Last Sunday I ran the Nike Women’s Marathon in San Francisco. This was my fifth marathon and my first time running in San Fran.
This race was unlike any that I’ve run before for good and bad reasons. Below are a list of my high lights and low lights of the weekend.
LOVED
1. The “Expotique”
Nike did a good job of organizing race number pick up with a lot of fun extras. The decor was extremely girly and fun. Some of the stations included foot massages, sports bra fittings and hair stylists to cater to you.
In any race that I’ve done in the past you are given your race t shirt when you pick up your number. For this event you don’t get your t shirt until you cross the finish line. I wish more races would do that.
2. The Course
The first half of this race was extremely hilly. I did not necessarily love the hills, I did however love the views from the courses highest elevation points. The downhills were a lot of fun as well. The route ran through some of the most exciting parts of San Francisco, including Union Square, Fisherman’s Wharf and Ghirardelli Square.
3. The Swag
All finishers are given a Tiffany’s necklace. The charm is unique every year, which makes the gift that much more special. After the race on Sunday and all day Monday you are offered a complimentary engraving at Niketown in Union Square. This was an excellent move by Nike’s Marketing team. There were two floors dedicated to the NWM Line of clothing. There were so many options of clothing to chose from to commemorate this marathon.
4. The Vibe
One of the main reasons I chose to run this marathon was to be part of 22,000 women running at the same time. You could feel the camaraderie between the female participants. Standing in Union Square just before the start and gazing out into a sea of women all taking on this challenge together was one of my favorite parts of the whole experience.
Room For Improvement
1. Race Day
The organization of the race start was horrible. There were not enough port-a-potties to accommodate a group this large, especially a group of women. There is a Half Marathon and Full Marathon and both events start in the same place at the same time. The beginning was a crowded mess. This is Nike’s 8th year running this race, you would think they’d have figured out to start the two events at different times.
2. Walkers
I am in full support of any able body that is willing to train for and participate in a marathon, even if it means walking. I do have issues with the organization of these walkers.The walkers should be in a completely different section and/or have a different start time. I got stuck behind walls of walkers, especially during the first 5 miles. I’ve never seen such a mess in a marathon. At first I tried not to get frustrated, I wasn’t shooting for a definite time so if I get behind a walker or two, no big deal.
Then the situation became hazardus. At mile 5 we approached one of the steepest hills on the course which was also very narrow. All of a sudden one of the walkers stopped short right in front of me to take a picture. I was horrified.
I understand this was more of a “fun marathon” for most of the participants but stopping completely in the middle of a road to take a picture with your iPhone is a bit much. This was the case with most of the hills. 80% of the people around me stopped to walk, uphill and going down. If that is your plan, please move to the side and let the runners through.
3. Runner Tracking
Many races now offer runner tracking, where friends and family can look up your bib# and get alerts when you cross a certain check point. My check points only came through on the first two.
Runner tracking is a new novelty so I can understand having a few bugs to work out. If you are going to offer runner tracking you should have all of the kinks worked out before race day. If someone starts tracking you and a large amount of time has gone by with no updates you’re friends and family may start to worry that something happened to you causing unnecessary panic.
4. The Course, Part 2
While the first half of the marathon is very scenic and exciting, the second half is very boring. There wasn’t a whole lot of fan support or things to see in the second half of the course. Of course the finish is amazing. Once you cross a Firefighter in a tux hands you your Tiffany’s necklace on a silver platter.
