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The San Francisco Marathon Runner Comments
Back to The San Francisco Marathon Information & Reviews
Course 4.3 
Organization 3.6 
Spectators 2.6
Number of comments: 503 [displaying comments 261 to 271]
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E. L. from Pottersville, NJ
(8/1/2006)
"Great marathon!" (about: 2006)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 The San Francisco Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 2 The course is beautiful, and an excellent tour of the best of the city, but tougher than it looks due to the hills in the first half. The wave start worked very well (in the second wave, anyway). The temperature is cool for 30 July, and the early morning start also helps, but it did get sunny over the last 10K. No interference on the bridge or among the 5K or half runners. Great t-shirts, abundant good food, excellent expo, plenty of water stops. Few spectators at 0530 on Sunday morning, but the bikers and cops were very efficient with the traffic control. My only complaint is the lack of clocks on the course, and the tiny 8 1/2' x 11' mile markers on the first half of the course. I missed about half of them. Next year, put a chalk line on the road. | |
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J. R. from Los Angeles, CA
(8/1/2006)
"A bit disappointed" (about: 2006)
11-50 previous marathons
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 1 I'll try to be brief and to the point. The pluses: The weather, the organization, the first half of the course. The minuses: The goody bag (there was nothing in it), the spectators (there were virtually none - big disappointment), the last part of the course (running through an industial park for about 5 or 6 miles without a spectator in sight). | |
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A. S. from Menlo Park, CA
(8/1/2006)
"Give them an award for most improved" (about: 2006)
11-50 previous marathons
| 4-5 The San Francisco Marathons
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 2 I highly commend the race directors of the SF Marathon for listening to criticisms of previous year's races and correcting them. From my perspective the 2006 race went off without a hitch. The wave start worked perfectly. I didn't have to do the usual bob and weave that is so common at the beginning of so many races. There was almost no congestion on the bridge. The water stops were well staffed, and there were plenty of food and drinks at the end. This was my 5th San Francisco Marathon and I consider it my hometown race. Even if the race directors had changed nothing, I would continue to come to this one. What more can you ask for in a course - perfect summer running weather, running through Ft. Mason, Chrissy Field, the Golden Gate Bridge, the Presidio, Golden Gate Park, the Haight, AT&T park, and the Embarcadero. Sure, miles 21-24 aren't exactly scenic, but no race is perfect. The 5:30 start is a little early, but it's nice to have 26.2 miles under you belt before some people are rolling out of bed. Again, congrats to the race directors and I look forward to 2007. | |
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Ron Charles from Newton, Iowa, USA
(8/1/2006)
"Challenging but great course" (about: 2006)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 The San Francisco Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 2 Great course with more hills that I anticipated... thank goodness I did my training. The major attraction for me was running across the Golden Gate Bridge... fantastic. I have run enough races to now try to enjoy the city and the scenery instead of worrying about pace and time. Makes it more "enjoyable." Relatively warm running weather, so hydration is a must. The early start is a great idea. | |
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Jason Herman from Waynesboro, PA
(8/1/2006)
"One of the better second-tier, big races." (about: 2006)
3 previous marathons
| 1 The San Francisco Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 I just came back from a nice, crampy six-hour set of flights after running the San Fran 26.2. I have spectated or run in a dozen marathons. I finished in 5:55:02, so my comments are from the back of the pack. The course is challenging in that there are hills... a bunch of them. The downs are as tough as the ups, since putting on breaks is no fun either. Still, the time of year, the cool weather, the view from the Golden Gate... all big pluses for me. Not the best course, but a memorable one. If you've run this, you've taken on and crushed a monster. The race was well organized, from the great website to the well-run expo, GREAT volunteers (especially the bikers and police - who were ALL AWESOME!). Getting a medal from a member of the armed forces was a real honor. There were too few water stops, too many places I had to read signs to figure which way to go (unavoidable I guess), and sort of small post-race food items. On the whole, though, very well organized. Always things to improve upon. Spectators were sparse in town, almost non-existent in the parks. If you're someone who needs that crowd push... beware. About 60% of the course you're staring at the white line or scenery. The scenery, though, almost makes up for it. If you're into scenery, reverse the previous comment. Bottom line: Want a challenge? Want to look back and say, "How on earth did I do those hills?" Run this cool race in this great city. Want more crowds? Run San Diego Rock-n-Roll. Want fewer hills with big crowds? Chicago. Want some hills with big crowds? NYC. Want the whole package all in one? Run fast... faster than most... and qualify for Boston. San Fran could be better, but not by a whole lot. I'm glad I did it. | |
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Davlyn Spetch from San Jose, California
(7/31/2006)
"It was great!" (about: 2006)
First Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 This was my first marathon and it was everything I could have hoped for and more. There were definitely more hills than I was led to believe but it just made it more interesting. It seemed as if it was never flat! It was either sloping upwards or downwards but I enjoyed it thoroughly. The only complaint I have is the lack of bathrooms before the race started. There was one line across of porta-potties and the lines were horrific. I was worried I wouldn't make it to my wave in time. Other than that it was fantastic. The views were great. I want to thank all the spectators for their support. I couldn't have done it without your cheers and smiling faces. | |
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D. N. from Berkeley, California
(7/31/2006)
"Disappointed" (about: 2006)
4-5 previous marathons
| 1 The San Francisco Marathon
COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 2 I think it started when I picked on my shirt on Friday and it didn't get better on Sunday. No technical shirt, a dark color and unattractive design. It went straight into my give-away bag. Dropping off your sweat bag the morning of the race was a bit odd. There were bib ranges indicated on fences, and you walked up and tossed your bag onto the appropriate range pile. At least that is what I did since there was no one monitoring or helping. I didn't run the race last year, but I thought the corral starts worked well this year. I was in corral 4 and was able to run right from the gun. Unfortunately I spent the first couple of miles looking for a restroom as the porta-potties were a good 100 yards from my corral. What the staggered start didn't work well for was the mileage markers. I don't how many I missed since there was no one calling out times, or even just the marker. And that was another theme throughout the race: low spectator turnout and involvment. There seemed to little community awareness of the race and hardly any news reporting. This was the SF Marathon but you didn't get a sense that it is supported much by SF. The first part of the course was enjoyable, but after coming off the Golden Gate Bridge you really could be running any city with a park. The aid stations were at least 2.5 miles apart, with 2 gel stops and no other food. I really could have used a banana in the second half. The real disappointment came at the finish line. The area was really congested, poorly organized and dirty. There was not central post-race food tent, you had to go to each vendor booth to get a sample. No muffins that I could find and I had to search for the bananas, which of course were in the last booth. With food in hand what I noticed next was all the garbage on the ground and I quickly realized why. Garbage cans, like porta-potties at the start, were few and far between. Granted I was pretty tired at the end, which may have contributed to some of my iritation, but I just didn't think the finish area was laid out in a way that made it easy for the runners to get food and water. To cap it all off, the water handed to me at the end was warm from sitting in the sun. Though it's convenient to my location, I would look for another race at this time before signing up again. | |
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Jeremy Korn from Santa Cruz, CA
(7/31/2006)
"Beautiful Run! Well Organized! A Must-Run!" (about: 2006)
1 previous marathon
| 1 The San Francisco Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 I previously lived in SF for 5 years and absolutely loved it (yes, I left my heart there). This was my first marathon and is one of the best memories of my life. I can't believe previous runners actually complained about the Golden Gate Bridge. That was one of the coolest parts. Sure it bows upward a little creating a small hill, but any decent marathoner should train on hills (right?). The course was truly amazing; around the embarcadero, over and back on the bridge, through the historic Presidio, around the park, through the Haight, and into the bayside district past SBC Park. It's easily the best way to sightsee in SF. While the bayside district isn't the most scenic, it's only about 2 miles and passes quickly. They definitely fixed the previous starting line logjams that everyone complained about, and the water stations where well stocked and placed every two miles. Mile 14's station even offered beer, or as the volunteers call it: "Ice Cold Carbs!" I wouldn't suggest partaking until the race is over though. Bless Mile 20's neighborhood residents for the brick wall banner that was hung low enough to hit, sliced bananas, and fresh water. The crowds and volunteers were extremely supportive. If there are better marathons than this, I can hardly wait. I'll be back in 2007. Thanks! | |
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C. B. from Tucson, AZ
(7/31/2006)
"Most Beautiful Course I Have Seen Yet!" (about: 2006)
4-5 previous marathons
| 1 The San Francisco Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 This is my 5th marathon, and all have been large urban races. This was my favorite - the views were simply spectacular. Hills were a challenge but not impossible. I thought the start was well-organized and the wave start seems to have helped with the crowding on the bridge reported last year, as there was no point where I, or anyone around me, was forced to slow up. Not many fans, but the beauty of the course made up for it. The shirt is great. I was a little worried about the Cytomax, never having had it before, but it was fine. The finish area was small, crowded, lacking shade, and had nowhere to throw up discreetly, but other than that, this race ranks very high in my mind. | |
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d. w. from L.A., CA
(7/31/2006)
"great marathon, scenic and well organized" (about: 2006)
2 previous marathons
| 1 The San Francisco Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 I am getting tired of people who whine about everything. This was a great marathon. I had no problems getting to the start line. No problem with the drop-bag. Wave start worked perfectly. There was no crowding on the bridge. I was able to run my pace the entire way (except for the 3:30 pace group blocking the entire width of the bridge and after politely asking to make some room, I did get a REAL NASTY comment back, but at least I got through and this did cost me at the most 5 seconds). I do not know if slower waves had more problems about crowding on the bridge. Support was sufficient, but not great. But I don't care. I bring my own drinks and gel anyway. Med support seemed to be not very good; I overheard at one station that they did not have any vaseline. There were not very many spectators, but supportive. Street support was great and traffic control was good. In the park it did get a little confusing and in between I wasn't sure if I was running the right course (with the 1/2 splitting and joining again). The last few miles were pretty lonely, but that makes sense with only 4,000 runners. I have no idea where the other 11,000 were (as it was announced in the morning that there were 15K runners). Finish area was well organized, plenty of food, yogurt bananas, bars, etc. Expo was ok. Nothing special. Pasta feed was fine and cheap. My minor complaints about the course did not bother me at all. This is a great course and I can only highly recommend it to anyone. Please keep in mind that I do not expect much. I bring my own support for the race, before during and after. The only thing I need is a porta-potty or bush at the start. AND THEN I ENJOYED THE RACE! The only marathon I can compare it to is the RNR in San Diego this year (my first): The SF course is WAY nicer than San Diego. The SD crowd is better than SF. The road support is the same. Love the bands in SD. Start and finish are the same (though the wave start in SF is almost better than the corrals in SD). But I really did enjoy both and will run both again next year. |
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