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Boston Marathon Runner Comments
Back to Boston Marathon Information & Reviews
Course 4.6 
Organization 4.6 
Spectators 4.9
Number of comments: 418 [displaying comments 261 to 271]
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S. G. from Stamford, CT
(5/23/2006)
"One of the Top 10 Greatest Experiences in my Life" (about: 2006)
3 previous marathons
| 1 Boston Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 I am surprised at some of the complaints. The Boston Marathon was even better than I expected. I even thought the Gatorade was great. I threw away my gels early on and lived on oranges and snacks provided by the spectators. Wave start was not a problem. It is was truly one of the greatest days of my life and I ended up running a PR. "There is Boston, and then there is everything else." - JD | |
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J. C. from Santa Rosa, California USA
(5/12/2006)
"Don't miss it if you have the opportunity" (about: 2006)
4-5 previous marathons
| 1 Boston Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This was my first Boston Marathon. It was my fifth marathon overall and I will definitively run it again if I've got the opportunity. The organization is top notch and one can feel like an elite athlete for a day. One comment though is that the busses leave very early and the wait time before the race at the athlete village is a bit long, but given the number of runners, I guess it would be difficult to improve significantly on this point. What amazed me the most was the public, all the way during 26.2mi cheering at the runners and really pushing the best they can in the hills. The course of the race includes much more hills and decline than the course profile shows in the flyers distributed at the expo and available on the web site. I definitively encourage future new Boston runners to check the course or find a map with better resolution. Found one at a running shop in Boston ... the day after the race and confirmed what my legs were telling me... it was harder than expected, but absolutely worth it. I personaly appreciated the wave start and the corals which allows everyone to run at his/her pace pretty quickly after the start line without having to pass slower runners or being a burden for faster runners. If you qualify for it, this is one you don't want to miss. | |
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K. E. from Camden County, NJ
(5/9/2006)
"Humbling" (about: 2006)
2 previous marathons
| 1 Boston Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 The course, filled with its years of history, was very humbling. As a first-time runner on the course, I certainly learned about the hills the hard way. I never dreamed that they could be that tough. I certainly will be better prepared and run a smarter race next year. | |
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J. O. from Colorado
(4/30/2006)
"Need more porta-potties" (about: 2006)
11-50 previous marathons
| 4-5 Boston Marathons
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 Boston is still the best marathon experience and the two-wave system worked well. This year's conditions were as good as one could expect. My only complaint is that, as a second-wave runner, I found every porta-potty was occupied from about Natick on to the finish. More from about Wellesley to mile 23 would have been nice. | |
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Michael Underwood from New Orleans, LA
(4/29/2006)
"The Best Marathon that I have Run to Date." (about: 2006)
4-5 previous marathons
| 1 Boston Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This was my first Boston Marathon. It was my fourth marathon overall. I cannot wait to return next year to run it again. The organization of the event was better than any that I had experience to date. The expo and pre-race dinner were very well organized and met my expectations. Public transportation throughout the Boston area on "The T" was very convenient. I recommend it instead of a rental car. Not only will it get you to all of the race events, but also to the historical sites. This race has to be experienced to have any understanding of the difficulty of the course. Heartbreak Hill gets all of the hype, however the declines are what make this course difficult. Training in New Orleans, LA where the only hills are overpasses, this was a constant concern of mine going into Boston. The declines really took a toll on my quads for the first 16 miles of the race. It got to the point that at mile 10, I started looking for a hill to climb, if just to give different muscles a chance to join in the battle. Then I came to a part of the course that can only be related to a live rock concert. It's called Wellesley College. It takes about a mile after that insane part of the course to recover hearing in your right ear. Somewhere before the Newton Hills, you come upon a severe decline that really takes the life out of your legs. Shortly thereafter, you come upon the part of the course that everyone has read and is concerned about, the Newton Hills. As everyone that has completed this marathon will tell you, go out too hard in the beginning and the hills will finish you off in the end. Stick with your game plan and trust your training, and then the hills become a place of confidence. Now here is the kicker - after Heartbreak Hill, the race is not over. This is a very important fact, because there are additional declines, some small inclines, and five miles to go. Patience is still the key. Let you body stabilize after the hills for a mile or two before you start to get happy about finishing this very special race. If you enjoy the commitment of training for a marathon, then you have to work towards qualifying for Boston. It is worth the work and experience. | |
