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Nov 14, 2024

Miami Marathon Runner Comments

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Course 4.5

Organization 4.2

Spectators 3.5

Number of comments: 312 [displaying comments 21 to 31]

More Comments: [ < 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 .. 32 > ]

Oliver Collins from Connecticut (2/11/2014) "Flat and Hot" (about: 2014) 1 previous marathon \| 1 Miami Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 3 Miami is Miami...Hot, SPANISH, Water, Flat, Loud. The start line was a little chaotic getting into the corals but not much worse than others. Just get there early and you will be OK. It's HOT and Humid. I thought I might get lucky with the heat, but no go. It was in the 70's, not bad, but 100% humidity. The humidity will crush you. Causeways, running on grates. I now have a foot injury..not cool..it grinds into your feet. Prepare for foot pain if you run this one. I also heard a drawbridge went up in the middle of the marathon and people had to wait, I can't verify this, but if its true, I'd be livid. Overall, had a fun little trip to Miami..not gonna PR in this state. Hills not a problem. Fan support pretty good, but after mile 13, very very few people till mile 25. someHalf Marathon medals broke and they ran out..don't advertise that medal if thats whats gonna happen. Its a tough time of year to find one, but I wouldn't recommend this one.
K. B. from Chicago, IL (2/10/2014) "Great Race, but a few key problems" (about: 2014) 2 previous marathons \| 1 Miami Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 The Good: Great start. I heard people complaining about the corrals for the 2013 race, but I felt the 2014 race was very smooth. There were a nice amount of water stations throughout the course as well as bananas and pineapple which was a nice treat. The course is flat and it is great if you are running your first half or full marathon. It is beautiful to run over the bridge to Miami Beach and back as the sun rises. My only complaint would be that there are parts of the race where you run over this metal bridge with tiny opening that cannot be safe for anyone's feet. The medal: The medals were pretty cool and the 2014 medal was one of the things that convinced me to do it as I was getting cold feet as the race got closer. The Okay: Everyone is basically doing the half. So after the cut off you can pretty much say goodbye to spectators, signs, and you might feel a little isolated. I ended up running with the pacer in order to feel I had other runners with me. Organization: Apparently they ran out of Half Marathon medals for 2014! I ran the full and I did not have this issue. If you are looking to get away from the winter blues and run a marathon, I highly recommend this race.
M. D. from VA - Virginia (2/9/2014) "Excellent race - challenging weather" (about: 2014) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Miami Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 Despite the hot/humid conditions, I thought the race was excellent. Expo, course, fan support, race organization, volunteers, water stops were all above average. It seems to me the race directors did a nice job resolving previous years' complaints. It is definitely a bummer to hear about the missing half marathon medals...hopefully the organizers follow through with their promise to deliver all 1,400 medals to the HM finishers. I would recommend this race for folks considering it in 2015 - just prepare for the heat and adjust your expectations accordingly. I have never seen so many runners in need of medical attention before, especially between miles 19-22. But thanks to Mother Nature for the brief but much needed rain storm at mile 22!
K. M. from New Jersey (2/3/2014) "Great run needs a few adjustments" (about: 2014) 2 previous marathons \| 1 Miami Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 Loved this race because of the scenery and the people! Do not expect to PR here if you are from a colder climate though. The heat and humidity make it more challenging. There were quite a few runners vomiting and some in need of oxygen due to heat exhaustion. Pace yourself and hydrate at every stop and you should be fine. I did the half marathon and I would not recommend the full. The course for the half is better and much more crowd support. I watched the marathoners and it seemed like there were not too many so it might get a bit lonely on the road if you are choosing to do the marathon. But that is just my opinion. Pros: -The medal was beautiful -The volunteers at the expo were super friendly and helpful -The shirt was a nice technical tee, blue for Boston -The course was so picturesque and the run goes by super fast -There is lots of music on the route all different types and spectators getting down to the eclectic beats -People on the sidelines cheering in all different languages (I love this sort of thing)! -Miami is Miami so there is that, LOVE Miami -Plenty of water and gatorade on