George Washington Bridge Challenge - Ft. Lee, New Jersey - Running

"American Cancer Society George Washington Bridge Challenge"

I participated in the 25th Annual GWB Challenge which took place three years ago in 2012.
I'm writing to tell you this was the most disorganized event I have ever attended. I speak from experience having run over 135 road races including the New York City Marathon. I have also More... been the Race Director for the past four years. I can only hope three years later they have learned from their mistakes.

Disorganized chaos is the best way to describe this event. This was the first time I had run this event and will be the last time I attend this event. My feelings are also shared by a number of other frustrated runners and participants.

The Good, the Bad, the Ugly:

The Good:
Raising money from this event to help those afflicted by cancer was one
of the primary reasons I signed up for this event.
The 5K & 10 K courses were unique, picturesque and challenging
Finisher medals were very nice
Post race lunch sponsored by Market Basket and Shop Rite Supermarkets was tasty and very good.
Festive atmosphere
T shirts and goody bags were okay


The Bad:
Two water stops for a 6.2 miles on a hot humid day was inadequate
Medical support was also inadequate. I saw only one ambulance at Mile2 & one ambulance at the finishing area.
Same day registration applicants ran out of bibs and chips for timing
Timing chips were cumbersome. I have never seen a chip that resembled it. B tags and D tags are what is used at races these days.
Waiting on line again to be transported back to the Uni Lever parking lot
The grass at Ross's Dock should have been mowed prior to the event.

The Ugly:
There appeared to be no one in charge. No Race Director in sight. No race announcements, no signs, no information.
Transportation from the satellite parking facility at UniLever in Englewood was a total disaster. Runners and walkers were informed to arrive early so that buses could transport participants starting at 6:30am. The buses arrived at 6:30am but did not start loading passengers till 7:00am for the 15 minute trip to Fort Lee. A bus line was formed with hundreds of people waiting in line. It then became a free for all because they decided to load the buses starting at the back of the line.The buses which included a handful of small 20 passenger transportation vehicles and 3 large buses were not of enough to handle the hundreds of people waiting at Uni Lever. There was one person in charge at this site and she was totally clueless. Shame on you for not giving her more support and direction.

7 portable bathrooms for 2,500+ people. The wait time at least 30 minutes. Are you kidding me? We had 7 portable bathrooms for our recent 5K for 700 people. Remember this .Runners hydrate especially on hot humid days. This is both a dangerous and uncomfortable situation for us. I finally made it to a rest stop at Mile 5 located at the Englewood boat basin. This added 1,000 more feet to my run and cost me valuable time lost.

Registration pickup: Hundreds of people waiting on line in a confined parking lot. One table to handle all those same day pickups. Slow disorganized process.

Race did not start on time: This was by far the biggest issue. The lower levels in bound/outbound of the GW Bridge are shut down to accommodate the event. The race started one hour late. The start line was not visible. Walkers, 5K, runners, 10K runners all left at the same time. This was a total mess. A free for all. People stopping on the bridge to take pictures and blocking the running lanes.

No traffic cones set up on the bridge to position runners for the out and back allowing for a smooth and safe transition off the bridge.

The last ½ mile down hill to the finish line was very unsafe. The road was filled with walkers, runners, strollers going downhill and vehicles driving up hill. I'm surprised no one got hurt.


My suggestion for your organization is to send out an apology and thank you to all the GW Challenge participants. You may want to include a feedback questionnaire in that email. I'm sure a number of the responses will mirror my observations. Good luck next year and I can only hope that you seriously consider my advice regarding this event.