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K. S. from Los Angeles, CA
(4/28/2006)
"Boston is Pure Magic" (about: 2006)
11-50 previous marathons
| 2 Boston Marathons
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This was my 21st marathon and second Boston. The whole city comes out for this amazing event and I cannot say enough great things about the volunteers and the spectators. The course is challenging, but fun. I liked the new wave start because it was less congested and easier to get to the bathroom, which is always a plus! My only complaint is that they might want to consider calling us to the corrals earlier. I was near the front of the red start and almost did not make it in time to get in my corral. Also, the Gatorade did a number on my stomach. I ran the whole race very sick. But even so, the crowds in Kenmore Square make it all worthwhile! Also, kudos to the massage therapists that work before the race. They are awesome!!! | |
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R. J. from Houston
(4/27/2006)
"You've got to run Boston at least once" (about: 2006)
4-5 previous marathons
| 1 Boston Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 This was my 1st Boston and I wondered if the experience would match the anticipation and what others had said about it. Needn't have worried. It was an awesome experience. Perfect weather helped, but the organization overall was great (hard to believe you can get 23,000 people on buses and out to Hopkinton without major hassle) and the crowds have to be experienced to be believed - especially from Mile 20 to the end it was a non-stop party and it seemed everybody was cheering for ME. I have never been so inspired by a crowd. I've run Houston several times, and the crowds here are good, but can't compare to the last five miles of Boston. The crowds really pulled me to the finish. Newton Hills was tough, but not as bad as I thought they would be. The decline at Mile 15 was a knee/quad-pounder. My complaints are minor ones (had to really dilute the Gatorade with water to get it down, and post-finish food bag was weak) compared to the positives. I loved the course - the rolling hills and all the towns, and I kissed as many Wellesley coeds as I could (I don't get those offers anymore!). Thanks ladies! Great run. I'll be back. | |
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R. s. from Southwest Missouri
(4/26/2006)
"Boston is the best!" (about: 2006)
4-5 previous marathons
| 1 Boston Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This, of course, is THE marathon of marathons in the U.S., in my mind only outdone by the original in Greece. The course is tough but doable, and the crowds incredible. I grinned like an idiot the entire time, wanting to yell out, "I'm running BOSTON!!" I wore my name on my shirt and the crowds yelled and chanted it the entire time. The two-wave start worked perfectly for my group. It took 5 minutes to cross the starting line but I never felt crowded and was able to run my own pace from almost the beginning. Run lots of hills to prepare, and bring various clothes to the start because you never know how the weather will change as you sit in the athletes' village while waiting for the race (on the football field of Hopkinton schools). But try to run Boston at least once in your life. | |
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Roger Dufresne from Derry, NH
(4/25/2006)
"What a Difference a Year Makes!!!" (about: 2006)
6-10 previous marathons
| 2 Boston Marathons
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 5 I deliberately waited a week to see if my sentiments have changed and they haven't. I just don't believe the difference a year makes! In order to gain a greater perspective of what I mean please scroll down to last year's comments and look up my name. And in order to gain greater perspective about my comments, please note that I'm 58 years-old and hopefully speak with the wisdom of some age. Before I start my negatives, I've just got to say that the fans were the "BEST." In no other race can you feel the raw emotion given out by the Wellesley girls. The other fans, with popsicles, water, candy, cookies, etc. were super. And the fans at the finish were the best I've seen in other marathons. The course is a difficult city course, but the Mass Ave. change this year was a killer. Now the negatives. Last year when I ran the race, I felt like it was really a fun, friendly and family-oriented race despite having to wait over 3 hours to start. This year, it's still a fun and family-oriented race but I'm leaving the friendly off and adding the term "caste system" to my description. The creation of 2 villages for the athletes in my opinion created a "caste system" for the runners. Not only did all of the events occur in the "fast village," like speakers, lotteries for a car, etc., but even the announcer made it seem like there was a caste system in place. "Those of you in the Red Village (i.e. slow and older runners, charity runners/walkers, etc.) can come get a