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Jul 5, 2024

Kentucky Derby Festival Marathon Runner Comments

Back to Kentucky Derby Festival Marathon Information & Reviews

Course 4.3

Organization 4.1

Spectators 3.7

Number of comments: 362 [displaying comments 251 to 261]

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John Tucker from Clearwater, Florida (4/29/2007) "Overall Excellent Experience!" (about: 2007) 3 previous marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 I grew up in Louisville and now live in Florida.... The "Mini" (half) has always been the big race (9000+ this year), but the marathon is growing but still pretty small (about 1000 ran this year), and I thought it was great. The city has grown up a lot since I left in the 1980s and is a very cool place to visit, particularly during the Derby Festival. There is some great history in one of the first big American cities west of the original colonies. The first half had great fan support. I thought the race organization was pretty good (though it was hard to find anyone who was a volunteer... what were they wearing?). Good, but not great expo. Good start. The weather was fantastic. The course was a neat experience for a flat-lander like me. Lots of hills around mile 4 and miles 14-15 when you go through Louisville's gorgeous Iroquois and Cherokee Parks. Thank goodness for the great declines! Very cool running through Churchill Downs, and Louisville has some gorgeous homes along parts of the route. Fan support after the split from the Mini was spotty at best. The bridge over the Ohio River was cool but the approaches were rough at miles 23 & 24! The police support was FANTASTIC. Water bottles a decent idea, but have the all the volunteers do the same - either screw the top all the way off or leave it on.... You never knew what you were getting and it splashed when they handed you one without a lid. Only disappointment was that I ran a P.R., but my chip failed to record my final time! Overall, GREAT... but I wish I had an official time!!
S. H. from suwnaee, GA (4/29/2007) "What an amazing race." (about: 2007) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Kentucky Derby Festival Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 Upon finishing I wanted to shake the race director's hand. The top 10 reasons for running the KY Derby Marathon: 1) race expo was easy and painless 2) great hotel accommodations (Marriott) 3) bus transportation was flawless 4) seeded numbers for runners 5) the parks are beautiful 6) Churchill Downs - an experience 7) aid stations were quick and easy 8) clocks at mile markers were visible 9) the bridge is a geat pre-finish 10) the post-race party!! (free beer) Reasons not to run this race... 0. I am from Kentucky but now live in GA. I must say this marathon made me proud to call old KY my home. This marathon is going to be huge someday.
P. L. from Northern Indiana (1/4/2007) "Room for Improvement" (about: 2006) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Kentucky Derby Festival Marathon COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 2 The Derby Festival race weekend seems very much about the half-marathon and not the marathon. In fact, at the start the announcer tried to excite the runners by saying, "Runners, are you ready for the 2006 Kentucky Derby Festival Half-Marathon?" Then continued on with his spiel about the day, not even acknowledging the marathoners. While possibly a minor oversight, it doesn't feel very good when you're in such a minority to begin with (6,725 half-marathoners and only 850 marathoners!). Of more major concern and importance, the last two miles were horrible for sub-3 hour finishers. The street was packed with half-marathon walkers and it was very difficult to weave through to the finish line. The organizers MUST divide the street for marathon/half-marathon finishers. Also, there was little to no crowd support in the last half, making the race feel more and more like a half-marathon event with a marathon on the side.
Kami K. from Corpus Christi, TX (10/12/2006) "Running with Horses!" (about: 2006) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Kentucky Derby Festival Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 Saturday, April 29, 2006. This was a scenic, yet CHALLENGING marathon. Point-to-point, south-to-north route. At 5:15 a.m., from three locations in downtown, buses began transporting the runners to the start line at Iroquois Park. Temperature was 60 when the race started at 7:30 a.m. Soon after, it began to rain. Temperature began to drop too. I liked both! From mile 0 to 3 was relatively flat. The next three miles were hilly. Shortly after mile 8, we entered the legendary Churchill Downs horse racetrack and ran about 8/10 of a mile on the racetrack's infield. Horses were busy with their morning workouts. We could hear a taped broadcast of a previous Derby. I felt like an old horse, reminiscing about his glorious racing days! Shortly before mile 12, half marathoners made a left turn towards their finish line, and we made a right turn, running east. Suddenly it became pretty lonely. From about mile 13 to shortly after mile 19, we climbed several hills. The Daniel Boone statue between miles 15 and 16 was quite eye-catching, after which we entered the Cherokee Park. At about mile 17, we began running west/northwest. Shortly after mile 22, we crossed the Ohio River via the Second Street Bridge into Indiana, ran a short loop in Jeffersonville, IN, followed by running back on the bridge to downtown Louisville to the finish on Main Street. This was a very well organized race. There were ample aid stations and volunteers. Few bands/musicians on the course. Digital displays of splits at every mile. Adequate post-race refreshments. The race packet included a bag of goodies, race poster, long-sleeved T-shirt, and a one-day pass to Churchill Downs. Nice finisher medal. Crowd support was quite good during the half marathon route, but minimal during the second half. I stayed in Galt House Hotel, within short walking distance of packet pick-up/expo, buses to the start, and finish line. It is a GOOD marathon and I doubt if anyone would be disappointed by running it.
D. D. from Atlanta, GA (7/31/2006) "Awesome experience!" (about: 2006) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Kentucky Derby Festival Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 The course itself was pretty - nice neighborhoods, loved the parks! The city of Louisville was extremely generous in allowing the complete closure of streets. We were very impressed by the fact that we had the ENTIRE street, not just half or a lane. That was a nice surprise. Support was incredible! Bottled water - what a treat! The bike support, not only making sure everyone was o.k., but cheering us up some tough hills! Very well done. One person in our group made a comment to the person next to him that he was running low on water, and the next thing he knew one of your support personnel gave him water from his water bottle, then came back with bottled water from the course. We aren't used to that level of support; it was awesome!