the route after mile three they have it every mile -Ocean Blvd so beautiful with people dressed in costumes! Cons -Lines for the bathrooms ridiculous. When you are walking over and you see a sign before the start, go there! If you go to the porta potties by the start you may not make the start of the race. -It is super hot and humid, don't expect to PR -I was so thirsty by the time I got to mile three (bring a throw away water bottle so you can drink and not get dehydrated before you get to the first water stop). -Water stops are not clearly marked. They should have a sign stating fluid station ahead so people can prepare for the slow down on whatever side it is happening, or at least mentally prepare that water is coming (helpful when very thirsty due to heat). NYRR does this for all of their races. -Prepare yourself to run on slippery metal grates on the bridges. It is not for too long, but just be careful. - They should have had stuff at the end in bags. They had chocolate milk, water, bananas, etc. but how are you supposed to hold everything. One post-race bag right at the finish with a few goodies inside would be helpful. -So far my time for the race has not been posted, so not sure what is up with that. Some folks complained that they finished but did not get a medal and were super disappointed. Although I saw other folks posted pictures of getting two medals, one for the half and one for the full. They should not have ran out of medals.
B. R. from Miami, Florida (2/3/2014) "They Ran Out of Half Marathon Medals" (about: 2014) 50+ previous marathons \| 6+ Miami Marathons COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 3 Unbelievable! Where was the PR-touted new billion-dollar owner of the Miami Marathon who claims that 'what sets our events apart is that we deliver a premium-quality experience?' Instead, they came out looking like a bunch of penny-pinching, profit hungry yahoos who didn't make enough medals for all the spaces they sold.
K. B. from NYC (1/14/2014) "NOT one to race!!" (about: 2013) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Miami Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 3 I trained my butt of for this race in order to BQ, but my hopes were dashed and not only did I not BQ, I didn't PR. The good: I mean... it's Miami. What's not to love, scenery-wise? Plenty of water and Gatorade on the course. Decent crowds. The medal is cool, if you're into that sort of thing. The bad: Holy moly, it is actually impossible to use the restroom beforehand. I've never seen a worse pre-race bathroom situation. Total cluster-f. The lines were extremely long and they looped off to either side because they were right up against a fence, which made it complete chaos. I realized I didn't have time to go, so I found my corral... 3:30 marathoners. Then I noticed that the 2:00 half marathoners were corralled in front of us, which makes NO sense, seeing as how even splits would have them running 9:00 min miles, while even splits would have me running 8:00 min miles. I would do it again, because I love Miami, but I would NEVER run this race with a goal time in mind! What a disapointment :(
R. W. from Canton, Ohio (5/20/2013) "Tough to PR on this course due to heat/humidity" (about: 2013) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Miami Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 The good: - The first half of the course features gorgeous scenery to, through and from Miami Beach and through downtown. - The cookies handed out by Publix volunteers at the finish line. - While reviewers have blasted the lack of volunteers and cups at water stops for prior Miami Marathons, all the water stops in 2013 were sufficiently staffed and there were enough cups. Plenty of water, considering the heat. The OK - The finish-line food besides the cookies. While the corn wafers were bland, I did appreciate the carbs. - 2nd half of the course features residential subdivisions, Coconut Grove, Bayshore Drive, Rickenbacker causeway and Brickell Ave - Crowd support - best was on Ocean Drive in Miami Beach, downtown in Mile 12 and the last mile. The not-so-good - The heat and the humidity. Start time race temp was 68 deg and rose to 77 by the end. Humidity at start - 80%. Having trained in 30 degrees Ohio weather, I failed to make a pace adjustment for heat and paid. The first three miles trying to keep up with the pacer felt too hard. By Mile 7, I was struggling. Also, I wore the wrong shoes and had to slow to a walk by Mile 14. I ended up with a time 43 minutes worse than my PR. Not much shade on the Rickenbacker Causeway at Mile 23. - The course is not totally flat especially the MacArthur Causeway and downtown bridges and there's a demoralizing uphill on Brickell Avenue at the end. - On some of the bridges, you had to run on a metal grid. Not good for the feet. - On the MacArthur Causeway at the start, I found my way often blocked by walkers and slower runners. It was very, very crowded. I nearly tripped on someone's feet and nearly fell and a runner actually grabbed me to keep me up. - Aloof pacer who wasn't very engaging. - Lack of organization and confusion at the start corrals. The corral layout didn't match the map at the expo. They didn't allow runners to enter my corral into right before start time and it wasn't clear which direction we were going. Note: Some reviewers have complained about the pricy parking at the expo at the Miami Beach Convention Center. If you use the parking garage at 17th Street by the Lincoln St pedestrian mall a few blocks south, it's much cheaper. Also, you're assigned to a corral based on your anticipated finish time or past race time you submit. You can ask the Solutions Desk to change your corral, which I did.
