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☰
Knoxville Marathon Runner Comments
Back to Knoxville Marathon Information & Reviews
Course 4.1 
Organization 4.5 
Spectators 3.8
Number of comments: 138 [displaying comments 31 to 41]
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B. S. from Boston, MA
(4/19/2012)
"solid race" (about: 2012)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Knoxville Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 Overall a nice race. The course steadily undulates. No single killer hill. If you train on hills you should be fine. Pros: 1) Great water and gel support. Volunteers were awesome! 2) The first half is lively. Loads of spectators. You run with the half marathoners. 3) The finish is energetic and fun; the 50 yard line of UT's football stadium. Cons: 1) The last 13 miles are bleak and industrial. I ran alone for several miles: no spectators, no fellow runners, no one. 2) Some turns in the last 13 miles of the course weren't always obviously marked, which is an issue when you are starting to fatigue. I overshot a few turns. I was in the zone following the traffic cones up a hill when a police officer shouted out that I was going the wrong way... Several times I came to an intersection and felt genuinely uncertain as to where I should go. 3) But probably the biggest strike: UT is a dry campus, so no celebratory beer. You have to go to one of the many cool local breweries for your post-race celebration. All in all a good race. I'm glad I took part. | |
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G. S. from Indy
(4/10/2012)
"Great Smaller Marathon" (about: 2012)
6-10 previous marathons
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 Knoxville was a pleasant surprise, with the exception of all of the hills! I do not train on hills and survived, so it can be done. Just beware that the course is very hilly. Good news is there is as much down hill running as up hill running. This race is a half, relay and full. Most of the runners are half and relay. I think about 850 runners did the full, which i did and really enjoyed. Start/finish is right downtown, so very easy to walk to/from downtown hotels. Also looked like there was plenty of parking. This race was very well organized. Expo was very nice for a smaller race. And course had plenty of water/poweraide. Each stop had both and there was a stop every 2-3 miles. There were also a few gu stops along the way. And volunteers manning the stops were great. So were all police directing traffic and guiding runners. Course itself was very nice. Went through a real nice neighborhood at the start and then came back through downtown and went through some more nice neighborhoods. One at the end had real good crowd support. Crowds were OK during first half and pretty sparse throughout second. But race of this size, exactly what I expected. Finish in Neyland Stadium was a lot of fun as they announced all finishers on the loud speaker. Only recommendation I have is the race could use more pacers. They scheduled a 3:05, 3:30 and next one after was 4:00. So not many options if you like to run with a pace team and I looked for 3:30, but never saw one. Overall, a great marathon. If you want to get away from the massive crowds of the bigger races and accept the challenge of a lot of hills, this is a great/fun race. | |
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G. R. from Wheeer, MI
(4/5/2012)
"Fantastic 1st 1/2, 2nd 1/2 needs work" (about: 2012)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Knoxville Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 This was my first marathon of the year, and overall I'm glad I ran it. The expo and packet pick up itself was pretty good, but there was no parking (or directions to any) around the convention center, unless you wanted to park in the Holiday Inn lot for $10. I drove around the block twice until I found a spot, and after that it was nice. Very easy packet pick up and friendly staff. A lot of vendors with various products, with a very wide range of prices for the same items. Parking on race day was free and great, I parked right next to the stadium and finish line. Couldn't have been easier. The start was on time and smooth. The first half of the race was primarily through some very nice residential areas and a park. There were plenty of water/powerade stops and live music at about 5-6 spots. After the split around mile 12 1/2, It became a lot further between water stops and many fewer bands were playing. After about mile 15, we were in the industrial part of town, and then we actually ran on the highway for about a mile over the river. That was interesting. The highlight of the 2nd half was running through the Island Homes District; residents were out in full force cheering us on. The finish was nice inside the Vols' stadium. I did not partake in the post race festivities, so I cannot comment on those. The volunteers were awesome, as well as all the police support on the course. A few more water stops on the 2nd half, and some more scenic running would be appreciated in the future. Overall, good job! | |
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M. N. from Virginia Beach, VA
(4/4/2012)
"Good and Hilly" (about: 2012)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 Knoxville Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 The course was beautiful and very hilly. The half marathoners ran with us for 12.5 miles until they split off and it actually worked well running with them because this is not a very big race. The course and crowd support were fantastic for the 1st half but then miles 13-20 were lonely running through an industrial area and highways. It got better after we entered a residential area at mile 20 with great support. Finishing in the Vols football stadium was great. Knoxville is a beautiful fantastic city. My only other complaint, other than parts of the course, is that our pacer went too fast finishing 10 minutes ahead and dropping everyone. With a few touches, this good race could become a great one! | |
