Idaho Falls MAD Marathon

I ran this race so I could get ID checked off my list. I have waited a while to post a review. I usually would not give a bad review. I have run a ton of marathons, I would put this last out of all of those. The course was not well marked, not closed to traffic, and aid stations were sporadic. I actually stopped in the middle of the road multiple times wondering where to go; when I got into town, they had volunteers to make sure you did not cross on a red. I ran with someone that told me in a prior year they came to the finish line from the opposite direction.

This is a small sized marathon. It has been organized as a community event. It made me feel that this is an event for runners to get together having fun. No road was closed for the event. In a handful major road cross points, we had to wait for green lights to pass through. There were volunteers at those road crossing points to guide the runners. The first half route went around farmland on paved country road. The second half went along the snake river and loop around Idaho Waterfalls mainly on paved bike trails. This is not a course to make a personal best as we had to make a few stops waiting for traffic. There were signs whenever a turn or road folk were encountered. My speed was close to average. I could see runners ahead of me almost the entire race. I did not have a problem following the route. However, I did hear someone complaining about missed directions. The organizers were friendly to all runners. They were ready to help whenever questions / requests were raised. The first aid station was about 4 miles away from the start. After that, there was an aid station every 2-3 miles. Almost every station had GU Gel supply, except the last one which was about 2 miles from the finish. I guess that the gels were run out. The volunteers in those aid stations were very helpful, except one which had no attendant. There were not many spectators watching this event. In the second half of the route, it was along the river bank trails. There were bikers, pedestrians and road side vendors cheering the runners sometimes. The event is held in summer time. Idaho Falls is a city in Rocky mountain range with 4k+ feet elevation. The cool temperature and light breeze in summer mornings was suitable for running. The marathon started at 6:00am. The temperature was between 50th to 70th before 11:00am. Almost all marathon runners were able to park less than 100 yards away from the start/finish line. No traffic to get in/out of the parking lot. There were plenty of potties in the start/finish area and along the route. It has been a fun event. I had a good time. Sorry some others had trouble with the event. I guess over the time, the event has improved a lot.

The new race director has really turned this race around. Very fun environment and a great course. Loved the early start time to avoid the heat and no bus ride was fantastic. I came in from out of town and our hotel was a quarter mile from the start and finish line. All in all it was a fantastic race and experience!