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Dubai Marathon Runner Comments
Back to Dubai Marathon Information & Reviews
Course 3.4 
Organization 3.0 
Spectators 2.5
Number of comments: 54 [displaying comments 11 to 21]
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D. H. from Dubai
(1/25/2014)
"Dull and dangerous" (about: 2014)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Dubai Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 2 It's expensive to enter. The goodie bag is minimal, the start was a disaster, we all had to climb under one fence and over another as they had blocked the signed entrance off. Most water stops were good until the 3.20 mark when they started to randomly shit them down, run out of sponges etc, taxis were let on the track at 3.37! Wizzing past runners! Very few spectators (grateful for those few). Poor crowd control with people milling on the course getting in the way. Boring route, enough Physio at the end with two tents but nothing else to do. No party atmosphere as at others. Cut off point at 6 hours is unrealistic for fun runners. Strict regs mean you can't give your ticket on if injured so friends lost out. Wouldn't bother again. Been to many others in Physio and support capacities. | |
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P. D. from Philadelphia USA
(1/26/2013)
"Well Organized. Great Destination Marathon." (about: 2013)
11-50 previous marathons
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 This was a flat, not crowded, wide roads, fast course. Not many spectators but the ones there were very supportive. The course is a long out and back which means everyone sees the leaders. Refreshments on the course were excellent. The only minor negative point was that there was a 10k and 3 K in this general area and so getting a taxi to leave was a challenge. | |
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Rachel Ballantyne from Dubai UAE
(7/11/2012)
"There and back again..." (about: 2012)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Dubai Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 2 I live in Dubai and this was my first ever Marathon. All in all I would recommend this as a marathon- well organized but very small/ relaxed. Super easy logistics and ideal running conditions. The course is very flat and pretty dull- a long run along beach road, turn round and back again! Not much support along with way, and a small field of 2000 runners, so can feel pretty lonely at times. A friend was biking along at times to keep us company- the organizers did not seem to have issue with this! You can see the finish point the whole way (as it is the tallest building in the world), which can be considered a good or bad thing! Super well organized (aside from instructions to find the registration location- and I am a local!) and so, so easy on race morning- a friend dropped us off 5 minutes walk from start, so a logistical dream. Temperature was perfect- maybe 20 degrees? All in all probably a good marathon to do a quick time, I got 3hr 48. I can see this growing into a bigger and bigger event over the next few years. Maybe a good excuse to visit a great city? | |
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H. Y. from London, UK
(3/13/2012)
"Alot like a long ruin" (about: 2012)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Dubai Marathon
COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 1 Dubai was my 15th marathon. Good online registration site, and very small, almost non-existent expo (2 booths). About 1500 marathon runners, but good flat course. Can turn quite warm so hydration is key. Dramatic finish at tallest building in world, Burj Kalifia but basically an 'out and back' course that is super low on spectators and low on interesting scenery. Great finisher medal and T-shirt. While small water stations, well stocked and lots of volunteers of the number of runners. | |
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J. C. from Nairobi, Kenya
(2/2/2012)
"Race That's Destined To Grow" (about: 2012)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 Dubai Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 Give it another couple of years and Dubai will be the big race in the Middle East! Don't let fear of the weather hold you back: it was a cool mid-50s at the start and high 60s by late morning, beautiful running weather. Organization was great - start was on-time and there were plenty of water/aid stations throughout the 42km. Packet pick-up was in an easy to find hotel and was quick. There wasn't a big expo, but there was a local running shop there with various items that runners may have forgotten to bring or may need (Gu, hydration packs, hats/visors, etc). There weren't all that many spectators along the route, but those who did come out were extremely supportive. No annoying peppy yells, just a genuine 'good job' and smiles. No issues for female runners at all, though as Dubai is a very international city, there were some curious looks here and there of the female runners. Again, more smiles, no negativity. The course was an out-and-back and was extremely well marked. It's not the most interesting course, hence the 3-star rating, but with a few more years of races and more spectators along the route, the miles will go by. It's flat and fast, so a good option for those looking to PR. Because the route is out-and-back, you were able to see the elites in action. The purse size is huge, $250,000 in 2012, so the elites come out in good numbers. The start and finish were in Downtown Dubai near the Burj, translation - there's a lot of decent hotels within a short distance to the start/finish. Logistics were easy and hotels are a short hobble away from the finish post-race. | |