Saturn cap (I threw mine away after about 3 miles - too flimsy to keep and too hot to have on my head) and enter the lottery for a Saturn AFTER THE RUNNERS FROM THE BLUE VILLAGE (fast runners) LEAVE FOR THE START." I still can't figure out why we had to be at the villages for more than 3 hours before the start of the race. At other races similar to Boston (I can only use the Marine Corps as an example) we got to the start about 1 hour prior to the start. And at other smaller marathons we needed only to be at the start to be in our proper corral for the start. It might have felt different if they would have had things for us to do, but, to listen to what was happening in the Blue Village and trying to keep warm and out of the cold was torture. Granted there were coffee, bagels and sports drinks, but the lines were very long. Heaven help us if it would have been raining. I don't think that the number of runners had much to do with this policy (the official word is that they were trying to avoid congestion on Grove Street and having runners urinate on people's lawns), since the Marine Corps Marathon I participated in had as many (if not more) runners/walkers, etc. And the start - the WAVE START - I think reflected poor planning of the worst degree, or a deliberate insult to the slower runners, charity runners or walkers, etc. Not only did we have to wait for the fast runners to start before being herded onto the street, but we had to wait for over 30 minutes to get near the start. There was no attempt to use corrals as in the past and the announcer had a frantic/urgent quality in his voice trying to get the "slow runners" to the start, which in my opinion was a MESS. If you were a runner who happened to end up behind a group of "charity walkers," you had difficulty trying to go by them (I tweaked my ankle on the dirt going by a group of walkers). This wasn't fair to either the runner or the walker. With this "innovation," I was able to get to start at about 12:50, which was about 25 minutes later than I started in 2005 that didn't use the WAVE START. GET RID OF IT! Never before, had I been feeling poorly enough to use the porta-potties along the route except for at this race (that's no fault of the race - maybe the Gatorade, like other comments suggested). The number of porta-potties in my estimation was well below what was needed since I had been observing them for a number of miles before I actually was forced to use one. At all of the potties in the first 10 - 12 miles there was a line for its use going at times 5 - 6 deep. There should have been at least 1 or 2 more potties at each mile to alleviate congestion. At the finish, I was given a space blanket (didn't get a sticker or a "goody bag" like some of the other comments said), my medal, a bottle of water, and a banana that had seen better days. Did I miss something?! Last year, wasn't much better in that I got a Fig Newton and a low-carb yogurt in addition to the above. I guess we "speed-challenged" runners don't need much in the way of food after spending the whole day either waiting or running. I could go on and on about the poor treatment and the piss-poor organization. Maybe they needed more money for the winners and had to scrimp somewhere? Needless to say, I will never run Boston again unless they can at least try to fix some of the above and treat all athletes the same. Please review my comments from last year so you won't think that I'm a crackpot or a sore loser, etc. I would advise most mid-packers to avoid Boston, unless you feel you really need to show it on your race resume, because of the above. There are other races that want charity runners and mid-packers. After all, we all can't be Kenyans and get preferential treatment. Somebody has to pay the freight. WISE UP BAA OR MAYBE BECOME A HAS-BEEN RACE AS YOU ONCE FEARED WOULD HAPPEN! ALIENATION OF MID-PACKERS MIGHT JUST RUIN YOU GOOD RACE AND TRADITION!! TRADITION CAN ONLY CARRY YOU SO FAR!!!! | |
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T. S. from Monkton, MD
(4/24/2006)
"Everything you ever heard" (about: 2006)
3 previous marathons
| 1 Boston Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 My first Boston and the experience was better than I expected. It was easy to get to the village (my family dropped me off at the technology park outside Hopkinton and I bussed in); there was plenty to do in the village (hello to my Iowa friend); and the start was well organized (first wave, at least). I could not resist and fell for the seductive spell of those first miles. I ran hard and fast, having too much fun propelled along by young and old alike, and those wonderful Neil Young fans in mile 8. Wellesley was all it was cracked up to be, leaving my ears ringing. And the hills did their work on me, leaving me cramped and stumbling through the last four miles. I struggled to finish the race, but did, and still qualified for next year. My accomplishment feels good, but the overall experience was priceless. My family saw me at mile 10 in Natick, then found me with no problem at the bus in Boston. The race was well organized, there was an extraordinary amount of fluids on the course, and the post-race duties (chip, blanket, medal, food, bag on bus) were a breeze. Ten minutes after finishing I was with my family. I can't wait for next year. I vow to avoid the spell of those first miles. I finished Boston! |
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