We should move this to the same day as the MS150. Give those cyclists a taste of their own medicine.

The race itself is always on a Sunday.

CS78 said:

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We should move this to the same day as the MS150. Give those cyclists a taste of their own medicine.

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Feel better? Not sure MS150 could be less disruptive to local traffic. Seems like a few hours to raise millions of dollars for a good cause really isn't too much to ask but maybe I'm wrong.

LOYAL AG said:

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CS78 said:

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We should move this to the same day as the MS150. Give those cyclists a taste of their own medicine.

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Feel better? Not sure MS150 could be less disruptive to local traffic. Seems like a few hours to raise millions of dollars for a good cause really isn't too much to ask but maybe I'm wrong.

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You're not wrong, and similarly the BCS Marathon race series has raised money for several charities including the Mercy Project which so far has rescued at least 200 children from slavery in Ghana. So anyone who may be a little inconvenienced by traffic on Sunday, please be assured it is for very good causes.

The entire website still has references to last year. That's not a great sign

I'm on the route and we're blocked in until it passes. It's not the worst thing but it was annoying the first year since I didn't know

trouble said:

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I'm on the route and we're blocked in until it passes. It's not the worst thing but it was annoying the first year since I didn't know

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We have to go another direction, but are not prohibited from getting where we want to go.. It is surprised that they would have you blocked from leaving your house. What do you have to do in an emergency, crash though runners and/or barracades?

13B said:

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There were a ton of runners and everyone seemed excited to do it.

Traffic was definitely a problem in Traditions in front of FUJI, dangerous actually. More porta-potties, especially at the relay switch points, even if just one would be nice (someone actually took a dump in the street, no. not me.). Even if someone has already peed before getting there, they are going to have that "nervous/pre-game" urge to pee right before getting started.

Before the race started the group was informed that the race would no longer be called The BCS Marathon, it will be changed to The College Station Marathon (because people didn't know where BCS was? Really?). I wonder if they are changing the route to strictly run in CS only? How do people figure out what city the Rock and Roll Marathon is held or Disney Marathon or any Marathon not named after the city it is in? There are tons of websites where you type in what state you are interested in and it lists the races and locations. There was quite a bit of grumbling about that pre-race and nothing like angering half of the folks running it.

Chris has been able to put together a great race for a great cause...not really sure about the direction it is heading. I'm sure there will be plenty of folks still run it and again, I hope it doesn't negatively affect the charities involved. I noticed some of the steadfast local sponsors weren't there this year. I think the runners still had a great experience just maybe not the same experience as previous years.

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We are just wrapping up here, but I happened to check this and wanted to quickly reply.

First, please call or email me directly anytime. Google my name and mercy project or marathon and you can find all my contact info. Love to chat.

Second, some great feedback here. In spite of the commitment we make every year to traffic control and police (we spend over $60k on those two categories) there's always ways to improve. Specifics are invaluable. Port a potties at relay exchanges is a great idea. We'll have those next year so thank you!

As to the name change I mentioned, 70% of our runners are from outside BCS. So they actually don't know what bcs is. Rock n roll, etc include the name of the city. We expect courses to stay the same. New name helps people outside our cities know where we are which we think is a good thing.

We've never had a perfect race in 13 years, but we damn sure keep trying. And I honestly feel great about where we're headed. We held three races this year: Oktoberfest was our biggest in nine years, turkey trot was our biggest in 14 years, and today's marathon was our biggest since 2016. We have an amazing community of sponsors and runners, and I hope the race outlasts us all.

Have a super day!

chrisfield said:

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13B said:

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There were a ton of runners and everyone seemed excited to do it.

Traffic was definitely a problem in Traditions in front of FUJI, dangerous actually. More porta-potties, especially at the relay switch points, even if just one would be nice (someone actually took a dump in the street, no. not me.). Even if someone has already peed before getting there, they are going to have that "nervous/pre-game" urge to pee right before getting started.

Before the race started the group was informed that the race would no longer be called The BCS Marathon, it will be changed to The College Station Marathon (because people didn't know where BCS was? Really?). I wonder if they are changing the route to strictly run in CS only? How do people figure out what city the Rock and Roll Marathon is held or Disney Marathon or any Marathon not named after the city it is in? There are tons of websites where you type in what state you are interested in and it lists the races and locations. There was quite a bit of grumbling about that pre-race and nothing like angering half of the folks running it.

Chris has been able to put together a great race for a great cause...not really sure about the direction it is heading. I'm sure there will be plenty of folks still run it and again, I hope it doesn't negatively affect the charities involved. I noticed some of the steadfast local sponsors weren't there this year. I think the runners still had a great experience just maybe not the same experience as previous years.

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We are just wrapping up here, but I happened to check this and wanted to quickly reply.

First, please call or email me directly anytime. Google my name and mercy project or marathon and you can find all my contact info. Love to chat.

Second, some great feedback here. In spite of the commitment we make every year to traffic control and police (we spend over $60k on those two categories) there's always ways to improve. Specifics are invaluable. Port a potties at relay exchanges is a great idea. We'll have those next year so thank you!

As to the name change I mentioned, 70% of our runners are from outside BCS. So they actually don't know what bcs is. Rock n roll, etc include the name of the city. We expect courses to stay the same. New name helps people outside our cities know where we are which we think is a good thing.

We've never had a perfect race in 13 years, but we damn sure keep trying. And I honestly feel great about where we're headed. We held three races this year: Oktoberfest was our biggest in nine years, turkey trot was our biggest in 14 years, and today's marathon was our biggest since 2016. We have an amazing community of sponsors and runners, and I hope the race outlasts us all.

Have a super day!

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Not sure what the specific problem was but the cars that were coming down the lane where the runners were turning back at the hairpin turn at the relay switch said the police officer controlling traffic told them to go that way. (not sure if the officer was unclear or if the cars misheard or if it was poor design but it was dangerous). One car was quite indignant and quite possibly would have hit two runners if another spectator hadn't pretty much got in front of them and made them stop until the runners were able to make the turn and barely get out of the way (the two lanes across the median were completely open and could/should have been used for traffic in my opinion). At one point both lanes were occupied by vehicles and runners had to work their way between them.

I realize nothing is perfect and you do one heck of a job with these races and we are lucky to have you here. That being said, the name change is a bad look. I find it incredibly difficult to believe that people can't figure out where it is. Nearly 3000 runners were somehow able to find the location this year, just saying. It just seems like a slap in the face of the people from Bryan that run and support this race.

I know it sounds like I am complaining to just be complaining and I know our commitment to these races aren't to your level but there are plenty here that have a love for your races and care about what happens. We will definitely be in contact with you guys with observations (good and bad). I know I mentioned the potties at the relay spots but on the positive side: kudos on the number of units at the start. Most races there is a line, I saw plenty of potties and no lines.