Wicked Fast (AZ) Marathon

TL;DR: Course changed within the month prior, for the much worse, with no heads up.

I honestly feel like I got sold a bag of goods with this race. It was low frills, while costing the same as other races with much more value - and promising perks that were not delivered.

The biggest issue is that the course was changed at some point, with zero communication from the race director/committee. Had I realized this ahead of race week, I may have changed my travel plans or still visited Arizona and DNSed.

The course I signed up for: "Start in beautiful Oro Valley for the first 5 miles on N. Oracle Road then run entirely along the beautiful Chuck Huckleberry Loop, this all-paved course offers runners a smooth, traffic-free experience from start to finish. With a gentle 800-foot net drop, it feels flat as a pancake—yet runners will swear it’s even faster than Chicago. No parked cars, no street crossings, just open space and scenic desert views as you cruise toward your next Boston Qualifier or personal best. After crossing the finish line, celebrate your accomplishment with a free beer and soak in the sunshine and charm of Tucson, one of the Southwest’s most vibrant running destinations."

The course I received: "Starting high on Biosphere Road, runners descend through the breathtaking Sonoran Desert toward Oro Valley, joining North Oracle Road before merging onto the scenic Chuck Huckleberry Loop. The first six miles feature gentle rolling terrain to ease you into your rhythm before the course transitions into a long, fast descent. With a net drop of 1,432 feet, the final miles are smooth, flowing, and built for speed..."

"High on Biosphere Road was unfortunate," as I train near sea level. So were gentle rolling terrain and an additional 632 feet of descent. But my real problem with the new course was the 14+ miles on the side of Oracle. Not only was that monotonous, with a speed limit of 55, cars whizzed by at 65+ mph. Some got into the left lane, or hugged the left side of the right lane, but many did not. There was a line of cones, and police officers serving as road guards at the final intersection before we turned onto the Loop. I had to navigate several other intersections myself, stopping to wait for traffic to subside, and also needed to stop dead in the middle of an intersection when a car zoomed up and began to make a left turn right at me.

The aid stations were about every 3 miles, and had either no attendant or one person there. One volunteer in particular was fantastic - so encouraging and friendly. But a few seemed clueless, like they'd never seen a marathon water table before, or like they just didn't want to be there.

Naturally, during every marathon I ask, "why am I doing this?" But during this one, it was less, "why am I out here running for hours" and more, "why am I running on this terrible course when I could be running in about a dozen other more beautiful places in Tucson?" There weren't any other runners close by, there weren't any spectators, I was carrying my own water, so what did I pay for? That's what I kept thinking - I can't believe I paid to run this.

Also felt it was laughable that they advertised a "custom race bag with swag." It was a disposable plastic bag with two off-brand packets of electrolyte powder.

And the shirt is the worst I've seen in some time - a generic camo design on the bottom half, which has nothing to do with Tucson or Arizona.

I am proud of myself for the training I put in leading up to this race, and finishing it. But I really do wish I'd picked another spring marathon.