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Georgia Marathon Runner Comments
Back to Georgia Marathon Information & Reviews
Course 4.1 
Organization 3.1 
Spectators 4.0
Number of comments: 459 [displaying comments 261 to 271]
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S. H. from Minneapolis, MN
(4/8/2007)
"It's the first try; they'll do better next year" (about: 2007)
50+ previous marathons
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 As a marathoner who has run on 6 continents and in 45 states, I have seen and run in all types of marathons. I have run at Boston (100th and 104th) and I have run in Knoxville (inaugural). Every marathon I have run in has hiccups. That's part of the deal. I have also directed races, and no matter how much you try to plan for every scenario, it's impossible. You can't blame the race director for 86-degree weather. She doesn't control the weather!!! The point is this: you can't do anything about it now, and it's over. Provide your constructive feedback and the race director will listen. I can promise you that, or she won't have a job. But don't give up on the race - it was the inaugural event. Do you think Boston went off without a hitch in 1896? C'mon, be serious. I'm sure it had its challenges and 111 years later, it's still evolving (moved start time up) and better than ever. So give the people at the Georgia Marathon a mulligan and get back out there next year. | |
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S. R. from Twin Cities, MN
(4/7/2007)
"Very disappointed in the race committee..." (about: 2007)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Georgia Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 5 I'd never recommend this race to anyone! First off they throw a very expensive VIP pasta party for sponsors, elite runners, etc. and it was a weak turnout and waste of money. Put that money into providing fluids on race-day in the future. Next was the 90-minute wait just to get into the expo building. They put the packet pick-up up front, which was ridiculous. Most the vendors waited half the day to chat with runners who were frustrated after wasting so much time in long, bogus lines. Then there was the start of the race where homeless people begged runners for money. Where was the security to chase them away? The homeless got the most hospitality of anyone at this race. I hope the race director knows that she fed the homeless well, but not the paying runners. There were only 2 aid stations with weak PowerAde, really watered down. I ran the full marathon in 4 hours, only getting water as a drink. After mile 4 the next water stop was mile 8, and all the water was warm from mile 8 to the finish. What a joke!! NO PowerAde as suggested by the race announcer on a record HOT day!! What another joke. All in all, I'd never suggest Georgia to anyone. If you enjoy watching the homeless steal your finish line food and drinks, then go, but otherwise, this race is a true joke. Very, very poorly organized. The race is a big ripoff. Why would anyone want to run 26.2 miles with only a few warm water stops on the course and no PowerAde? Not me. Just another disappointed runner speaking the truth here. | |
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R. S. from Georgia
(4/7/2007)
"Poorly organized and pathetic" (about: 2007)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Georgia Marathon
COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 4 A pathetic excuse for a large marathon. From the lack PowerAde to the bums stealing the drinks and food, this was the worst of the 24 I have run. The course elevation map was an outright lie. I would not recommend this race to anyone. | |
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S. H. from Charlotte, NC
(4/7/2007)
"Hydration support was completely inadequate" (about: 2007)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Georgia Marathon
COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 5 Course was very pretty, but "hilly" is an inadequate description - it continuously went up and down. Lack of electrolytes and cool water was unforgivable. The fans will be my best memory. I was disappointed that I chose this as my first marathon. Expectations were higher since ING was the backer - it never occurred to me that it could be this poorly executed. | |
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Martin Dillon from County Fermanagh,Northern Ireland
(4/7/2007)
"Atlantans, you should be proud of yourselves" (about: 2007)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Georgia Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 Well I have read all the comments and so have no need to repeat them. What I would like to say is as one of the 32 runners from Ireland that took part. We had a tremendous time, although this was my first marathon, and therefore I cannot compare it as the rest of you can. The high points that I will take from this event are: 1. The Atlantan people are truly some of the most friendly and accommodating that I have met. 2. We were looked after unbelievably by the sponsors and organizers, and in particular, Delta Airlines, who gave us full use of there corporate tent and facilities at the start and finish (and particulary to Kenny, my masseur, at the tent, and to his fellow masseurs, and to all who manned the tent that day). 3. The support along the route was fantastic and very vocal - and thanks to the girl who gave me her bottle of water enroute. 4. The Clif Shots (although never used them before and they nearly made me sick) were an adequate boost in place of the PowerAde, and there was an ample supply of them. 5. The climb up Peachtree was a killer but at the end I got more satisfaction when crossing the finish line. 6. The logistics of organizing an event for the first-time (2 years in the planning) must be phenomenal, and for that reason I must congratulate you all for the hardwork and time you put into it. In summary thanks to you all, and especially Marina, who looked after us so well. I will never forget this marathon. I ran the whole 26.2 miles and had a great time doing so. Everybody I spoke with said it was the hardest they had done, which to me is brilliant. It is challenging but surely this is what marathons and marathon running are about. We do this great event for exactly this reason. The added challenge to push ourselves that bit more than our body wants us to. So Victoria, staff and Atlantans, thank you for one of the most memorable experiences of my life. I would gladly return to do this marathon, and please God, I will do so in the very near future. -Martin Dillon | |
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K. P. from ROswell
(4/5/2007)
