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☰
Cleveland Marathon Runner Comments
Back to Cleveland Marathon Information & Reviews
Course 3.9 
Organization 3.9 
Spectators 3.3
Number of comments: 299 [displaying comments 261 to 271]
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J. H. from Strongsville, OH
(4/28/2004)
"Thumbs up for the new course" (about: 2004)
6-10 previous marathons
| 3 Cleveland Marathons
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 Course: The new course is quite a bit better than the old, out-and-back-on-Lake-Avenue course of prior years. I think the organizers really listened to the runners. The new course hits a lot of Cleveland's highlights... Browns Stadium, Jacobs Field, Playhouse Square, Severance Hall, the Art Museum... and routing the course through Rockefeller Park was a terrific move. My only reason for not giving it 5 stars was the repetition at the end (which, as one previous responder noted, meant a second trip up the West 3rd Street hill... not very welcome at mile 24!). Organization: I'm always amazed at how many runners whine about the littlest details. The race organizers could provide an expo with hundreds of exhibitors, an entire wall of port-a-lets at each mile, U2 jamming at the finishing line, a post-race spread catered by Michael Symon, and diamond-encrusted finisher's medals... and somebody would still whine about the T-shirt. You can't win with some people (and it's not worth trying). Anyway, the organization was good. The roads were safe and well protected from cars (which I think is the most important thing); the check-in at the expo was fast; there were markers and clocks at every mile (although mile 19's was definitely misplaced); the post-race food was fine; the aid stations were plentiful (17 or 18 of them, which is typical for most marathons). Some of the stations were under-staffed. Since that was not a problem in past years, I'm guessing that many volunteers woke up on race morning, saw the rain, and hopped back into bed. Fans: there weren't many of them, but it was a lousy day to watch a race... rainy and windy. There were a few pockets of spectators, and they made plenty of noise. If you want wall to wall fans, you know where they are... NYC, Chicago, the other mega-races. Overall, I liked the race a lot, and I'll be back next spring. | |
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B. O. from Virginia
(4/28/2004)
"Great Race" (about: 2004)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Cleveland Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 First to address some of the other comments: If you want crowd support, don't enter a small race, enter a large one. If you don't want crowded running conditions, don't enter a large race, enter a small one. Good weather is something we all hope for, but don't always get. The race director is not responsible for wind, rain, cold, heat, humidity, sun, clouds, etc. Plastic cups at water stops ARE a nuisance, and the race organizers should switch to paper. Attendants at water stops were overwhelmed, but this should have been obvious after one or two stops, and it was very easy to bypass the attendants and grab a cup or two off the tables yourself. The race organizers should concentrate on this as a primary goal for improvement. Porta-johns at every water stop? Get real. Even the large marathons I've run like Boston, Chicago, and Marine Corps didn't have this. Split times? Ever heard of a runners watch? Bag drop? Yes, it is a pain when these don't operate efficiently, and after being burned a couple of times, I tend to avoid them, so can't comment on the one here. However, we had no problem parking on the street a block away from the start/finish, and just left our bags in the car - easy enough solution. Did the expo have the best organization I've encountered? No. Did it have the worst organization? No. Was I, and the runners I was with, able to get through with the necessary business in a matter of minutes without waiting in lines? Yes. Winding around at the finish was a bit of a nuisance - straightening the finish would enhance the race. Overall, I would recommend this race to anyone looking for a small-to-medium marathon with a fairly fast course. My perception may be biased because I am familar with the Cleveland area, and because I ran a BQ here on my first marathon of the year, but another runner who made the trip with me (and had never seen Cleveland or any part of Ohio) was impressed enough to say we should put in on the calendar for a yearly event. | |
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y. w. from Dearborn MI
(4/27/2004)
"Nice course, ok organization, not bad." (about: 2004)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Cleveland Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 The expo was so-so but they had a fantastic goody bag - no doubt due to CVS sponsoring. Overall I liked the course - I thought it showed off the best of Cleveland. Not perfect though, there were too many twists, turns, and ramps at the end. LOTS OF OPEN HOLES IN THE STREET! Also, what's with the plastic cups? Aid stations could have been much better organized. Finish paddock was well stocked with plenty of goodies. Get the bugs in the course and the aid stations worked out, make sure the holes in the street are closed, and you could have another race rivaling the Flying Pig. | |
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M. V. from Columbus OH
(4/27/2004)
"Love the 8am start time!" (about: 2004)
4-5 previous marathons
| 1 Cleveland Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 4 First the good stuff: Starts at 8am, right downtown. Easy in and out from our hotel. Loved the expo atmosphere. Kids run was great way to get the kids involved. The course allows spectators to see you many times. Love the run through Case Western Reserve University. MLK Blvd was awesome. I loved the trek past the Jake too. Loved the pace groups. The 3:30 and the 3:40 were right on the mark and very encouraging (especially the 3:40 - I ran with her at the end). Downside: A lot of bridges mean tough uphills, always into the wind, it seems. Mile 19 was about 1.3 miles, and mile 20 was about 0.7. Bad markings. The uphill right past Browns Stadium was very discouraging. Running on the bike path around mile 20 and on Marginal Road was not the best - but worth it if that is the only way to get to run on MLK Blvd. Weather was tough in the last half - wind and rain. But I still managed a PR by 7 minutes. Suggestions: Move the relay station a block away from the runners - I don't like to see others finishing when I have 13.1 to go. Also, don't loop the finish around, so we can see the finishers when we still need to move around the block. Kids run needs better organization. | |
