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Nov 14, 2024

Portland Marathon Runner Comments

Back to Portland Marathon Information & Reviews

Course 3.5

Organization 4.2

Spectators 4.3

Number of comments: 295 [displaying comments 41 to 51]

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M. M. from Bend, OR (10/6/2013) "Getting to be too expensive to run" (about: 2013) 6-10 previous marathons \| 4-5 Portland Marathons COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 4 This will probably be the last time I run the Portland Marathon. This event is now too expensive to run. The city seems to treat this race as a money grab. Not only are the race fees are high, but downtown hotel rates are also pricey on marathon weekend. I paid over $200 a night for a mediocre hotel room. Pros: 1. Good spectators 2. Good course support 3. No rain Cons: 1. Out & back part of the course is boring. The run to the bridge is unattractive. 2. Organizers don't allow transfers between races. My running partner suffered an injury a few weeks before the race, and the organizers did not allow a switch to the half marathon. 3. Undesirable swag. Most of it will end up in the garbage. I don't like the look of the race shirts.
A. M. from New York (10/17/2012) "Good Marathon, but expected it to be greener" (about: 2012) 50+ previous marathons \| 1 Portland Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 It is a nice Marathon, relatively flat, with only two significant hills at around Mile 3 and 17, and with a very good spectator support. I have to admit that reading about it being the greenest Marathon, I expected much more in that department. Running miles through a huge railroad depot and an industrial zone with no trees around doesn't sound 'green' to me. Still it was an enjoyable run, though I have to admit I expected a more scenic course.
R. G. from Phoenix (10/15/2012) "A good starting marathon that needs a few tweaks" (about: 2012) 11-50 previous marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 It was a great day to run the weather was beautiful, thanks Mother nature!They are really well organized and the Swag is above expectations. The start was actually a controlled wave, I was in corral B and we had to wait till A was gone, so many races their is a stampede of runners, that was kudos to PDX marathon. I felt the fans did a great job of support, people would yell me first name in encouragement. Mile 13-24 are a beautiful run even after the killer climb at mile 16, I had to stop to take in the scenery from the St John's bridge. The neighborhoods following were scenic and very supportive. The finish line was well supplied, loved the chocolate milk. There were only small things that needed addressing. My GPS would not work in the buildings at the start, I also lost my connection several times during the race. They don't have any clocks or time callers at any of the mile markers which would be helpful to those without GPS or stopwatch access. Like everybody else the first 9 miles are boring and we were stopped by an Amtrack train around mile 4. I was not sure what the entertainment value of pirates yelling arrr! but it did give me a laugh. Finally, when the race was done, I had to walk 4 blocks to pick-up my personal items, that could be moved closer to the finish line. Overall, if I was in the area, I would do this race again and encourage others to try it.
S. E. from Portland, OR (10/15/2012) "The Pirate entertainment was THE BEST" (about: 2012) 11-50 previous marathons \| 6+ Portland Marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 OK, I am a sucker for anything piratical, and around mile 8 was ready for some different entertainment...then along came the Pirates singing a happy song about 'grog.' Their costumes were great and their singing was, too. I was so glad to see them on the return from the out-and-back; sorely tempted to slow down and listen a little longer, but there was a race to run... Weather was fantastic this year, wave start was smooth, course was just as boring as ever from mile 6-17. I thought it was strange that there wasn't an aid station after we crossed the St. Johns bridge until much later. It wasn't at all where it usually is, and I was gasping by the time it finally appeared. Bring the pirates back next year and I'll be there!
Leonard W. from San Francisco (10/12/2012) "Loved this race" (about: 2012) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Portland Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 Boy, I read some of these comments and I think 'What a bunch of whiners.' I came to this race expecting to have a miserable time. I had not had time to train nearly as much as I should have, and in my training runs I was hitting the wall around mile 17. They don't allow you to switch to the half, so I decided to just see how far I got in the full. This is one of the few marathons I have run where I didn't go out too fast. I deliberately kept a slow pace and took walk breaks at least every mile. The first 5 miles is pretty scenic, but after that the course is not very pretty. A local told me the course was laid out to have a long flat stretch in the middle. This means it goes through the warehouse district. The many bands here distract you from the mundane industrial landscape. Really, though, I have never run a marathon where I paid much