Wisconsin Marathon Official Website

The "Nitty Gritty" Details (User Opinions)

Ray C.
Chicago, IL

  (05-03-2010)

"This race was recommended to me by my coworker. He said that it offered all of the perks that a big race offers, while still maintaining its small race appeal. He was so right and more!!!

I PR'd in this race, so I was ecstatic!

The Wisconsin Half Marathon is a great race, set in a great small town of Kenosha, amongst great people of Wisconsin. I loved this race and I will definitely try to do it again next year.

Pros:
1) course was beautiful - fairly flat. The course went through the local neighborhood, right by the lakefront.
2) crowd support was tremendous. The Navy was there cheering us on in every corner of the course. The locals were so awesome, as they all cheered and welcomed us in their neighborhood.
3) organization - the start was right on time, the corrals were properly placed, the start and finish lines were smooth as all of the volunteers helped the runners out tremendously
4) race size - as this race becomes more popular - as it should - the race size will definitely increase. I hope not too much though, as the 3000+ runners meant that the course was never too crowded and the aid stations were never back-logged. I hope they can keep the race to a small number of runners to keep that awesome small town race atmosphere.
5) Post race - beers and brats - \'nough said!

Cons:
1) part of the course - there was a part of the course where the runners had to loop around the same area where they started from. Not a big con, but i would have liked it if the loops were kept to a minimum. I wished they had stretched out the first couple of miles farther south to prevent the loop.
2) no power gels - no biggie, just noticed it."

Reviewed by a: First Time Participant for 2010

Danielle P.
Chicago, IL

  (08-13-2009)

""The world's cheesiest marathon", in it's inagural running, was a great little race (marathon and half) on the lakefront in Kenosha. No expo, but packet pickup available in Chicago was a big bonus. Also, FREE parking close to start/finish-- awesome!

The course starts with a loop around downtown Kenosha, followed by a north out-and-back loop and a south out-and-back loop. Parts of the course provide scenic views of Lake Michigan while other parts run through more residential areas. The course seemed easily accessible to spectators and lots of folks were hanging out in their driveways watching the race and cheering. Did I even see someone giving out beer and coffee? Yes, I did! Plenty of aid stations (about every 1.5-2 miles), the only bummer being Heed as the energy drink of choice. I don't like Gatorade much either, but I think Heed may be worse.

Tech t-shirt was cute (race logo on the front, "Embrace the Cheese!" on the back) and the medal was shaped like a wedge of cheese! Post-race snacks and mylar blankets were plentiful. Volunteers were very attentive and helpful. Post-race party included brats and beer, which tasted sooo good after 26.2! Overall a great race. Would definitely run it again!"

Reviewed by a: First Time Participant for 2009