Back to City of Los Angeles Marathon (L.A. Marathon) Information & Reviews
A Runner from Illinois
(3/9/2001)
"brutal inclines" (about: 2001)
COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 I thought San Francisco was a tough course with its hills. It ain't got nothin' on LA. After mile 7, it was one long uphill after another, absolutely brutal. The expo was great, the aid stations fantastic, although the spectators were supportive, I certainly expected more of them. I think the average finishing time for runners was 5:11 - that shows you the toughness of this course. Post race refreshments leave a lot to be desired. | |
A Runner from Chicago
(3/7/2001)
"Whew!" (General Comments)
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 Great Organization. Many more long inclines than anything else. Spectators were great. | |
Deneen Templet from Dana Point, Ca, USA
(3/6/2001)
"A Dream is Now Reality" (General Comments)
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 When I was 15 y.o., I made a promise that I would enter the L.A. Marathon before I was 31. My 31st birthday was in four weeks. Since that day, I grew up, got married, had two beautiful children, got divorced and gained weight. My brothers ran the L.A. Marathon several times already, and knew that my dream was coming to an end soon. The years had just gone by.... I went and registered for the Marathon on Saturday, the last day to enter, of course. My brother was with me, but knew I would never be able to be with him in the race. The race started and everything seemed to be ok. People were passing me like crazy. I am not in the best of shape, but knew this was my dream come true. I envied everyone in the race today. I called my sister, Cheryl, at the 10th mile with her cell phone (she said to keep near for emergencies). Well, she was in wow with me. I knew I could keep going. Everyone standing around were high fiving all the runners/walkers, it was a site I will never forget. I had tears in my eyes for every mile that I achieved. One step closer to fulfilling my dream. I called my kids at the 16th mile. I was getting blisters. Yes, I wore cotton socks. I didn't know about cotton socks till after the race. When I got to 20th mile, my body was in pain, blisters were hurting and well, I thought I was done. I called Cheryl telling her I was stopping, I went as far as I could go. My hands were swollen, I could barely hold the phone up to my ear. She said that I went further that some people and to be proud that I went that far. When I hung up the phone, one of the walkers saw that I was having problems walking. His name was Bob, and he told me to go rest a bit, it would be easier to walk. He told me that I could do it, but if I want to stop then that was okay to. So, I rested for five minutes, got up and continued my way down to the finish line. On the 20th mile, I met a woman who was kind enough to try and call her husband to see if they could find my a shuttle back to the finish line, I was in tears and about to just fall. Then I saw a traffic officer. He said his radio's batteries were down and that I missed the shuttle. He said if I kept walking, another one would soon appear. So I kept going. I got to the 21st mile, then to 22. A couple of people were behind me and asked if I could walk with them. They gladly took me in and encouraged me to go on. I could feel my legs giving in, I wanted to stop but they encouraged me to go on. We went through 23, 24, and 25 with us talking and not thinking about our pain. Gus and Elisa gave me what I thought I lost at Mile 18, my dream. I was the last runner to finish the race. I told my family that even if I was last in the Marathon, I would be proud that my dream came true. And it did.... So thank you to all of the spectators that encouraged not only me, but everyone. You are the true heros. It was you, that gave me the strength to go on, and make that dream a reality..... Thank you Gus and Elisa again. | |
A Runner from Beautiful LA
(3/5/2001)
"Everything great, except for the course..." (about: 2001)
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 Excellent organization, as smooth as can be for a 20,000+ event, done completely right. Not much time lost in the mad scramble at the start after the gun. Good crowd throughout, too. The weather happened to be pretty much perfect. As for the course... Not very scenic, but providing a good cross-section of various LA neighborhoods, so no complaint from that point of view. HOWEVER, the hills are just unconscionable. Not those between miles 13 and 19... Those between 22 and 26. The organizers badly need to re-design the course so there is no hill after mile 20. | |
A Runner from Los Angeles
(3/5/2001)
"My first Marathon!" (about: 2001)
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 The spirit and energy of the runners and spectators carried me through the entire race. I NEVER would've thought that I could actually run 21 of the 26 miles. I was planning on walking at least half of it. Thanks to everyone! | |
A Runner from California, USA
(2/19/2001)
"GREAT RACE" (about: 2000)
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 Enjoyable course with some challenging hills. 2000 had major wind and rain - but that made it all the more exciting! The fans even braved the elements to cheer us on. Will definitely run this again (with sunnier skies). | |
A Runner from San Francisco, Ca
(2/6/2001)
"2000 marathon was wet and windy" (about: 2000)
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 2 The weather was doubtless highly atypical in 2000- so take that into account. Windy and very rainy- I had a personal worst- partly my fault. Crowd support was lacking, but again it was hard to judge as the weather stunk. I'd very much like a later start. In LA, the weather will not likely be too hot in early March, and it would be nice to have a major marathon which doesn't require rising ridiculously early in the a.m. (one still needs to get up by 7, and for travelers, that is plenty early). | |
A Runner from Los Angeles
(1/14/2001)
"one complaint" (General Comments)
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 LA is a great marathon with one exception - the 8:45am start. This is a marathon that could potentially have very high temperatures, and an earlier start could help in that regard. | |
A Runner from California
(12/16/2000)
"Only LA. knows how to have a party!!!" (General Comments)
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 I have been fortunate enough to experience running the LA marathon for the past 4 years and it's the only marathon with such high energy!!! The diversity of the crowds and runners is inspiring!! It's what America is all about, everyone uniting to uplift their fellow American and we all know that at mile 23, we need all the uplifting that we can get!! Rain or shine (and I've run in both) LA's marathon is by far the best!! I have ran in several other marathons and it's made me realize that only Los Angeles knows how to throw a party!!! The Expo is alot of fun and the course is filled with cheering spectators!! I look forward to seeing all of you out there again in 2001!!! Rain or shine!! Come on what's a little water?!!! It just gives you character!! | |
A Runner from San Diego, CA
(12/4/2000)
"I LOVE LA" (about: 1999)
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 I ran the course in 99 and the weather was great. The course is fairly fast, with no major hills (except for one at between miles 24 and 25, which will get your attention). The scenery is not too great, but the crowd support more than makes up for it. I was high fiving kids nearly the entire way. The best expo that I've attended. Great organization. |
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