attention to the scenery after the first 10 miles. If you're fretting about the scenery in a marathon, I'd say you're missing the whole point of running the race. A marathon is all about you, what is going on with your physical body and your mental state. Of secondary importance are your fellow runners, and third, the spectators. When I got to the long uphill at mile 16.5 I walked, as did most of the runners around me, with the notable exception of the 5 hour pace group, which breezed past us up the hill. I reached the dreaded mile 17 on the bridge and the dreaded wall was nowhere in sight. About then another runner struck up a long conversation with me. About two miles later I was a little shocked to realize that not only was I maintaining my slow but steady pace, but my mental state was upbeat and positive. This was my 23rd marathon, and I can't remember any others where I was actually still enjoying myself going into mile 20. The spectators in this stretch of the race were absolutely great, mostly people standing in front of their houses, calling out to runners by the names on their bibs and offering encouragement. The aid station workers were also very supportive. Around mile 23 I had another long chat with a fellow runner, this time a man with white hair and over 200 marathons under his belt. What an inspiration and a welcome distraction. I finished the race without ever hitting the wall or feeling discouraged. Yes, I finished among the last 25% or so of runners, but so what? It was only by letting go of my silly time goals that I was able to really enjoy this race.
M. J. from Seattle (10/11/2012) "Decent race" (about: 2012) 3 previous marathons \| 1 Portland Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 First off, this year had beautiful weather and I had a huge PR which is probably swaying my opinion. Their corral system and start went smoothly. My only issue were the porta potties in each corral. I was in the E corral and there didn't seem to be any defined lines. A lot of time was spent trying to figure out if you were in a line and if it was moving. The course was decent. The out and back through the industrial area from miles 6-11 plus miles 13-16 leading up to the bridge were pretty boring. Thank goodness they bill themselves as mp3 player friendly because I turned on my music during these miles. Other than that it was pretty scenic. The view from the St. John's bridge was gorgeous. The spectators and volunteers are awesome. Plenty of water and ultima. There wasn't any gel although they let you know that ahead of time on the website. There were a couple of areas where spectators weren't encouraged to be because of traffic logistics which unfortunately were the boring areas of the course. The last mile seemed to take forever not necessarily because I had just run 25 miles but because this was the third time I was running along Naito Pkwy. There was a ton of stuff at the finish, food, swag. Overall, I'm glad I ran this race. Not sure if I'll run it again only because there's so many other ones out there.
M. M. from Pennsylvania (10/9/2012) "Great time...just needs a few tweaks" (about: 2012) 3 previous marathons \| 1 Portland Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 This was my 3rd marathon and first Portland marathon. Overall it was great. The fans were awesome and supportive but there are some long stretches without fans. I was a little surprised with all of the HILLS. I was expecting a flat marathon from all the comments but there were some legit hills in there that seemed to go on for miles. I didn't really like the finisher shirts but the rest of the gear that was sold at the expo was cool and affordable. Water stations were frequent but I didn't like the taste of the 'ultima' instead of gatorade and some GU stations would have been nice. Overall though, I had a blast and it was a great excuse to visit a very cool city. How about some beers at the finish next year?...isn't Portland famous for breweries?
B. C. from Portland OR (10/9/2012) "So so course, good spectators, decent organziation" (about: 2012) First Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 5 Organization: - Pretty smooth wave start. I was in the fifth corral, so it was a middle-of-the-pack group. They were letting corrals off every two minutes, and I had no problems with the pack at the start, even along the narrow streets of downtown Portland. -Volunteers are great and aid stations are good. Volunteers carry signs marking Ultima and water at the stations... Ultima always comes first. -HOWEVER, aid stations are placed in strange places at times. For example,no aid between mile 15.5 and mile 18.5. This is the section with the dreaded St. John's Bridge ascent, and I was shocked that there was no station waiting on the other side of the bridge. I really needed a drink after the bridge, so make sure you steel yourself until you get to the Mile 18 marker (or bring your own bottle). There are parts of the course where there are stations less than a mile apart from one another, so it's very strange. -Half marathoners share the course with marathoners for the first 11 miles, with separate turnarounds at mile 9. I was concerned that this would create a jumble of runners, but it actually worked out quite well. I think they limited the field of half-marathoners to about 3,000, so it wasn't an overwhelming