Rock 'n' Roll Montreal Marathon

I'd like to say that the organizer are improving this event but unfortunately not. They corrected last year flaws (no finisher beer, no free bus/metro ticket) but introduced more serious 'bugs': - 50 minute start delay - PA system muted for 5-10 minutes after the elite started - Elite runners had to dodge slower half-marathon runners - boring marathon course (half marathon was ok) - First Aid slow response time - Sub par live entertainment - Frugal post-run snack For all of this, I think I paid too much for what I got in return. Being owned by both Rock'n Roll and Ironman, the whole organization must be a real mess.. Too many cooks spoil the broth. That was my 4th participation to it but it's over - I'm not coming back next year.

There are a few good things about this race. The run through Air Force station and later into the arena with cheerleaders, and the people at the water stations all positive. However the rest very poor. You can't call it a Rock and Roll race with no bands. A few individuals play guitar and or music out of computer? Really? Aids stations with tab water that had such a high chlorine level difficult to drink and Gatorade. One station had half a banana. Started an hour late, great just standing around not knowing what is going on. After 8 Rock and Roll races and 7 Marathons this is by far the worst. Many out there better than this one.

INTRODUCTION: I am a race-walker with a median marathon completion time of 5:17:35. The Marathon Rock n Roll de Montreal was my forty-first 26.2-miler accomplished. COURSE: It was a great day for a marathon: temperature on Pont Jacques-Cartier start was 44 degrees (7 Celsius) with a northerly head wind that certainly provided a wind chill factor equivalent to a temperature in the high-thirties. The course can easily be divided into four parts of similar length, starting with the descent from our bridge that crossed over the Saint Lawrence River onto Ile Sainte-Helene. After descending to the shoreline just after the first kilometer, we were in flat territory for six-plus miles. Our tour around the outer edge of the island included going through La Ronde theme park before crossing over Chena Le Moyne onto Ile Notre-Dame, where our path took us on a Formula 1 race course, perhaps the smoothest and flattest part of a marathon route this side of Berlin. We began our second course segment a little over 10 kilometers into the race, we headed north toward Centre-ville (Downtown), crossing over the Saint Lawrence River on Pont de la Concorde and staying close to the piers as we entered Vieux (Old) Montreal, including traversing the most photographed street in town, Place Jacques-Cartier. After passing by Hotel de Ville (City Hall) on Rue Notre-Dame, with a clear view of the gigantic Molson brewery, we soon turned north, uphill into Ville Marie and later toward Parc La Fontaine, where we would separate from the half marathoners, who outnumbered us by almost four-to-one, just before mile 13. The third part of the course comprised of two out-and-backs, one initially going west on Boulevard Saint-Joseph toward Mont-Royal and one initially going north on commercial Avenue Christophe-Coulomb and returning mostly on residential Rue de la Roche. The roads were of rolling terrain and were mostly straight, thus allowing us not to worry too much about finding the shortest path. Beginning just past mile 20, the fourth and final leg of the course was characterized by a T-shaped out-and-back, toward the east, mostly on Boulevard Saint-Joseph. At mile 23, we were afforded a brief glimpse of the Olympic Stadium before returning toward the finish line at Parc La Fontaine. Finish time temperature was 61 degrees (16 Celsius). ORGANIZATION: Nicely done, with the usual Rock n Roll efficiency. Well organized expo, but with a little less logoed merchandise than your usual Rock n Roll race. Also, unlike the other Rock n Roll expos, marathon tee shirts were not sold at the Rock n RollBrooks booth just after leaving the bib pickup area, but at a separate booth just before departing the convention hall. One unique aspect of this race was both English and metric oriented participants could run in harmony: signs for each mile (in blue) and kilometer (in red) were posted. SPECTATORS: Typical in number for a marathon of this size, enthusiastic in support. Most of the bands were in the front half of the race. CONCLUSION: This race was more subtle than your typical Rock n Roll event; perhaps one may liken it to an acoustic version of the same amped-up tune. Nevertheless, it was a well done affair and worth considering for those who want to do a race in Francophone Canada. Bravo, Montreal.