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Des Moines Marathon Runner Comments
Back to Des Moines Marathon Information & Reviews
Course 4.3 
Organization 4.4 
Spectators 4.1
Number of comments: 295 [displaying comments 131 to 141]
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E. M. from Omaha, NE
(10/28/2007)
 "One of the Better Mid-Sized Marathons" (about: 2007)
11-50 previous marathons
| 2 Des Moines Marathons
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 I try not to run marathons more than once, but I made an exception for Des Moines. The course was improved since I ran it in 2005. The addition of the Drake University track was a great idea. I was once again surprised at how nice a city Des Moines is - it seems very safe, clean, and easy to get around. The hills weren't bad. I hope they don't take them out of the race, because that's the nicest part of the course. But the course profile chart was misleading - it shows the elevation at a scale that doesn't meaningfully depict the ups and downs. There were plenty of aid stations, but the volunteers were crowding the runners by forming very narrow passageways in the middle of the road. Aid station volunteers should also be given gloves so they don't stick their bare fingers in our drinks. And there should be a consistent layout at the stations (i.e. always have water on the left and Gatorade on the right). Compared to other same-size nearby races (specifically Omaha and Quad Cities), Des Moines is the cream of the crop. | |
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C. S. from Cambridge, MN
(10/26/2007)
 "Well-Organized Midwestern Marathon" (about: 2007)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 Des Moines Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 Packet pickup was extremely efficient. I received my race number, goodie bag, and shirt in less than five minutes. The shirt was a disappointing 100% cotton t-shirt However, I had also received a Des Moines Marathon running cap after registering this summer, so that made up for it somewhat. The rest of the expo was extremely small; it took us maybe 15 minutes to swing by the handful of booths. Despite the half-marathon beginning at the same time, the marathon start was not crowded at all. The first 10 miles contained quite a few hills while touring some nice neighborhoods. None of those hills were huge, but they did require a little patience. The race highlight was unquestionably the lap around the track at Drake Stadium. The surface provided a nice break for the legs and it made for some cool photo opportunities. The later miles through Water Works Park were unremarkable, but at least they were relatively flat. A few stretches over bridges in this area provided some much needed variety. The downtown finish seemed rather generic. The post-race food consisted of standard road race fare (bagels, bananas, and oranges). They did have popsicles and ice cream bars though I'm sure some runners never found them. For whatever reason, the finish area just lacked the energy I've felt in other marathons. On the positive side, water stops were everywhere!! As others have mentioned, the order of water and Gatorade seemed to vary at each aid station. The volunteers did a decent job of announcing the order as runners arrived though. Mile markers were clearly visible and there was no chance of taking a wrong turn (unless you're an elite half-marathoner). Volunteers were very friendly and helpful. Crowd support was average. There seemed to be a good number of spectators in the first 15 miles. They weren't particularly vocal, but maybe they will get louder as the race becomes more of a local tradition. Also, the spectators thinned out significantly once runners reached the park areas in the later miles. For those traveling to the race, we stayed at the Marriott (a host hotel) a few blocks from the start. The service there was fantastic. The staff even shuttled us over to a nearby convenience store to purchase breakfast items for race morning. Also, the hotel allowed a 2:00pm late check-out on race day. The City of Des Moines was equally impressive. Parking downtown is free on weekends and there were numerous local restaurants close to race events. We ate at Spaghetti Works which had a surprisingly short wait for 5:00pm the night before the race. Above all, this is a well-organized marathon. It's definitely a good bet for anyone looking for a mid-sized race in the Midwest. | |
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D. H. from Running Heaven
(10/26/2007)
 "Des Moines is Ideal" (about: 2007)
11-50 previous marathons
| 3 Des Moines Marathons
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 The Des Moines Marathon is a fantastic mid sized event. The course is scenic and offers a nice variety of rolling hills and flat stretches. It tours beautiful parts of the city. The volunteer support is incredible and the entire event is professionally organized. I commend the race director and his army of dedicated volunteers for planning and implementing an awesome event. | |
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J. D. from Madison WI
(10/26/2007)
"A great event for a first time marathoner." (about: 2007)
First Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 I am an experienced runner but never having run a full marathon you never really know what to expect. I had a lot of nervous energy the week prior. This event was extremely well organized and planned out. For a first timer, having all the aid/water stations, staff on bikes, pacers, variety of music, made me feel as good as possible during the run. I felt extremely prepared and confident with a goal time, but I did not meet my time and I feel those early hills (fun at the time) caught me the last few miles. One area for improvement could be to better separate out the walkers from the marathoners, navigation around these folks was challenging at times. Congratulations to the organizers and race director. I'll be back! | |
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S. A. from Wamego Kansas
(10/25/2007)
"My first Marathon Experience at Des Moines" (about: 2007)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Des Moines Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This marathon was my first ever. It was great fun and the course to me was fine. Some people had negative comments on the early hills but those were not hills. Even my area of Kansas had worse hills. Never having run a race previously I thought having the hills early was just fine. Our daughter ran Tucson and the LAST 2 miles were the steepest hill of the entire route. She said it was a killer and quite depressing. Yes, the fan support was great in the early half but the area of the flatlands in the park were sparsely populated. It is difficult to get to for spectators but it would help if the organizers could encourage more fans and possibly get a couple bands out there. The high school drum band at about mile 21 was great. Need more like that. The course is very accessible to spectators. My family support team was able to get close to me easily and pass water, GU and generally urge me on. That helped make it fun for me and them. We stayed at the Renaissance Savery Hotel 40 yards from the starting line. They allowed a 3:00 PM late check out which was great and one reason we selected it. Really nice hotel and staff also. I had a disappointing finish time because my legs cramped up but that is my problem. Expected too much of myself for the first marathon. As the CUBS would say ... 'Wait til next year!' | |
