Awesome! Best race I’ve done. –Kathleen K.
The race was truly one of the best experiences of my life. –Erica G.
It was a wonderful day! I was so impressed with the community support. Throughout the whole route, we had complete strangers cheering us on, telling us what a great job we were doing. I’m so glad I have such wonderful memories of the day!!!! –Carol B.
That was the best run ever…the support, the music, the volunteers…kudos. Great job Kalamazoo!!!! –Celia G.
BOY was that ever FUN!!!!! –Maureen M.
It was great to see the community involvement and it was obvious that extreme detail was put into making every step of the way perfect! –Jenn W.
Marathon #48 and one of my favorites. –David T.
The Half Marathon was…amazing…just incredible…all the energy, the course, the support, the fun, (the weather too!)…we had such a great time and were amazed how the miles just clipped along. –Deborah K.
Great experience and you put on an awesome event! Thanks for all of your effort in making it a day I will never forget! –Tim F.
I’m getting goose bumps as I sit in my apartment back home in New Orleans reading the Gazette’s coverage of the first Kalamazoo Marathon. This was the best running event I’ve ever participated in –the beautiful, interesting course was clearly designed with the runners in mind and the thousands of spectators along the route were SO inspiring, supportive and enthusiastic. It was such a great day and I can’t imagine a better first marathon experience. I’ll definitely be back next year! THANK YOU KALAMAZOO! –Jessica B.
This was my first marathon and a life changing experience. It is hard to articulate into words the multitude of emotions that I felt that day! The race and community support was amazing! –Natalie M.
I just wanted to say thanks for putting on such an amazing event! Ihaven’t done a ton of marathons – 8, if you include Ironman races – but this one was definitely the best. The course was spectacular with a good blend of commercial, residential, and bike paths. I was never on the same road very long, so it made the mileage go by quicker mentally. The crowd support was much better than previous marathons… and the aid stations were well stocked! Thanks again…look forward to coming back to my hometown to race again! — Mike
It was my sixth marathon and never have I been so impressed with the organization and had so much fun even though you are in pain. It showcased Kalamazoo at its finest!! — Eric K.
Thanks for putting on such an amazing event! The course was spectacular with a good blend on commercial, residential, and bike paths. –Mike H.
I am still overjoyed and filled with so much excitement that I was able to be part of the first Kalamazoo Marathon! It was absolutely fantastic! –Colleen M.
You did a wonderful job on everything. This was my 332nd race of 26.2 miles or longer. I am a board member of the 50 States Marathon Club, and we are hoping to consider this as a future reunion race for us. — Lisa G.
Great race! Great support! Fans were great! Medical staff was great! Organized well! Lots of fun! –David N.
Kalamazoo is still all abuzz about the marathon! – Linda D.
What a fantastic event to have in our community. Congratulations! –Kerry T.
I am proud, as part of the running community in the Kalamazoo area at what race committee members and volunteers were able to pull off. If Kalamazoo was not already on the map as a top notch running community it surely is now. –Gale F.
Crowd support was great! Medals are nice!! Loved the finish. It was a great day for Kalamazoo. –James F.
I LOVED this race. I am a Portage native and loved running by all these places I had been to growing up. –Kristie J.
The shirts and medals are awesome. –Andy S.
Great organization to the race! You guys did an awesome job on the first Kalamazoo Marathon. I give this marathon two big thumbs up and will recommend it to others that are looking for a fun, challenging marathon! –Tracy A.
Kalamazoo should be PROUD! The course was challenging but beautiful. –Tiffany M.
The course was beautiful, and interesting. The crowd support was perfect –I felt like some knew me and were personally cheering me on! –Renee M.
This was my third half marathon and my favorite so far! –Matthew M.
I cannot imagine how much time and planning it must have taken to put together such a terrific event…it was such an amazing day for so many people! –Cheri K.
Great job! What a success. I’ve heard nothing but positive comments from the community. Thank you Gazelle and Borgess for brining this wonderful event to Kalamazoo! –Maggie W.