B. C. from Worcester, MA (2/27/2013) "A Fun Race with No Snow. Anywhere!!!" (about: 2013) 50+ previous marathons \| 6+ Miami Marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 2 Forget the PR. Miami Marathon is a fun long run without any snow. Let's face it. Its aweful up north. Fly down, have a great dinner in Miami, wake up and run. Then fly home and envy all those who remained behind. My 6th Miami Marathon is done. See you next year for my 7th!
M. E. from NYC (2/12/2013) "Not if you want to run a full marathon" (about: 2013) 2 previous marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 First, the good, the course was really great. It was relatively flat and there was a lot of shade towards the end. It was a lot of fun running through south beach while people were still partying from the night before. Now, the bad: - The organization was awful. It felt like nobody in the city knew about this race and the people that knew about it felt like it was a big headache, not an amazing event. - Almost everyone is doing the half. I love half-marathons. I respect the distance and know it takes training and effort. However, it would have been nice to have some acknowledgement that I was doing the full. The full and half should have different t-shirts and different medals (not just different colored ribbons). I know other half/full marathons that give separate shirts and medals. - Because everyone was running the half, the crowd support after 13.1 is pretty minimal, although I appreciated the folks that were out there. - Some parts of the race can get very cramped, especially when the half-marathoners are still around. - I know it is hard to be a volunteer at these events. I totally appreciate them and thank them for saying my name every time. However, they should have been better trained. When I finished, there were no volunteers handing out food or asking if you needed to go the medic or podiatry tent. - That brings me to the finish. The finish was poorly organized. The volunteers did not know where the family meetup section was, the food was kind of gross and left out there, I could not find a podiatry tent (MASSIVE blister), etc... I sound like a brat, but Miami really needs to step up the organization, or just have it be a half marathon.
L. W. from Ohio (2/9/2013) "Will never run this fiasco again..." (about: 2013) 1 previous marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 5 Course: Let's face it, it's MIAMI... so it is gorgeous for the most part, naturally a nice course with views of nice neighborhoods, ocean, palm trees, etc. Hard to have much bad to say about the course itself. Organization: WORST I have seen of any of the 30+ races I have ever run in my life. At one point, I felt like I was running a race full of runners who have never run a single race in their lives. No semblance of order in terms of fast runners veer left, slow runners and walkers stay right. That was an absolute joke, very amateurish. Runners would literally run and stop dead in their tracks on the LEFT side and slowly walk, shoulder-to-shoulder with others... if you ran the Marathon, you likely ran 27-28 miles just trying to jump sidewalks and swerve around idiots who apparently know nothing about common first grade race etiquite. If ran a PR on this course, God Bless you for doing so because you ran much further than usual for it. Also, the ENTIRE race was one giant bottle-neck clusterf**k, narrow roads for tens of thousands of people...great idea, let the 10K and 1/2 Marathon runners clog the streets so you can barely move for 13-14 miles until it clears up a little. Oh, and the 'split' for Half/Full runners was basically 2 signs side-by-side of identical font, color and size, separated by a couple staggered rails and a Mexican girl holding a miniture crossing guard flag. MANY people took the wrong split and their races were ruined...this should NEVER happen to ANY runner in ANY race. If it happens to ONE runner, it's one idiotic runner. If it happens to DOZENS of runners, it is an issue that clearly was not well constructed in advance. As far as actual race-day Logistics/Organzization goes, worst...race...ever. Spectators: Plentiful, enthusiastic, helpful, energetic. No issues at all here.

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