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J. R. from Alexandria, VA
(4/2/2012)
"Hills, but great variety in the course" (about: 2012)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Knoxville Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 Knoxville almost has it, and it's really a good run... but it really could be a great run if the organizers and the city planned better. What I liked: 1. The variety in the course. I think we went through every possible neighborhood: UT, swank neighborhoods, green ways, sprawl, industrial wasteland, downtown, etc. And we crossed the river, what six times? 2. Plenty of aid stations, well stocked, close together. 3. Fog that held the sun and heat off. 4. A separate, dedicated, and well-stocked post-race area for the marathoners. 5. Super convenient host hotel in the Holiday Inn: connected to the expo and at the start with plenty of eating options in nearby Market Square. That said, I really think the city needs to care more about this race. Sure, the traffic control was good, but here's what kind of annoyed me: 1. Parked cars on the first few miles of the course. It would have been easy to enforce the temporary parking ban, but KPD just didn't. That meant a really tight course in the first few miles. Because there's no staggered start, that meant some really tight spots over the first few miles. 2. Almost none of the local restaurants, stores, etc knew there was a marathon going on. I don't need the fans, but it seemed odd that the locals had no idea that Knoxville even had a marathon. Odd. Why wouldn't the city want to promote this race? 3. Would have liked a late check out at the Holiday Inn rather than schlepping to the Y to take a shower. If you want a course with a good variety of sights and hills, this is it... This one's o.k., but not one for the top ten list. | |
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S. C. from Westchester County, NY
(4/2/2012)
"Nicely done, Knoxville!" (about: 2012)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Knoxville Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 I enjoyed this run...a lot. It was hilly but I prefer hills and inclines...I experience much less muscle fatigue than when I run the flatter courses. Knoxville was a very pleasant city, for sure. And everyone was helpful! The course was varied and intersting and I never ever felt bored...The Knoxville police kept the roads safe and all the volunteers were helpful and encouraging....Favorite sign on the course? A greyhound dog with a sign aroud his neck '5 cents per mile for pacing'....Coming into the UT stadium for the finish was awesome and I really felt like a champ!!! Thanks to the fine people of Knoxville!!! | |
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C. W. from North Carolina
(4/2/2012)
"Well organized, interesting course, HILLY" (about: 2012)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Knoxville Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 Knoxville was my second marathon and I'm glad I picked it. I didn't run as well as I had hoped to, but that was my own fault for starting way too fast and sabotaging myself for the second half.. oh well. I traveled with friends who were running the marathon relay, and they were very impressed with how smoothly it was organized. The spectator support during the race was fantastic, plenty of water stops, a hat, bag, metal, and technical tee shirt were all included for marathon participants. My only complaint about the race organization: the walk to the post-race party (and FOOD) is about a half mile from the finish.. uphill. I was not feeling well at all after crossing the line and it would have been nice if oranges or bagels were provided at the finish, with direction to continue to the post race party after that. Of course, if I had finished feeling well instead of faint and dizzy, I probably wouldn't have even noticed that only water was provided! | |
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d. r. from kenosha'wi
(4/11/2011)
"great" (about: 2011)
50+ previous marathons
| 3 Knoxville Marathons
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 Great weather, and the finish line was the best. This was my 100th marathon and the organizers went out of their way to make it special. | |
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Peter Berntsen from Oak Ridge, TN
(4/10/2011)
"Great Race - Lousy Timing" (about: 2011)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 Knoxville Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 I placed first in my age group (Males 60-64). Due to bib tag, my time was not recognized. My time does appear in the final pictures at 3:54:48. Thanks to all spectators and volunteers who cheered me on! | |
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Bob Melcher from Dallastown, Pa. USA
(4/5/2011)
"Thanks for a great race!" (about: 2011)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Knoxville Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 My name is Bob Melcher and this was my 22nd marathon in state #14. I am also a DAV who is living on my 3rd pacemaker, and trying to complete the 50/50. The weather and volunteers and the post-race party were great. I am truly blessed with the love of running, and hope to inspire people as I am just inspired with the people who talk to me. This is a wonderful state and race. Keep on running. Semper fi. |
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