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A. W. from Sun Prairie, WI
(10/25/2007)
"Decent course; great volunteer support" (about: 2007)
2 previous marathons
| 1 Des Moines Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 The course was kind of long in spots - running through Gray's Lake Park seemed to take a long time, but it was toward the end of the course. I thought the first seven miles were pretty hilly, too. The volunteer support is AWESOME in this marathon. | |
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N. B. from Kansas City, Missouri
(10/25/2007)
"Exceptionally Enjoyable Event" (about: 2007)
4-5 previous marathons
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 This race had lots of pluses with the only minus being the consequences I faced for spotted training in the month prior to the marathon. Lodging- Oh how great it is to go to a race and be able to check out after you finish and shower-late checkout is the way to go and it was nice to run a race that had the support of the businesses downtown. Another plus was the early morning breakfast made available-it was a start and required minor tweaks. My third plus was walking out of my hotel and onto the street where the start was-this was possible because of the size of the race. -The expo-I saw some stuff there that I hadn't seen in larger expos-so I was mildly surprised-it was about the size I expected. I can't believe I'm saying this but I actually liked the cotton shirt we got and I usually would prefer a dry wick shirt. If it had been dry wicking I don't think we would have had as many colors as the cotton shirt. I enjoyed the guest speaker, but, thought the meal could have been a little better quality-nothing wrong with it but it wasn't any better then the meal I paid $5-$6 dollars for at my last marathon. Course- Rolling hills in the first 8 miles or so is what I read and that's pretty much what I saw...so there was no surprise there. I enjoyed the lap on the track at the college and I was glad that the course had some out-and-back loops so that I could see and cheer on the lead runners. Others remarked that the time in the parks was tedious, or boring- since I was in such a bad state by mile 16 I was really glad there weren't huge crowds watching me-it was a blessing to struggle away from observers. I've run enough races now that seeing people way ahead of me (as was possible in a few of the park areas) doesn't discourage me. I really enjoyed the transition when I hit the parks from rock bands to the wind blowing in the trees. I liked the variety of scenery from the capital building & downtown to parks. Spectators-God bless the lady on the harp-I can't believe someone else didn't mention her. I heard a variety of music from harp to rock and of course the Sousaphone and Tambourine guy-I enjoyed it all. I could tell that merely transporting and setting up some of the speakers I heard on the course required a huge effort and I admired and appreciated the contribution these folks made. I got some help from a course monitor on about mile 20-he was very kind and low key-my aching muscles revolted after not training properly in the weeks previous to this marathon. To sum it up this marathon was the most painful of all my marathons because of my inability to train over the last month;but, I couldn't help but enjoy everything else about it. I found myself wishing I could come back again just so I could enjoy the race with better preparation. | |
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D. S. from Illinois
(10/24/2007)
"Nice marathon." (about: 2007)
2 previous marathons
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 2 I also was one of the DNF from Chicago and wanted to do something before I got out of shape. The expo was ok, and the food at the pasta dinner was good ,but where were the desserts? I didn't understand why there were so many walkers starting with me. I thought they had their own start. This made the start very difficult and I, along with many others had to resort to running on the sidewalk. The run through the illy residential area was unexpected. I didn't think that the hills were ever going to end. The course was ok the rest of the way except for being very boring going through the endless parks. Crowd support was almost nonexistent through most of the race. Also note to the organizers..DON'T pack up things before all the runners are in. My time was 5:56, and when I arrived there was limited food , no water and no formal end of race pictures. There were many people behind me and I doubt if there was anything left for them. | |
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M. G. from Shorewood, IL
(10/23/2007)
"This marathon gets the hills out of the way early" (about: 2007)
4-5 previous marathons
| 1 Des Moines Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 I ran the Chicago Marathon(which was fun despite the heat) 2 weeks prior to the Des Moines marathon, but after running the crowded Chicago streets with 40,000 other runners, it sure was nice to run in Des Moines and not worry about being in someones way or wasting energy weaving around slower runners. Des Moines was a well organized race. The route offered a varied scenery. The roads and paths were well maintained with few potholes or excessive crowning. Volunteers were helpful and enthusiastic. However, I did encounter 1 water station that had run out of cups. This was not a big deal to me because I felt their were plenty of water stations spaced closely enough that the lack of cups wasn't a crisis. Heavy rains the week before made it necessary for a short portion of the course to be built up with gravel a foot or two above the nearby creek. The race director and workers deserve credit for making this effective last minute improvement to the course so runners wouldn't have to wade through flood waters. As for the route itself, runners began in very clean, downtown Des Moines, ran east across the river to the steps of the beautiful capitol building, before turning back west into the downtown area again and beyond into the hills and mansions west of downtown Des Moines. The lap around Drake Stadium provided something different. Miles 17-25 or so were flat through a park in the river valley. Runners followed a large loop around a gigantic open field and a second loop around a large pond. It was a bit depressing looking across the field for the first time realizing that the ants on the other side were in fact runners. At mile 24.5 or so we emerged from the park and began the final stretch home into downtown Des Moines where we finished close to the start line. One final thought: the race is still small enough that one can book a night in a nearby hotel and not worry about traffic or parking or any of the other concerns you have with a major race. Well done Des Moines. | |
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d. b. from des moines, ia
(10/23/2007)
"Good local marathon" (about: 2007)
First Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 It was my first marathon. I was very pleased with it. Can't decide on one thing though... there was a stretch of about 6-7 miles (15-22) in the park and there were no spectators around. On one hand, it would have been nice to have the crowd support; on the other, maybe that's what it is all about... just you and the road ahead of you. Will probably do it again next year. |
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