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☰
Santa Clarita Marathon Runner Comments
Back to Santa Clarita Marathon Information & Reviews
Course 4.0 
Organization 4.6 
Spectators 3.8
Number of comments: 85 [displaying comments 51 to 61]
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T. L. from Canyon Country, CA
(11/10/2005)
"Well intended but awful course" (about: 2005)
11-50 previous marathons
| 3 Santa Clarita Marathons
COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 My third SCM. Start's good, well supported, plenty of porta-potties, started on time. The first few miles are easy. The problem with this race is the number of convoluted twists and turns that the course designer uses in order to have the half and full meet exact distance requirements and also end in the same place. The bit where both miles 9 and 12 run southbound on the San Francisquito Trail and the faster half marathoners have to elbow slower runners out of the way is terribly confusing. I would rather see more of the race on roads than blending two segments of the race together and expecting runners to understand the confusing directions. Also, as many others have mentioned, I would be much happier if the paseo bridges didn't come at the end. I'd rather have the paseo portions earlier in the race and do some road running at miles 23-26 than have those bridges in the last 10K. Volunteers were great and the shirt is a nice one. The only request for future years would be ice chips for all the aid stations. One station (mile 24) brought their own bags of ice chips to hand out and those were great on a hot day. | |
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j. f. from Oak Park, Ca.
(11/7/2005)
"Twists and Turns with Some Ups and Downs" (about: 2005)
11-50 previous marathons
| 6+ Santa Clarita Marathons
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 It was a great day to run: Cloudy and cool for most of the time. The course was changed from last year. I'm not sure it was for the better. There did seem to be a bit of confusion with one juncture of the race where if you weren't paying attention, you would have missed a mile or so of the course. The only other 'minor' complaint is all the bridges to cross in the last few miles. My legs were fairly hammered already, and then to go up and down the bridges with a few 'U' turns tossed in didn't help. Other than that, it's definitely one of the more enjoyable local marathons around. Everyone is very helpful. The race organization is excellent. I highly recommend this marathon. | |
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D. S. from CA, USA
(11/7/2005)
"Where are my results?!" (about: 2005)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Santa Clarita Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 I had such a great time Sunday at Santa Clarita's 1/2 Marathon. Everything was great, although I do agree w/ the course being a little confusing at the 9-mile mark. One guy trying to explain whether to split or not for the 1/2 or full marathon did not quite work, especially when I had my iPod on full blast. But, I did figure it out somehow. Anyway, I'm trying to find the 1/2 marathon results but all I can find are those for the full. | |
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D. D. from La Crescenta, CA
(11/7/2005)
"Southern California Marathon Gem" (about: 2005)
4-5 previous marathons
| 1 Santa Clarita Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 To understand why the Santa Clarita Marathon is a piece of gem or to appreciate its beauty, you have to run it. Congratulations to all who ran, organized and volunteered! Great, great race. It had a small-town feeling to it. Priceless! Keep up the good work, Santa Clarita! | |
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B. K. from SoCal
(11/6/2005)
"Course designed by Jackson Pollock" (about: 2005)
3 previous marathons
COURSE: 1 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 3 I ran the half, but I figure since I ended up running 16 miles or so instead of 13.1, I figure I ran somewhere in between a half-marathon and a full. Unless you have someone to follow closely (which is not always an option,) you need a map, a GPS, and a compass to follow this course. To say it's 'confusing' would be an understatement. The u-turns are very annoying too. After mile 8, the half runners are supposed to run another loop, then go straight at the same intersection. This is confusing enough as it is, but the half course joins the full right after that, so you spend that part dodging slower marathon runners. At that point, remembering something like, 'go straight where you turned before,' is difficult, because you're tired and surrounded by people in a different race on a different course. The volunteers are great. I think this event has it's heart in the right place, but the course is truly awful. After doing 125% of the half, I will definitely not be doing the full... or the half again. | |
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C. C. from Dallas, Texas
(12/2/2004)
"A Great Race With Some Hills" (about: 2004)
50+ previous marathons
| 1 Santa Clarita Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 The race was wonderful. The course was incredibly well marked with cones, yellow tape, and/or volunteers at every corner. The aid stations were spaced every mile and staffed with friendly and energetic, costumed volunteers. The after race festival was well planned but dampened by the rain that began about 3 hours after the race started. Post-marathon showers were provided at a nearby, fancy athletic club and included warm towels. My only less-than-positive thought was the course terrain. Coming from pancake-flat Dallas, the hills of Santa Clarita challenged me. They are in NO way steep hills, but they seemed to be a constant during the race. But as the marathon starts and finishes in the nearly the same place, what goes up does comes down and the net elevation change is near zero. A few hill repeat workouts in preparation is all I was missing. A good race with excellent planning and execution. | |
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Michael Adcock from Lancaster, Ca
(11/9/2004)
"Just not a great marathon" (about: 2004)
11-50 previous marathons
| 3 Santa Clarita Marathons
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 2 The excitement and organization that should be part of a marathon were not there. In comparison to to the 20+ marathons I have run, this one is at or near the bottom of my list. There were several points on the course where I was completely unsure what direction to go (no markings and no people to guide). Having not run Santa Clarita since 1999, expecting improvement and paying $63.00, I would not recomend this one. | |
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j. f. from Oak Park, Ca.
(11/9/2004)
"Much Improved!" (about: 2004)
11-50 previous marathons
| 6+ Santa Clarita Marathons
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 This was my 6th SCM and one of my favorites. The new course change is a definite improvement over the previous years. No killer hills at the 16 mile mark! Even though it's not flat, it still keeps you interested with the ever changing terrain (other than running along Soledad Canyon Road). The bridges at the end are a nuisance, but then again, any hill around 24 miles looks steeper (and feels steeper!) than it really is. The volunteers were great and the race folks seemed to have everything under control. A great marathon for first-timers... and for that matter, many-timers too! | |
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T. L. from Canyon Country, CA
(11/8/2004)
"Good small-town marathon" (about: 2004)
6-10 previous marathons
| 2 Santa Clarita Marathons
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 Fairly well organized. I liked the old route that started in Canyon Country, rather than the out-and-back current incarnation. And there's no way a loop course can be a downgrade -- think the poster was referring to the old course which did have a net downhill. Spectators enthusiastic for the most part. No complaints on the aid stations. A couple of very steep hairpin bends, and the paseo bridges at the end were a challenge. Would have been nice to know exactly where the finish line was so we could park closer to that. Kudos for lots and lots of porta-potties! Could have used water at the start line rather than coffee only. Course a good mix of trails and roads. The camber on Orchard Village at mile 23 is severe; is there any way to reroute that bit? Weather was perfect and temps good. Nice small hometown marathon. | |
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K. H. from Valencia
(11/8/2004)
"I had a great time!" (about: 2004)
4-5 previous marathons
| 3 Santa Clarita Marathons
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 I am a resident of Santa Clarita and I enjoyed this race tremendously. I run here 3-4 times a week and am familiar with the area. I had a bit of trepidation with regard to the new marathon path and it turned out to be great! Yes, there were a few hair pin turns and a trip through an apartment complex parking lot but these were not a problem for me at all. I hope more people come out and enjoy the beautiful trails (paseos) of our beautiful city. The people along the route were very encouraging and friendly. My favorite part was that the race started promptly at 7am. This is great for all kinds of weather. With the excitement of the race and adrenalin of anticipation, it is a good thing that the start time was not delayed. Good job to all of the marathon planners. Thank you Pala! And thank you Mayor Bob Kellar for ordering good running weather for race day. |
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