amount of people. -They offered Vaseline at many of the aid stations. I didn't need any, but if you're chafing, it's good to know there's relief along the course. - I get it, Portland is a weird city. But for the love of all that is good and holy, please hand out Gu. Not a pill cup with three gummy bears. Not a handful of pretzels. Just swallow your independent city pride and hand out something manufactured by a large corporation so we don't have to bring our own. Gummy bears might be a cute idea, but we're running a marathon, not trick or treating. Gu... PowerShot... CliffBloks... something that we can go out and train with and get used to. -Finish chute is long, which is good because it forces you to keep moving along. Lots of food, but no signs as to what is where, so go investigate each table so you don't miss out on the chocolate milk or OJ or candy or bagels. The roses and seedlings are a nice touch, but frankly I'm not really looking to hang on to a bunch of swag as I stumble forward for 10 minutes to get out of the chute. Granted, you don't HAVE to take what they're handing you, but your brain is kind of scrambled, and you're just grabbing whatever is pressed into your hand at that point. I stopped taking what they were handing out after a certain point and had to go back and find the coin and pendant. Course: Frankly, I wasn't thrilled with the course, overall. Running along Natio for 8-ish miles is just zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz. Equally so along St. Helen's Road. There's also a point where it's possible to get stopped by an Amtrak train, which the organizers are indignant about (in other words: we don't care, deal with it). I didn't get stopped, and it probably doesn't happen to a TON of people, but it's inevitable that some will get stopped. I say if you're trying for a BQ, pick a different race because why put in months and months of effort if there's even the slightest chance that you could get stopped by a train? Just stupid. But the organizers really do not care about this. They indicate as much in the official race program they hand out at the expo. They've been doing it for 41 years, and that's just the way it is. -Miles 1-6: This is the point with the most spectators and where you are running in the largest pack. You'll probably also be too focused on sticking to plan that there won't be much to notice on the course. -Miles 6-11: A boring out-and-back along Front/Naito. Industrial with warehouses and limited spectators. Mental fatigue probably won't set in by this point, but it's probably the second worst part of the course. Mile 12: Through NW along Raleigh past 23rd ave... breaks up the monotony of running along Naito. Good spectator support. Mile 13-16: Ugh... four miles of boring nothingness as you run toward the St. Johns Bridge (which never seems to get any closer). No spectators, limited entertainment, cars whizzing by you to the right, by far the least enjoyable part of the course. And the whole time, you're probably dreading the climb coming at mile 17. -Mile 17: Be aware that this is the Bermuda Triangle for GPS watches. There's a cliff along the south side of the road for nearly the entire mile that blocked the signal to my watch and I lost time and pace until I reached the bridge Make sure to bring an extra (non-GPS) watch just to keep time, and be prepared for your Garmin or Nike Watch to drop signal until you reach the St. Johns Bridge, where you can restart it. -Mile 18-22: Tracking through some neighborhoods where you get some solid spectator support along the way. Lots of people standing in their yards cheering you on. This is where you'll also find some 'unofficial' aid stations (one had beer... I passed on that offering). Even though the elevation officially drops from the apex at the bridge, there are some rolling sections here that might nail you (especially in miles 21 and 22). -Mile 23: The goods news: a mile-long downhill along Greely/Interstate. The bad news: its industrial and boring. You might be too tired to notice, though. -Mile 24: The Broadway Bridge climb isn't long or particularly high, but it couldn't come at a worse time. -Mile 25-26.2: Back along Naito, spectators will probably carry you to the end. Spectators: -Great support. Spectators are really into it. Tip: You get to put something on your bib, so I suggest actually putting your name on it (as opposed to something 'funny' or 'inspirational') because the spectators will call out your name and give you encouragement all along the course.
John Wyant from Minnesota Clearwater (10/9/2012) "LOVED IT !!!!!" (about: 2012) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Portland Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 Don't Miss It !!!
B. S. from Portland, OR. (New resident) (10/8/2012) "One of the most boring marathons" (about: 2012) 50+ previous marathons \| 1 Portland Marathon COURSE: 1 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 I have now completed 126 marathons. This ranks as one of the most boring. A few hills...even rolling...would be nice, but this flat for Portland? The music is not a pleasant distraction. I felt sorry for a few places for the musicians because it was so loud. What about listening to the silence? Yet the organization was good and the weather great

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