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Z. R. from Jordan
(2/3/2011)
"Extremely surprised - a great marathon" (about: 2011)
2 previous marathons
| 1 Dubai Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 I read the previous concerns about the Dubai Marathon, and I sure hoped that someone was listening. To my surprise, I ran my best marathon ever and achieved a new personal best. Almost everything was perfect and we had great weather condition too! There were plenty of water stations with Gatorade; it was run on a great course, with virtually no inclines or declines; and there was a great crowd and a great set of runners too. The organizers did a great job on this one. T-shirt and medals were also great! For 2012 I recommend the following: 1. Keep 30-plus minutes between the 10K and the 42K. There was some confusion as to where the 42K runners should line up because the 10K runners were also lined up in the same starting area. 2. Add more bathrooms along the course. I suggest 5 after 2-3 K, and then put 2 every 5K. 3. Make it very clear for the slower runners that they will be running with traffic - I did hear from 5-hour (plus) runners that they did run with traffic, though it was not that bad. The slowest finish was more that 6:20, so it is good that someone was there to give you your medal and record your finish! | |
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J. M. from Chicago
(11/11/2010)
"Fast and flat, with great weather conditions" (about: 2010)
4-5 previous marathons
| 1 Dubai Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 I have run in this race and will be running it again. It should be noted that in a lot of marathons the biggest problem is over-hydration by athletes who take on too much liquid. There was water every 2.5K and isotonic at each 5K. If you were to take everything available at every station, you would be in a serious condition medically. Take on too much water and you reduce your sodium levels and no isotonic can replace that in a short space of time. There were more than enough toilets considering the size of the field, but of course, as in most events, you will have to queue. The marshals were excellent and the police did a great job. If you want to whine and moan, you can always find something, and there are those who spend there life doing that about everything and every race. Funny how they always seem to be the slower runners. Haile Gebrselassie didn't seem to have any problem running in Dubai three times, and even came close to breaking the world record in 2008. If it's good enough for Haile, it's good enough for me. | |
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J. J. from Dubai
(8/14/2010)
"Do not run slowly in Dubai and all is perfect" (about: 2010)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Dubai Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 4 I have been a Dubai resident since 2006 and this was my first marathon. I am not at all a runner type. Start was ok as I knew what to expect and got there in time right behind the elite runners. Running up and down Beach Road was enjoyable but the only time I saw isotonic drinks was at 5K. After 5K there was only water available for slow runners like me. Problem was that I believed in the race information, which was pointing out clearly the isotonic stations, so I took nothing with me. Luckily I got some bananas from kind spectators along the way and some other fuel that kept me going. The young organizers at the desks were all great but simply ran out of isotonic support for runners slower that 3.5-hour pace. Finish was really good (I did not expect anyone to be there anymore, except my family) but I even got the medal and cheers and plenty of water. Overall, a good experience and isotonic dilemma is easy to fix if there is goodwill for slow runners next year. Traffic was opened on the slow runners, but that is understandable, and pavements on the Beach Road are ok closer to finish. I will come back next year but will train to finish in fewer than 4 hours to avoid traffic - and I will definitely carry gels and isotonics. | |
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C. S. from Pennsylvania, USA
(8/10/2010)
"My personal best for 2010" (about: 2010)
50+ previous marathons
| 1 Dubai Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 I enjoyed the event; it was a bit rough in some respects, but based on the comments made on this website previously, I expected a fiasco. I had plenty of water, and plenty of folks to run with. I got my Asia marathon in, even if it was organized by Westerners. Communication between race organization and police needs to be better. I was OK in 4:42, but my friend had major traffic issues 45 minutes later. I almost went to Mumbai, and I'm glad I went to Dubai instead. | |
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P. C. from Dubai, UAE
(2/28/2010)
"Average race but numbers growing" (about: 2010)
3 previous marathons
| 1 Dubai Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 2 A little boring, with a poor race pack. But it's great to be out running, considering the limited options in the Middle East. |
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