I was overwhelmed with the amount of support that was provided through the community volunteers. –Amy K.
I love Kalamazoo and was excited to be part of the first ever Kalamazoo Marathon! It was a challenging course, but the fans support –especially on the hills was awesome.–Derek R.
I thought this was a great marathon. The course was wonderful and very different.–Ralene H.
What a beautiful town you guys have! It’s like a giant botanical garden. The local support was outstanding. I loooooooved the long downhill at mile 15 – it got my legs back under me again. It was heating up a bit as I finished. The thing is, this was part of a crazy challenge my husband and I embarked on – your marathon was the 4th marathon I ran in 4 days, after the Nashville, Flying Pig, and Wisconsin ones. Now I’m ready to rest for a bit. Cheers – Misty P.
LOVED THIS EXPERIENCE!! –Stacy D.
The post race amenities were excellent. –Leo F.
Great job putting this together. Runners could feel the excitement and energy out there on the course with great volunteers and spirit stations. –Fred S.
GREAT event. Well done! –Rob G.
I think that for the first marathon in Kalamazoo, this went very, very well. –Shawn B.
The entire community should feel proud of the inaugural Kalamazoo Marathon and the way it was integrated into the Borgess Run for the Health of It. –Anne K.
It was a great run – loved that there were parts of the course on trail. We were impressed and had a great time. –Lindsay H.
I really enjoyed the well-staffed aid stations and the incredible spectators. –Michelle N.
I think you did an excellent job with the race. The course was nice and very well organized. –Kathy G.
You all did a great job and I will do this again. –Wes
Wonderful event, beautiful day, great job! –Heather H.
KALAMAZOO MARATHON = EXCELLENCE!!!!!!! Words cannot describe how awesome the event was structured. The crowds, neighborhoods, and aid stations were great. The people of Kalamazoo were so nice and inspiring. –Annie E.
Great job!! Looking forward to next year!! –Christa
I loved the crowd support. –Wendi S.
The cowbell theme was great – could hear the cowbells all over the place. –Wendy M.
This was an awesome event!! –Georgeann
It was great to run a race in my hometown and loved all the support of the spectators. –Julie S.
Great experience and we’ll definitely be back next year! –Deb L.
This was my first half marathon and I really enjoyed it and thought it went really well!! Good job!! –Sally D.
Awesome run, and outstanding community support. The way everyone came out and really supported the runners helped push me through those challenging parts. I will definitely do the Kalamazoo Marathon again next year! –Jason M.
This was the best marathon experience I’ve had yet. Running in my hometown was amazing. –Jim P.
Police support was incredible. Loved the Cowbell! –Kristin O.
Everyone involved did a terrific job – the compassion, kindness, and enthusiasm was inspiring. –Tracie S.
Extremely well organized, friendly, beautiful conditions; it was just great. We all had a wonderful time. –Daniel J.
The community support was awesome. –T.G. C.
It was great all the way around. –Luanne C.
Great race course for half marathon. Would not change a thing. It was an excellent experience overall. –Perry N.
It was PERFECT – great job!!! –Larry O.
This was a great race, especially for your first full. The music and bands were awesome – really helped with the energy. –Valerie S.
It was amazing! I would not have wanted a better first time experience of running a 5K. Bravo Kalamazoo! –Beth T.
Thank you Kalamazoo for the opportunity to have this amazing and unforgettable experience!!! –Susan M.
I thought the event was awesome and made me so proud to be of the community. –Amy B.
This was one of the best marathons I have ever run. The setup at the start/finish, the Excitement Zones, the water stations, the volunteer and police support, even the mile markers were all great. The entire Kalamazoo Marathon team should be proud of the event that they put on over the weekend. This was my first Kalamazoo Marathon and it absolutely won’t be my last. I’ll be running it as long as you will. –Jim S.
Crowds and volunteers were FABULOUS!!! Course was BEAUTIFUL!!! EXCELLENT JOB PUTTING ON YOUR FIRST MARATHON!!! OVERALL IT WAS A GREAT DAY!!!! –Margaret B.