"Awesome course- A suggestion...." (about: 2007)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Georgia Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 4 To the people that are whining about hills... get a life- The race was advertised as hilly. Yes- Atlanta has hills. Train for them if you do this race. The suggestion I wanted to make was why not have the race start and finish at Centennial Park. The city redesigned the park for huge events such as this after the Olympics. It would provide MUCH more space than the area around Underground Atlanta, providing for excellent staging and corralling. Tons of parking around the park with Philips arena, CNN, aquarium, and the merchandise marts. - you could set up the awards on the stage and have entertainment on the north side of the park. Just a thought | |
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A. M. from New York
(4/5/2007)
"And who cares about the comfort of runners!" (about: 2007)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Georgia Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 3 Please allow me to disagree with those who said that the Georgia Marathon was not well organized. It was exceptionally well organized, as much as the organizers are concerned. The major sponsors were there, and due to an excellent effort of the advertising campaign all over the country, there were 15,000 runners in Atlanta. And who cares about the comfort of runners! I don't want to talk about such minor things as the hilly and mostly not very exciting course with lots of potholes the size of small canyons? (Was it so difficult to drive the course a couple of weeks earlier and to ask the local authorities to fix them at least temporarily?) But the hydration is a major issue. If even I knew a week in advance that the 1929 record of 86F in Atlanta would be broken on the Marathon day, the organizers should have known it as well. And it was the organizers who announced to the world a month earlier that the limit of 15,000 was reached. So they knew the weather conditions, they knew the number of runners. And simply didn't care about the number of cups or the amount of the sport drink. I finished in the top one third of the marathoners and if even I had problems with the water stations and even if I didn't encounter one single Powerade spot after the first 7 miles, I can only imagine, with horror, what the situation was for those who struggled with the heat and finished in 5 or 6 hours. Actually, in spite of the brutal weather conditions and constant hills, I tried to drink less water so that I would not drop dead from the loss of sodium and electrolytes. When I lost hope to get any sport drink, I tried to get at least some sodium by licking my sweaty arms! Really!!! It was my 42nd Marathon. And I am returning in my thoughts to my 41st, a month earlier, in the Pacific island of Okinawa. For 26 miles, with not a single gap, the relatively poor but very kind Okinawans were standing along the course with thousands upon thousands of trays with water, sport drinks, tea, bananas, oranges, sushi, race cakes, you name it. In Atlanta people were holding... the orange balloons of the ING bank. | |
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S. H. from Huntsville, AL
(4/5/2007)
"Very Scenic Course, but Runners Require Water" (about: 2007)
2 previous marathons
| 1 Georgia Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 4 I hope the organizers stick with the current course layout next year. It is very scenic and challenging. The people along the course were great. The water stations do need attention and if you take a look at the letter from the Race Director on the ING Georgia Marathon website, she received that message loud and clear. I look forward to participating in this event again next year. | |
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L. F. from Atlanta, GA
(4/5/2007)
"A few mistakes...but off to a pretty good start" (about: 2007)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Georgia Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 4 Overall I had a really good experience running the Georgia Marathon. I'm from Atlanta so was really looking forward to such a large marathon in my home city. The course is absolutly BEAUTIFUL. Atlanta in March is full of blooming trees and flowers and the neighborhoods we ran through looked great. It is a hilly course so be prepared! There were places along the course where I was surprised there wasn't more crowd support. But every spectator out there was cheering with their all. There were lots of cow bells and noise makers to help add to the excitement. And I can't thank those who were handing out water and snacks along the way enough! The low point of the race was the organization. The start was uncomfortable, having no corrals, I had to fight my way just to get to the middle of the pack. I got water at mile 2 and then at mile 4 I struggled just to get a swallow of water. At mile 6 there was a sign for water and Powerade, but it never came :-( I kicked myself for not stopping where a man had his garden hose out in the front yard. We didn't get another water stop until mile 8. Very disappointing. After that water was more consistent. I don't use Powerade, but for those that do they didn't have much of it. I did find water and food at the end - enough to satisfy me till I got home. I plan to do the race again next year and hope the few problems are fixed and the race is even better. | |
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D. H. from Atlanta
(4/3/2007)
"WHY ARE ALL THE HILLS UP?" (about: 2007)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 Georgia Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 3 Having just missed qualifying for Boston by 4 minutes in Charlotte this past December, I brought my training to a new level in preparation for Atlanta. At age 61, my Boston time is 4:00, and I was on track at the half with a 1:52 time. Feeling good, particularly after the badly orchestrated start, I, along with everyone else, began wondering where the PowerAde was. Once the sun got over the treetops, I had the harsh realization that my body was sending signals that today was not going to be the day I qualified. I decided that my new objective was to finish without killing myself in the process, and comforted myself with the knowledge that I had sold all of my Coca Cola stock years ago. The one PowerAde I got was watered down. Druid Hills is a beautiful part of town, and very appropriately named. The commitee apparently decided to route the course on the upslope side of every one of those hills. I've never run a course that was so consistenly uphill. I, too, assumed that an event sponsored by ING would be 'world-class'. Not so, for all of the reasons everyone else has already covered. Very disappointing, but the fans in the neighborhoods, handing out ice cubes, jelly beans and Oreos, were terrific. Thanks to the volunteers who had to take grief from the runners for not having water or PowerAde. It wasn't your fault. |
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