. The first six miles are run on gravel downhill. If you're not careful, you'll pay for it later in the race. Tough rolling hills in the middle of the race. Race support on the course is very good. Enough aid stations and toilets. Pre-race pasta feed was good. For $35 entry fee you receive a pre race t-shirt, a ticket to the pasta feed, a finishers t-shirt and medal, and a nice certificate. The company taking pictures was awful, calling the race a run/walk, a slap in the face to a person who just completed a tough race. Agree with the previous comments that due to the marathon being part of a number of events being run and finishing in the same spot (5K, 10k, and Half marathon) the marathoners are not as recognized as most would like. Overall if you're looking for a marathon to complete your tour through the 50 states, this one is probably not a bad choice for Montana. Just make sure you do some hill training. | |
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A Runner from Minneapolis, MN USA suburb
(6/4/2001)
"Scenic; Mainly Downhill; Concurrent Races Detract" (General Comments)
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 2 (Ran in '01). Agree w/1st poster about course terrain. Vets told me some of the big uphills were removed from previous layout. You run on gravel from start through mi. 6 and 6.5-12; in '01, it was a nicely packed surface. Who knows when it's wet? Could use 1-2 more aid stations from 12th mile on. Aid stations slightly understaffed; might've gotten ugly if a crowd came past. (I also had to grab a cup away from one volunteer chatting with and hugging a walking participant... grr!) Scenic route, with nice view of downtown from about mi. 17. I had tough time figuring out position, as I encountered walkers (given 1 hr head-start), relayers, and back-of-pack half marathoners. This race had big Team in Training contingent. Their excitement and supporters livened up fairly dull and sparse spectators, even as people lined streets for last half-mile. Marathon doesn't seem to be showcased, as there is common finish for it plus 5k/10k/half-marathon. There is marathon relay. Marathoners directed to far right of finish line as other race finishers stream by in remainder of street. Organizers (in web site) choose to use non-standard approach for results by listing them in several sub-categories rather showing an overall listing by time. Bib, info, and participant shirt sent to you by mail; finishers got another shirt and medal. Post-event food and drink adequate but not noteworthy. |
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