Great race! The shuttles worked well (Thank You Kind Drivers!) –Murray
The community support throughout the course was unbelievable. –Meredith N.
The race was exceptionally planned and executed. Kudos for a HUGE job well done! Loved the bands, the well-organized and stocked water stations and all of the crowd support! Loved the race and proud of everyone involved and of our Kalamazoo! –LeAnne F.
The Marathon was a lot of fun with tons of energy surrounding it! –Shane T.
This was not only a good first marathon, but one of the better marathons that I have participated and this was #36. The crowd support was fantastic. It seemed like the whole city embraced the event. –Rich H.
This event was great…well marked and plenty of water stops and loved the city participation/spectators. –Jennifer O.
Loved all the bands at each mile! Loved how the water station was on both sides of the path. Loved how the Gu was organized before the water station and volunteers were calling flavors out. –Kristen F.
The Race was well organized and had fun opportunities for all. –Kathy C.
The event was run both efficiently and professionally. –Steve A.
The crowd support was AMAZING!!! The atmosphere of the entire event was great. –Nicole R.
This was a fantastic event. Congratulations on the excellent inaugural marathon. I plan on racing this every year until I am unable to run. –Brian W.
Crowd support along the course was first-rate! I brought my I-pod but didn’t even need it. You even made the hills fun! Well done, Kalamazoo, well done. –Jody B.
Every last minute…WELL DONE, VERY WELL DONE!! –John J.
What a great event. This is something for Kalamazoo to boast about. –Al S.
It was a great event! There was super community support. Well done. –Ben I.
A great day! One of the best-organized races I’ve been a part of. –Brian W.
I loved the excitement zones. They were wonderful to have along the way. The people who volunteered had amazing energy. They kept my energy up and helped me through the half marathon. –Carrie C.
Great event. Extremely well run. –Cindy
Great job for a first time marathon! I really loved the community support. People were all over town with signs, cowbells, aid and encouragement. –Sara W.
It was a great marathon and very well run! You guys Rock!! –Lisa C.
It was a great race and well organized. –Lyndsey C.
Great event. –Tim R.
If I hadn’t known it already, I would never have guessed that this was the Inaugural year for your marathon. What a well-organized, well-run race this was, with obvious attention to detail all the way around. You and your team outdid yourselves, in my opinion. The Inaugural Expo provided a wide variety of information and accessories that runners like to see. I am fairly certain the Expo will grow, as I know your race will. Just having a speaker to discuss the course itself was valuable especially to me since I’d never been to this part of Michigan before. I was grateful for the insights the 4:15 Pace Group Leader gave about the course, so I wasn’t shocked when all those hills loomed in front me! (I’m from Illinois – hills are found mostly on the treadmill incline!) I wanted to tell you how much I enjoyed every last bit of the Kalamazoo Marathon experience, from this morning being able to stay warmed up in the medical building, to finding tissue in the porta-potties at 11:45am! Having all the school buses shuttle everyone – excellent! My personal favorite: the radio or TV station truck had COFFEE available! I love it – I’ve whined about that one missing piece at about a dozen races. I’m thankful for those details! And let me say this about ALL the volunteers: THEY WERE AWESOME! Way too many thoughtful, helpful people to describe individually – they were the best, all of them! I will say that lovely lady at the hill at 25 who jumped in to run me up the hill – God bless her! It will be fun to share the race information with my running groups here in Illinois. I suggest you prepare adequately for 2012; I have a feeling your entries are going to sky-rocket! And next year I’ll train for those hills! Thanks so much for so much fun, — Trish S
All in all, a great marathon. I loved the course: good mix of hills and flat, excellent amount of turns to keep you focused (no real long straight-aways that are monotonous), GREAT fan support. –Nicole K.
Loved the community support and the course. –Sara G.
Can’t say enough about how great things went. — Phyllis F.
Loved the whole weekend! The excitement stations were SO awesome and so very welcome! –Kelly M.
