Like a previous reviewer, I got picked up by a bus at mile 12 after trudging through 2 miles of pouring down rain. We were told... there were lightning strikes along the course and that the race was CANCELLED ...we were told the aid stations were being shut down and the bus driver also told runners that the finishing clock was turned off.
Unfortunately - none of that was true. during our 1.5 hour drive back to the finish the first thing I noticed was that NO aid stations were closed down. I never encountered any lightning myself during my run and the race clock was still ticking along as if nothing happened.
We heard there was some "misinformation" regarding the bus pick ups. What was really striking was the newspaper articles the Starved Rock marathon event touted on their facebook page, it was as if the race was never cancelled in the first place and tried to make it seem as if the runners had an option as whether or not to get on that bus but when you have 14 miles to go in a run and are told there are no more aid stations and the race is cancelled...
The published finisher results for the race are about as bogus as you can get. At least half the people on the bus I was in got off at mile 21 to finish up the race and they were all listed as finishing the entire race. This was the last race I needed to qualify as a marathon maniac and I couldn't very well skip 9 miles of the race and count it.
T-Shirts/SWAG - there was a finisher t-shirt at the end of the race in addition to the traditional packet pickup t-shirt and I thought that was pretty cool and something I had not encountered before. The medal for finishing however .....the 1/2 marathon and full marathon medals were exactly the same - no difference whatsoever. The only difference was in the ribbon attached to the medal.
Aid Stations - most volunteers at aid stations are great and this race was no exception.
Course Scenery - The map of the race sure made it look like a nice scenic run but the reality was a bit disappointing, just your basic asphalt road and minimal views of any lakes.
Expo Quality - definitely the smallest expo I've ever attended. put it this way - the entry fee was $100 and the expo was more of the $35-$40 variety.
Elevation Difficulty - granted, mile 10 had a hill but I've been in the Pikes Peak Ascent so, there wasn't anything particularly alarming about the elevation at least in terms of distance above sea level.
Parking/Access - very easy and well within walking distance to the start of the race
Race Management - this was the 2nd annual running of this race and I learned from associates with the race that the number of runners dropped about 300 people from the first year. For me this was my 2nd full marathon in 7 days and was supposed to be the final run I needed for joining the Marathon Maniacs (MM). They may have offered free entries to next years race but, when you have 7 hours of driving and hotel stays involved the entry fee is only about a third of the cost.
Being denied a finish at this race, I've had to sign up for two other races to fulfill the MM requirements including one I just finished last weekend - the Hatfield-McCoy Marathon (highly recommended) and another one on July 18th.
I'm currently signed up for runs through May of 2016 including many big Rock n Roll events and none of them are as expensive as this $100 wasted entry fee.