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S. L. from Columbus
(4/27/2004)
"Potential To Be A Great Race" (about: 2004)
1 previous marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 This race was very satisfying for me. It was my second marathon. I am a very slow runner and so I can't really judge the spectators well because they may have dispersed by the time I showed up!! Plus the weather this year was not ideal--grey and rainy. Nevertheless, the new course was great--lots to see all along the way. I especially enjoyed all the running along the lake and running through the various parts of Cleveland. The expo was very well put together--very efficient-- and the race well organized. As in almost every city which hosts a marathon, the police were sensational. The folks who put this race together should be congratulated. | |
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J. H. from Cleveland, Ohio
(4/26/2004)
"Love the new course" (about: 2004)
6-10 previous marathons
| 3 Cleveland Marathons
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 Having run the old course several times, I really enjoyed the new layout. More to see - loop was better than out-and-back. Plenty of aid stations and post-race food. Even with the wind and rain, a fun time. | |
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J. M. from Memphis, TN
(4/26/2004)
"Challenging, Hilly, Very Little Crowd Support" (about: 2004)
2 previous marathons
| 1 Cleveland Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 1 Cleveland was my third marathon and I have to say I would not recommend this race to anyone who needs support from spectators. The weather pretty much sucked the enthusiasm out of everyone there including the runners. At the end of the race you had to untie your shoe and remove the chip and relace your shoe. Have you ever heard of plastic ties that just have to be clipped off? The only split time you get is the halfway point and the newpaper only prints the top 50 finishers of each sex. In the city that is supposed to 'Rock and Run' there was very little music or bands. Cleveland needs to get behind this race or forget it. The 10K winner's purse was larger than the marathon purse, so what can you expect? The medal and T-shirt were ok. The in training shirt was way cooler than the marathon shirt. The host hotel (Hyatt) did a fabulous job and went above and beyond for all the runners. They get an A+. | |
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Jeffrey Ward from Pittsburgh, PA
(4/26/2004)
"Easy Course, Could Be Better" (about: 2004)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 Cleveland Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 1 I did the Cleveland Marathon this year since the Pittsburgh Marathon was canceled. The course itself was flat and easy for the most part. A good course for a 1st-timer. That was what was good... what was bad you ask? A few things: 1. Port-a-potties - marathon directors: YOU ALWAYS NEED TO HAVE MORE THAN ENOUGH PORT-A-POTTIES. Why only 1 or 2 (at most) at each water station? 2. Water stations: properly MAN them. I passed 2 or 3 stations in which there was 1 or 2 people passing out water to WAY too many thirsty runners... I ended up skipping some stations b/c the people manning the waterstations were overwhelmed... 3. More water stops... we are not camels. We need more water stops... one every mile would be great. 4. The EXPO... make it more runner-friendly in terms of packet pick up. I was juggling my race bib, chip, etc. in my hands before I got a bag to put them in. This is something minor that could be fixed!!!! Overall, I don't mean to sound all bah-humbug about Cleveland. I did enjoy the race, even if the weather was rainy. But my whines are things that can easily be fixed... | |
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Doug Widowski from Belvidere, Illinois
(4/26/2004)
"Poor planning" (about: 2004)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Cleveland Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 1 This was my 30th marathon and I was disappointed by the poor planning of race officials. The gear check was a joke and the packet pickup was a mess. The aid stations were overwhelmed. At one stop, runners had to share drinking cups to scoop water out of a jug. I felt sorry for the folks trying to help the runners. The medal was nice, but the shirt wasn't anything special. I would not recommend this race. -DW Belvidere, Illinois | |
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E. W. from Lakewood, OH
(4/26/2004)
"New course not runner or spectactor friendly" (about: 2004)
3 previous marathons
| 2 Cleveland Marathons
COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 2 Having run this marathon before and the 10k in previous years, I was looking forward to see how the new start/finish and race course would be. Also as local runner was hoping to see organizers put together first-rate race to attract greater regional or national attention. Needless to say, it wasn't a change for the better given how it was run this year. Start was unorganized, the new course was run on too many unprotected roads along Lake Erie (spring time in Cleveland can be very windy and yesterday was no exception) and the new portion of the course in downtown and on the Eastside of Cleveland was sparsely populated w/ spectators. I'm sure it didn't help matters but there was little or no coverage by local media (TV & newspapers) to get the word out that a marathon was being ran. Need better publicity to get crowds up if want to be a top-notch race, like Detroit for example. Unfortunately I don't believe I'll run this race again until I hear that it improves and will focus on spring marathons in other Midwestern cities. |
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