I just wanted to take a minute to let you know what a wonderful experience yesterday’s marathon was. It was my first time running a full marathon and I don’t know if I could have finished without the energy, excitement and encouragement of the hundreds of volunteers and supporters along the course. I am thoroughly impressed by the race you were able to organize and cannot imagine a better community or race to have made my first ever marathon. On a side-note, the 2007 Borgess Run for the Health of It was my first ever 5k, and I’m so happy that the Kalamazoo Marathon was my first marathon, just four years later. Thanks for all of your commitment and hard work that made yesterday such a success! Please share my sentiments with the rest of your team. — Abbey B
Great marathon! Organization and coordination was top notch. The people along the course and the bands made it one of the most enjoyable of my now, 21 marathons. I was amazed at how the time seemed to fly by. –William S.
Great race! Everyone was so helpful, polite and encouraging (volunteers AND participants). –Amy M.
I thank Chris Crowell, Mr. Kalamazoo, for his “marathon” voice as each of us crossed the finish line. –Shawn G.
Things such as the Kalamazoo Marathon make me proud to say I am from Kalamazoo … you put together a superb race for the city, and the city embodied the same spirit making it my new yearly tradition. –Jess H.
I loved the community entertainment and support! It was an awesome race. –Deb S.
Great race, very well organized. –Lewis M.
Thank you for a great job on a wonderful event. I ran the 5K and my husband ran the marathon, and we both thoroughly enjoyed the community building and atmosphere created by the races. –Holly N.
Great organization! This was my eleventh half or full marathon and I would favorably compare this event with everything else I have experienced. The crowds at the start/finish and along the Mall were great. Water stations were well organized and well staffed. Awesome job!–Tim W.
The crowds of spectators, aid station workers and entertainment along the course were fantastic! –Dave R.
I thought the marathon was great. I loved the medal and the shirt. The course was good. The spectators were amazing. All things considered, I’ll definitely recommend this race to my friends. –Brian M.
For the first marathon in Kalamazoo, I thought it was a GREAT success and a lot of fun!!! –Stephanie R.
Everything was amazing! –Kimberli D.
Great event! I’ve done 47 marathons or longer and Kalamazoo was the kind of race that I like to call “emphatically local” which means that it really seems to have buy-in from the community and it not only serves as a venue to run 26.2 miles but it takes pride in highlighting both the city and the citizens in which the race takes place. I love races that are emphatically local; it’s the whole reason why my wife and I travel around the country doing these things. I’ve never been to Michigan before and I can say that the impression we were left with was extremely positive. In all honesty I can’t think of anything in the race that was lacking. –Brian P.
Loved it! Good job everyone. It was an event by runners, for runners, and it showed. –Gayle M.
What a great experience. I was so very touched to see so many friendly, supportive faces all through the run. –Carole S.
Overall, great event and looking forward to next year. –Wayne S.
Congratulations on a superbly organized marathon. It was an amazing and uplifting experience through and through. –Pablo P.
The first ever Kalamazoo Marathon and the Borgess Half Marathon were amazing events! –Kristin H.
I thought it was an amazing experience and I will never forget it. –Craig M.
Awesome marathon! This was my 14th marathon and one of my favorites. Very nice work, Kalamazoo and Borgess! –Michele N.
Great Marathon! Will be back next year! And every year God willing! –Jane S.
I ran the half marathon and just wanted to say what a magical moment Sunday was. It was amazing how electric the atmosphere was. Everything from the runners, to the crowd support, and all the volunteers. I am so excited to have been a part of the first Kalamazoo Marathon. –Kim H.
It was a wonderful overall experience celebrating Kalamazoo’s first marathon. –Wendy B.
The aid stations were great and the volunteers were amazing. –Susan J.
Just wanted to say that it was an awesome event and well ran! Made me proud to live in such a great city with the energy this marathon created!!! The crowds throughout the city were incredible and very enthusiastic! Nice job!!!! –Raul G.
I thought the first Kalamazoo Marathon was awesome! I was proud to run in Kalamazoo first Marathon and will plan on running it every year! –Karen S.
