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Rock 'n' Roll Marathon Runner Comments
Back to Rock 'n' Roll Marathon Information & Reviews
Course 3.5 
Organization 4.1 
Spectators 4.1
Number of comments: 417 [displaying comments 81 to 91]
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M. R. from Orlando, Florida
(1/2/2010)
"Good for first-timers; my daughter's first" (about: 2009)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Rock 'n' Roll Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 I will always smile when I think of the San Diego Marathon, as I ran it with my daughter for her first marathon. Still, I was expecting more from this marathon. Pros 1. The volunteers are GREAT - plenty of water stops with FRIENDLY, SMILING volunteers. 2. The medal represents San Diego well. 3. The young men and women serving our country that manned the finish line area at the Marine Corp Recruiting Depot make you know that the USA is in great hands - SO POLITE AND SO CARING. 4. Plenty of medical tents - we had to use them twice. 5. The start area had plenty of FOOD, and seeing the Marine Corp band was inspiring. 6. My flight was delayed in LA (a whole story in and of itself), so my daughter had to pick up my bib. Thank you to the staff who understood the situation and gave my daughter my bib number. 6. I now have a whole new respect for the Team in Training runners - they have raised over $60,000,000 at the San Diego marathon alone. I guess I will have to learn to love the cheer "Go Team" and the color purple. 7. The first 8 miles are great - Balboa Park, Sea Port Village, the Port, Petco Ball Field. Cons 1. The course - I lived in San Diego for 14 years, and was disappointed in the last 10-12 miles. There are some beautiful coastal areas, but the marathon did not get near the water. New course layout should improve this. 2. You had a LONG walk at the finish - only one way out of the MCRD. 3. I always loved driving Highway 163 - not running it. But you could run on the inside to minimize the banking. Overall, I recommend San Diego. It is a very good marathon, it does great things for charity, and it's a very good marathon for first-timers. | |
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J. D. from San Diego, CA
(11/3/2009)
"Great first-time marathon" (about: 2009)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Rock 'n' Roll Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 I've done many half marathons, but this was my first full. The course is actually very friendly to those who don't like uphills, as the only real hill is on the 163. Nice downhill at Mile 2 into downtown, and another one after the crest on 163. Pretty flat after that, at least for San Diego. Running through downtown was a lot of fun, and the crowds were great. Spectators along Friars Road were also very good. After the turn off Friars, it becomes less scenic. Still nice, especially around Sea World, but nothing special. I hear 2009 was the last year for the finish at MCRD, though, which is too bad because running through the Depot for the last mile was great. Many water and aid stations along the course, and plenty of goodies at the end. The only thing I might add would be more chairs or seating areas in the finish area. Lots of people were sitting on the ground, or taking some spots on water tables. But that's minor. I highly recommend this one for first-timers.. just be sure you've trained well and are ready for the rigors of such a long race. | |
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Kelly Mercer from Las Vegas, NV
(8/10/2009)
"Awesome!!!" (about: 2009)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Rock 'n' Roll Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 I recommend running it. It was my first marathon, and it made me love running. | |
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L. O. from Southern California
(7/28/2009)
"Great course, lots of entertainment along the way." (about: 2008)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 Rock 'n' Roll Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 Well organized. Good music along the way. Lots of spectators. A good running tour of San Diego. | |
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J. E. from New York, N.Y.
