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☰
Manchester City Marathon Runner Comments
Back to Manchester City Marathon Information & Reviews
Course 3.8 
Organization 4.4 
Spectators 3.6
Number of comments: 84 [displaying comments 71 to 81]
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m. l. from manchester, nh
(9/23/2008)
"lots of hills, but not so many spectators or perks" (about: 2007)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Manchester City Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 2 This was a tough, tough marathon. Loads of hills. Since I am from the area, I knew what I was in for and was prepared. It was fun to run familiar neighborhoods and the crowd was great for the first 13 miles. However, after that, it was a ghost town. Now I am going to have to disagree with the other comments in that I didn't feel that this race was very well done. The intersections were traffic-free but, at times, I didn't know where the heck I was going and had to ask the traffic cop. There was also no water at the end and the soup people were long gone - and I finished in the top quarter of the race. The timing chips were very large circles, and not easy to run with because they hit at a bend in your foot no matter where you placed them. They must have come over on the Mayflower. The tech shirts were made of a nice material but there is barely any writing on them - and the same shirts were given to both the half and whole marathon runners. Same goes for the medals. I somehow managed, despite all the hills, to place in my age group. Not to sound ungrateful, but all I earned was another medal that is exactly the same as the finisher's medal, except maybe a quarter of an inch larger. The whole race seemed to be done as cheaply as possible. I guess I expected a bit more for the inaugural run. I guess the best thing about this race is the bragging rights. It is a challenging marathon. | |
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M. L. from Boston, MA
(3/7/2008)
"Great First Half, Great Potential" (about: 2007)
3 previous marathons
| 1 Manchester City Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 4 My course rating averages a 3; 4 for the first half, 2 for the second. This third quarter takes you down *very* busy suburban streets with the bare minimum of traffic control. It's no fun running on a shoulder with traffic constantly zooming by. The race chip was a comparatively gigantic pie plate, the fwap-fwap-fwaping of which drove me crazy for the last 10 miles. Lots of little things (the bare minimum of food at the end and a headphone ban that was only noted on the last page of a packet in a bag otherwise filled with race junk mail that most people probably didn't read) kept this from being a great race. Lots of nice spectators throughout the course, though. | |
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J. P. from Boston, MA
(1/24/2008)
"Good first try, but not a Boston qualifier" (about: 2007)
2 previous marathons
| 1 Manchester City Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 This was a very tough marathon with a lot of hills. I appreciate the challenge, but did not appreciate that the website and organizers were not more informative of the level of difficulty. It does have a lot of potential and in the future it definitely will be a race from which to earn bragging rights. | |
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K. R. from Wrentham, Ma
(12/31/2007)
"Needs better traffic control" (about: 2007)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 Manchester City Marathon
COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 Having run a few marathons, I was looking forward to one in my home town. Although many things were good - the volunteers, aid stations, start/finish area, etc. - the traffic control was very poor and the route was not well marked. Approaching intersections early on, you could see the police stopping traffic, but as we approached, they got in their cars and left before we crossed. Two-lane roads to run on with traffic going both ways. I hope they will work on the routes for a safer marathon. Also, if they want this to be a "runner's marathon," they need to post a time limit before you register. | |
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P. L. from Midcoast Maine
(12/20/2007)
"Scenic fun race." (about: 2007)
4-5 previous marathons
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 I thought the course was fun and the hills were not as bad as those are making out. Heck, I ran Miami in January and people complained about the hills - AKA bridges - in that course too. I did not train for the race, as I only signed up a couple of days beforehand, and I still qualified for Boston. There were lots of people throughout the race cheering us on and I never had any problems with traffic; personally I thought they had the most help of any race I've been to. The only thing I did not agree with was the rule on those wearing iPods would be disqualified. If they're going to set a rule like that, they've got to follow through with it. I know people who were upset they couldn't wear theirs and others who did wear them, placed and didn't get disqualified. Stand your ground, race directors! | |
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R. M. from Pembroke, NH
(11/21/2007)
"Lots of hills" (about: 2007)
3 previous marathons
| 1 Manchester City Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 I thought it was a very well organized event and I loved the shirt. I was disappointed that the medal didn't distinguish full from half, but at least I know I did it. I live just outside of Manchester and never realized how many hills there are! The second half was a little sparse spectator-wise, when you could use it the most (especially after watching the half marathons turn left to the finish). I thought the traffic control at the intersections was great and the aid stations were very well staffed. I didn't have any prior experience with a timing chip but it sure seemed awkward and was tough to find a comfortable spot. Overall, though, great job! | |
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E. E. from New Hampshire
(11/11/2007)
"Tough first marathon!!!!!" (about: 2007)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Manchester City Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 This was my first marathon and probably not the best one to start on because of the surprisingly large number of hills. The crowd was very supportive. The event was well organized. It was really a pretty good marathon but one I won't do again until I am more experienced. | |
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R. D. from USA
(11/9/2007)
"Well organized and great spectators" (about: 2007)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Manchester City Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 For a first-year race, I was impressed with the organization and number of volunteers. The spectators were some of the best. I kept thinking they must have paid all of the spectators to stay out so long. The police and emergency/traffic control folks did a great job on a tough course. They had to cover many intersections and I never had a problem at any intersection or cross road. Congratulations to the race organizers for a fantastic first year. | |
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M. N. from derry, NH
(11/7/2007)
"A great first-time race event" (about: 2007)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 Manchester City Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 The City of Manchester has experience putting on races for big crowds - namely, the Cigna 5K Corporate. Using the same start and finish locations made the transition from putting on a 5K to hosting a marathon a snap for them. A hilly course with all the sections of the city covered. A little windy in some locations, but at least we didn't get poured on. The crowd was fantastic for a first year - I was surprised. Great job. Definite must-do. | |
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A. R. from Southern NH
(11/7/2007)
"Tough course, but the race has tons of potential" (about: 2007)
4-5 previous marathons
| 1 Manchester City Marathon
COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 If you want to run fast, do not run this marathon. I have never experienced such a tough course in all my years competing! But the event itself was great. The organizers did a wonderful job pulling it off. The chip was odd (never before seen 'chip' was as big as a dinner plate strapped to my shoe!) and should have had a mat at the start to record gun time. Other than that, I have no complaints. The crowds were wonderful and seemed to be very knowledgeable of the event taking place (in other words they weren't just out there yelling GO RUNNERS, they were actually cheering useful information like place in the race and how much longer until the uphill ends). Kudos the people of Manchester in putting on a great event and good luck in the future as it perhaps attracts more publicity. |
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