G. C. from Lincoln NE (6/2/2006) "Well Done Marathon" (about: 2006) 50+ previous marathons \| 1 Kentucky Derby Festival Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 Some hills, some flat... nice deviation through Churchill Downs early and across the Ohio River late.... Well done pasta feed and an okay expo - Louisville is a nice city and interesting to walk around...
d. z. from denver, co (5/19/2006) "Very Fun and well organized" (about: 2006) 50+ previous marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 Race was terrific. Nice cool day and lots of runners. Scenic and historic with run through Churchill Downs. A real thrill one week before the famous race. To see the thoroughbreds training right on the track is phenomenal. Great volunteers, cheerful and encouraging. The community is wonderful to visit. Muhammad Ali Center is awesome. Nice downtown area and beautiful on the riverwalk. Very enjoyable weekend. I would encourage anyone to run this marathon. No regrets whatsoever. My recommendation for the organizers would be to use cups instead of bottles at the water stops because some runners twisted their ankles on the discarded bottles left on the street.
Wendell Jones from Louisville, Kentucky (5/18/2006) "Thank You for your comments" (about: 2006) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Kentucky Derby Festival Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 As volunteer route coordinator and co-course designer for this event, I wish to thank all of you who have posted comments over the first five years of its existence. Believe it or not, I and the rest of the organizing committee do review them. It is our goal each year to make the marathon and half-marathon better than either have ever been. To do that, we seek the input of those most affected by our decisions and our failures - the runners. As is true with all events of this type, not everything we do will be welcomed by all runners. Every year on this site and elsewhere, we hear from runners who liked this or that, and others who vehemently disliked the same thing. There is no marathon that can please every one and none should try to do so. Nevertheless, each year there are certain trends which stand out and, if you will, cry out for our attention. This year, it is the availability of porta-pots on the course. Also this year, we are hearing conflicting concerns about which event the committee is focused on and which is the 'step-child'. Locally, because the half marathon is now well established, runners are of the opinion that we are trying to kill off the mini. At the same time, I read on here and elsewhere that out-of-town runers think the marathon gets short attention. Neither is true. For local runners, all I can say is use a little common sense: with the mini drawing 7,000 and more runners each year, neither Meijer nor KDF is crazy enough to want to end it. Quite the contrary. Our present goal is to grow the mini to about 10,000 and then see from there. For you from out of town, I can understand your feelings a bit better. The field is smaller and the crowd support suffers at times. Also, local media and others often refer to the mini, but fail to mention the full marathon. To you, all I can say is we are working on both. But, understand, with over 30 years of tradition for the mini, old habits die hard and new habits are hard to develop in a community. It has not helped that each of the past two years the weather has been dismal for fans. So right now, we really do not know how much support might exist along the marathon route. With regard to the porta-pots, we have already committed to reviewing the issue. There were assets at virtually every water station, med station, and scream team locations. Obviously, many of you did not see them. It is my responsibility as route coordinator to address that issue. Therefore, next year, I will undertake to re-locate them in such a way that they are more readily noticeable to runners. Hopefully, that will help. Finally, I wish you to understand that much of the organization and coordination of this event is done by people such as myself who are experienced marathoners. We have been there, and know what you are going through. That is why, for example, I created the Bike Team and pushed for greater involvement by the EMS Bike Teams. That is why the course is what it is - as a runner, I prefer scenic areas to barren industrial zones. The point is this event is organized by runners, for runners. We have been there and have a sense of what runners want and need to get through 26.2 miles. That does not make us perfect, it just means you should be aware that your comments are a vital source of information to help us do what we do to better help you on the last Saturday in April. I appreciate you running our little event. I hope you enjoyed your visit to my hometown. I hope our course showed you what a beautiful city Louisville is. May your next marathon be a PR and BQ. Wendell
S. C. from TN (5/15/2006) "Brilliant Location of Portapotties" (about: 2006) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Kentucky Derby Festival Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 I only ran the mini, but I would like all race organizers to note the feature I considered most novel. The race took you for a loop that passed by the extensive line of portapotties that were at the starting line at about mile 6. Despite 8000 runners, with the expanse of options available at that time, one did not have to wait for an available facility. While others have developed a system that does not require a nature break, I haven't, and REALLY appreciate not having to stand in line for the 2-3 facilities that may be staggered along the course. A great plan that I hope others will duplicate!
M. N. from New Hampshire (5/13/2006) "Wonderful run through Louisville" (about: 2006) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Kentucky Derby Festival Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 This is a well-organized run on a beautiful course through Louisville. Running through the myriad parks and Churchill Downs definitely added a touch to this marathon that sets it apart from others. The spectators were out there in numbers, in the rain and all, loudly cheering us on. I had a wonderful time and would highly recommend this one to other runners!

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