(6/23/2009)
"Excellent first-marthon experience" (about: 2009)
First Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This was my first marathon and I ran as a part of the Team in Training contingent. Overall, it was an excellent experience. The weather was cool and overcast and the course was very fair (though not as flat as I was lead to believe). There were water and Cytomax stations (Gatorade tastes like Cristal compared to this stuff) every two miles, and a GU station at mile 18. The support was amazing! The locals are really into it giving out watermelon, pretzels, water and yes, cans of beer to those runners who wanted it. I was in corral #18 and it took about 6 minutes to hit the start line. The first mile isn't as bad as one would think, with 20,000-plus runners starting. And some of the sights are incredible. The medal/water and medical treatment areas are within earshot of the finish, and the shuttle buses were easy to find. I would highly recommend this marathon to both beginners and advanced alike. Just a wonderful experience that I will not forget! | |
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D. M. from Phoenix,AZ
(6/8/2009)
"Great, First, Full Marathon" (about: 2009)
2 previous marathons
| 1 Rock 'n' Roll Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This was my first full and I really enjoyed it. The weather was cool and cloudy, and a slight drizzle that was great for running. It was a little cold before the start of the race, though. The course was nice - pretty flat. The run on the freeway was a hard uphill and a slanted downhill. The spectators were great, cheering and motivating and handing out everything from oranges, pretzels, and Otter Pops, to shots of beer. I parked at the finish line and had no problems with the shuttles there and back. There were frequent water and Cytomax stations. The beginning was pretty hectic, with a lot of people going a lot slower than the corral they should have been in. The finish line was good, with medical help and water and snacks. The bands are cool, but you only get a 20-second snippet of what they are playing, so I still would recommend an iPod. Overall, a very fun race to run, and a good marathon. | |
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M. A. from LA
(6/8/2009)
"Perfect for First-Timers!" (about: 2009)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Rock 'n' Roll Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This was my first full marathon and I'm glad I chose this one. The on-course support was way above and beyond anything I ever expected. Plenty of water and sports drink; and I couldn't believe the gel station, which had so many choices! It was very well marked too. Yes, the 163 sucked, and my IT Band will never forgive me for doing that to it, but I'll be back next year and I will be running more Rock 'n' Roll events also! | |
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j. c. from newport ky .41071
(6/7/2009)
"perfect" (about: 2009)
4-5 previous marathons
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 We had great weather, the volunteers were awesome, and we can never thank the military enough for helping us to enjoy the great pleasures of this country. So, an A+ to the military, volunteers, bands, and everyone involved. Also, congrats to Beth from North Carolina (with Team Leukemia), who completed her first marathon. | |
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C. S. from Fort Worth, Texas
(6/5/2009)
"San Diego is a Perfect Place for a Marathon" (about: 2009)
2 previous marathons
| 1 Rock 'n' Roll Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 My husband and I just completed the Rock 'n' Roll Marathon last Sunday; it was my husband's first and my second (my first was Dallas White Rock). It wasn't perfect, but it was well-run and I would definitely recommend it. Pros: 1. Well run expo with an excellent selection of "official" merchandise. 2. Fantastic weather. Some people were complaining that it was "humid." It was cool, with maybe 25% humidity; anyone who lives in the south will not think the weather is humid. 3. The color-coded cups for Cytomax and water were great, with tables on both sides of the street. We never waited for a cup. 4. They hand out GU at mile 16. 5. An excellent, secured finish area - there was plenty of water, Cytomax, fruit and other goodies, including an ice-cold, wet towel, foil blankets and two free, MGD-64 beers. 6. A nice-looking short-sleeve tech shirt and a good-looking medal. 7. The first half of the course is beautiful, and I loved the scenery on Highway 163 (see con below). 8. The shuttle system is organized. I recommend taking the trolley and then a shuttle, as recommended by the race directors. 9. There are more medical tents than I have seen in other races; they were handing out bags of ice at the finish, which was helpful. Cons: 1. There are corrals, but no staggered start. Everyone is clumped up together. 2. Highway 163 is beautiful, but it is not a flat surface; there is a steep grade. 3. Many of the bands were "on break," and many weren't that entertaining (the exceptions were the first band and the Japanese drummers). 4. I didn't drive, but traffic looked awful. 5. You have to do a lot of walking after the finish - through the secured area, to pick up your check bag, to meet your family, and to get to the shuttles. 6. The course is changing next year, so who knows what you'll get? | |
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P. R. from Wisconsin
(6/5/2009)
"Don't bother" (about: 2009)
4-5 previous marathons
COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 4 This was my 4th marathon. I was expecting a beautiful, flat course. I received an extremely ugly course with hills that did not correlate to the elevation map. Pros: 1) The start was smooth for a larger marathon (I started in corral 2). 2) There was plenty of porta-potties, water and Cytomax before and during the race. 3) There were plenty of encouraging spectators. 4) The finish was easy to negotiate, and there was plenty of food. Families can easily find runners. Cons: 1) The course. It was ugly, with many, many areas of pitted and cracked pavement, so you have to be careful running. I was very disappointed. |
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