Fantastic event and very inspiring. I look forward to running next year. –Amanda K.
As a spectator of way more running events than I can remember, watching my husband in this race was beyond what I expected!! This definitely topped any other races I’ve been a fan at for him in terms of how supportive you were for the fans as well. Great job!! LOVED the volunteers!! We look forward to MANY year of this marathon! Overall it was such an amazing event. –Kim B.
Absolute best Borgess Run event I have been to. Everything was first rate. Awesome, awesome job. –Larry M.
Congratulations. The community support was amazing. Overall a great event that I will be proud to be a part of next year. –Carolyn K.
Race staff- amazing job. Community support- unbelievable! –Joe B.
This was my 5th marathon and one of my favorites. You rocked it. The volunteers and fans were amazing! I have very fond memories and will definitely run in Kalamazoo again! –Sarah S.
Fantastic course with so many wonderful people. –Kim B.
This was amazing and I’m so proud of our community and all the supporters and volunteers. –Val D.
GREAT race, well organized, timely, nice size to allow for individual pace, great support, food, course route, shirt, even enough “port/potties.” –Isola M.
Great community event. Well organized. Great community involvement and spirit. –Gordon L.
I loved the half marathon route! It was a great course. I will be back! –Kristin
The Kalamazoo Police were great throughout the course. The overwhelming community support at the finish line was very welcoming, and I enjoyed the announcers at the finish not missing a beat. –Amanda
Wonderful race. This was my seventh marathon, and one of the best I’ve run for its size as far as community support. I will definitely recommend it to others. –Angela P.
So looking forward to May 2012!! –Laura S.
Great day for Kalamazoo. –Ann D.
Loved the run! Very well put together. Looking forward to next year! –Blair G.
Fantastic day!! Wouldn’t change anything~great way to promote fitness and a wonderful gift for all mothers!! GREAT JOB! –Deb R.
The event was terrific! So much fun for runners, kids and cheering fans. –Michael G.
CROWD SUPPORT was wonderful – very inspiring, especially at the end when I wanted to give in. THANKS FOR A MEMORABLE FIRST HALF MARATHON EXPERIENCE! –Linda V.
Thanks for an incredible event! I’ve run in similarly small sized marathons in the past and this one had all the pluses of a small race with many of the bonuses found at large events. One of my best racing experiences! –Ryan H.
The crowds of spectators, aid station workers and entertainment along the course was fantastic! –Dave R.
Can’t say enough about how great things went. –Phyllis F.
I was super impressed with the kindness of the race personnel, the music/course support/cheering crowds…and just everything about the race. –Karen V.
You did an outstanding job with this event. Everything was so incredibly well organized. I am so proud to have been part of it all. –Mary-Frances
What an outstanding job! It was a fabulous day. –Patricia M.
I still am amazed and in awe of the incredible success of the Borgess Run and Kalamazoo Marathon. –Paul S.
I just wanted to let you know what a superbly organized race the Kalamazoo Marathon was. I am thrilled to have been part of it, despite or maybe because of the difficulty of the course. –Jessica L.
This was a wonderful, perfectly executed, experience for my family and the rest of the community, whether they realize it or not. –Dave, Melissa and Peyton K.
Seems like every detail was thought of and planned for and went smoothly. –Sue K.
Congratulations on a fantastic Kalamazoo Marathon! –Ken M.
Great race! Great support! Fans were great! Medical staff was great! Organized well! Lots of fun! –David N.
Overall, an awesome event!!! –Cathie M.
This is the first time I have run the Borgess 5K and it was a great experience! The organization of the event was fantastic. –Bridget H.
Great event…loved all you did to make it spectacular! –Nancy L.
The half marathon course was fantastic, the community support was amazing!! –Susie S.
I enjoyed pacing your inaugural event and have already talked my sister into coming to do it next year. –Marie B.
Thanks so much for a GREAT event. I had tears in my eyes starting the race from excitement and pride for Kalamazoo. –Megan J.
