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Marine Corps Marathon Runner Comments
Back to Marine Corps Marathon Information & Reviews
Course 4.5 
Organization 3.9 
Spectators 4.6
Number of comments: 937 [displaying comments 501 to 511]
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T. J. from Illinois
(10/31/2006)
"A good race with great volunteers and spectators" (about: 2006)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Marine Corps Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 The course was inspirational because of all of the historic buildings and monuments that you ran by, but it was too hilly for my taste, and there were too many twists and turns on the course. The marathon expo was great, although I wish they had told me ahead of time how easy it would be to travel to the expo by Metro; it was very difficult to drive to, both because it was not clear how to get to the expo, and parking was difficult. The spectators were awesome, the best I've experieneced other than Chicago, although there were several parts of the course that were relatively spectator-free. The volunteers were wonderful. All in all, a good race that could use some improvements. | |
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g. s. from New Jersey
(10/31/2006)
"Great course, poor pre/post organization" (about: 2006)
4-5 previous marathons
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 4 I thought the race, literally from start to finish, was excellent, fun, and most definitely scenic. Spectator support was great. The water stops were very congested (indeed, I had to "stop" a few times) but I expected as much from the crowded field. Pre-Race: Expo was poorly done. I was queued on line for about an hour before I could even get in. Post-race: The finish area was a "zoo." Way too crowded, poorly organized, and it took a hell of a long time just to walk out of the area. Adding insult to injury, I waited close to an hour just to get on a shuttle bus. | |
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R. H. from PA
(10/30/2006)
"Great Race - Nothing Can Please Everyone" (about: 2006)
4-5 previous marathons
| 3 Marine Corps Marathons
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 Comments from the mind of a solid mid-packer. Great race once again, though as with anything, there is room for improvement. Last year (2005) the start was too congested. Now that, to me, was fixed this year. This year I will say that the finish area was... well... bad, and if you were there as a participant or family member or friend trying to link up.... You know what I mean. I am confident that this will be changed next year. Now as for some of the previous comments that I have read. 1) Examining the start times of wheelchair or hand-crank participants is valid but before anyone ever labels a wheelchair or hand-crank participant as a burden to others on the course, let's think for a moment about your personal discomfort or frustration compared to that of those participants. If one is that consumed with competition and placing in a field of 30,000+, then qualify for Boston and leave the "People's Marathon" in your past. Next. Words like "idiot" and such used to describe the organizer of an event that is short of a logistical nightmare are silly. Once again please feel free to host such an event and make it perfect. While I agree that this event has some room for improvement, it was overall another great experience for me. See you again in 2007! | |
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L. T. from Freeport, New York
(10/30/2006)
"So much potential to be so much better" (about: 2006)
2 previous marathons
| 1 Marine Corps Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 4 They ran out of all but XL and XXL shirts, AND they ran entirely out of goodie bags. I feel like this definitely should NOT happen with a marathon that has been fairly popular for this long. The commemorative gear also ran out of all but XL- and XXL-sized tops.... Honestly... how many XXL-sized marathoners do you know? Certainly not enough to have such a surplus TWICE. Water stops were a disaster, but mostly because of poor runner etiquette. Runners would grab a drink and then come to a dead halt right where they were. The course definitely shoves a few too many people into some narrow streets a few too many times so there was A LOT of elbowing and tripping, which resulted in some shortened tempers, particularly with those aforementioned with poor etiquette. Aren't runners supposed to be happy and help each other? The post-race area could definitely use some restructuring as well. The area to begin with was MUCH too small to handle a race of this size. Few of the race staff knew where anything was. The race provided shuttles to get out weren't even marked for people to know where they were or that they were even there in the first place (I only remembered from some pre-race literature). The one mega positive was the one thing that is out of the organizer's hands... the spectators. THEY WERE GREAT! So many people across such a healthy chunk of the course. DC is a beautiful city, which makes for a scenic course.... If the organizers would only take an honest stab at accommodating the 34,000 runners they allow in, this could be a FANTASTIC race. | |
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J. R. from Spartanburg, SC
(10/30/2006)
"Great First Marathon!!" (about: 2006)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Marine Corps Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This was my first marathon. The experience was very positive and I would definitely run this event again! The crowd support was simply amazing. I don't know if I would have finished had it not been for the encouragement provided by the marines and supporters lining the streets (having my name on my shirt was the best preparation I made for the entire event). The course overall was very good, the only exceptions being the bridge at mile 20 and the hill at the finish - WOW, was it mentally and physically exhausting at that point in the race. The size of the field can make it very difficult to run your own race for the first several miles (especially in the 2nd wave). The finish was quite crowded and confusing, but this can be expected with +20,000 finishers. A few helpful hints: *Leave early for the start (metro becomes very crowded 1-1.5 hours before the race). *Be patient early in the race; you will only become frustrated by the crowd and your inability to navigate through it. *Write your name or a message on your shirt! *Meet family/friends outside of finish area. *Plan for delays at the Metro station after the finish. Finally, I would say "thanks" to all who volunteered for/supported and organized this great event. It will be a day I will never forget. | |
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Don Pattison from Chicago, IL
(10/30/2006)
"A freaking mess at the finish area" (about: 2006)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Marine Corps Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 4 The expo was great if you picked up your packet on Friday; but if you waited until Saturday, you could expect up to a 45-minute wait to get into the expo. The starting corrals were not controlled and many slower runners got way up front so the first couple of miles you had to really watch out. They did seem to keep the gold runners out until the 2nd wave but as far as keeping runners in their correct corrals, it never happened. Take a note and watch how they do it in Boston. The course was fine, with some hills, and this year, lots of wind. The finish area was so mis-managed that it RUINED the entire race for me. After running for 26.2 miles, the last thing you want to do is stand in line(s) for another two hours, but that is what happened. No crowd control on the bridge to the bag drop; all it would have taken was a couple of cops or marines to get people in on the left side of the bridge and out on the right, but instead it was a zoo. As I waited over an hour to get across the bridge medics were called for three people that passed out. The metro station was worse and there was almost a riot, as armed transit cops were called. Take another note from Boston: let the runners ride free on race day. What would the transit system lose? I, for one, will never ever run this race again, sad to say... which is even worse because I am a marine. | |
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J. D. from PA
(10/30/2006)
"Needs some retooling but a definitely a race to do" (about: 2006)
2 previous marathons
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 3 This was my first MCM and my first BIG marathon, so some of my concerns may be endemic to large marathons. The course was GREAT but there were a few spots that were a bit narrow. I may have just had bad luck but I always seemed to come up on four people walking abreast at all the narrow spots. The water stops would have been better if they'd been only on one side of the road. This way those that wanted to pass could do so. As it was the water stops paralleled the road so you were almost forced to walk/shuffle by. Other than that, the course was fanstastic. Great sites and great fans all along the way. My biggest complaint was after the finish. I don't know whose idea it was to merge runners and spectators together before the runners had a chance to get food, fluids, a post-race pic, and their belongings... but it was an incredible mistake! The organization of this part needs to be totally revamped. That having been said, where else can you run by the steps in The Exorcist, The Watergate Hotel, and almost every notable building/monument in D.C? This is still definitely one to say you've done, if only once! | |
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J. K. from USA
(10/30/2006)
"Total Chaos at the Finish Area" (about: 2006)
6-10 previous marathons
| 2 Marine Corps Marathons
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 4 Wow.... How do you screw up one of the best marathons in the world? Ask the 2006 race director or whoever approved the disaster at the finish line. Whoever designed the finish line area should be fired. It was not only a terrible experience trying to locate a finisher or a family member, but it was darn near dangerous as there were times when my family and I were pushed up against poorly-located temporary fences that served no purpose, and we could not move as the crowd swarmed. As my kids and I were getting smothered and I was considering urgent options, a fence collapsed and thousands flowed into another fenced in area. Nobody could located their runners and you couldn't even search as the area was completely jammed with people. What made it worse was that even the cell phone towers were busy due to the masses attempting to call their lost runners/friends. Either way, somebody should be held accountable for a terrible plan and horrendous execution over a period of several hours. I love the marines and they did their job, just it was too late by then as the fences kept everyone trapped and the area could not handle the number of people. I enoyed the run, however the dangerous finish area was inexcusable for this class of event. | |
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S. D. from Charlotte, NC
(10/30/2006)
"Marines Rock!" (about: 2006)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Marine Corps Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 Wow, I started reading about this race in Feb of '06 and now I get to post comments as a first-time marathoner! Everything was extremely smooth, except two things: 1. The post-race link-up was a mess because families that found their marathoners and were headed to the finish festival collided head-on with the runners coming off of the course, creating a logjam like no other 2. The MCM Headquarters at the Hyatt is a horrendous hotel that nickels and dimes you to death during your stay and makes you grow old waiting for its mediocre food and rude/despondent staff. Other than that, the course, experience, the spectators, and the MARINES all rocked! There are a lot of people there (34K), but the runners' village has all the essential services prior to start-up (except shoes for that barefoot runner!). Porta-potties on the race are well represented in the beginning, but develop long lines later on sending old and young men and women flocking to the bushes (some with more creative cover than others!). The hills were significantly fewer than I expected except for the last .2 miles to the Iwo Jima, but it's fitting to honor the marines with such a finish. My hat's off to the marine carrying the US flag and the names on his t-shirt of those fallen this year in Iraq, and to the family pushing their wheelchaired daughter. Thank you, marines, for protecting our homeland and for servicing us on this race!!!! | |
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T. T. from Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
(10/30/2006)
"Nice course; I will do it again" (about: 2006)
6-10 previous marathons
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 A little hilly and windy, but the course is beautiful, with first-class spectators. Do not expect a PR - there are too many people. I agreed that the finish line could had been a little better, but I was too tired, so it was not much of a concern. Overall, I think they have done a great job with the number of people attending the race. |
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