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Baltimore Marathon Runner Comments

Back to Baltimore Marathon Information & Reviews

Course Rating Course 3.9 
 
Oranization Rating Organization 4.0 
 
Spectator Rating Spectators 4.1 
 
 
Number of comments: 443 [displaying comments 231 to 241]
More Comments: [ < 1 .. 22 23 24 25 26 .. 45 > ]

 

R. R. from Fort Washington, MD (10/22/2005)
"Love Fort McHenry" (about: 2005)

1 previous marathon | 1 Baltimore Marathon
COURSE: 4  ORGANIZATION: 4  FANS: 4


I learned some history passing through Fort McHenry. The Park Ranger on duty pointed out where the British ships anchored and bombed from in the harbor. It was also nice to see the humongous Red, White and Blue. You can somewhat relate to what was going on in Francis Scott Key's mind.

I had a blast. The GU was abundant. The Under Armour shirt was cool. The only negative was the waterless stops at miles 17 & 19? I had to buy some Gatorade at a convenience store! I guess that'll make it more memorable. By the way, there were a lot of hills.

Thank you to the Baltimore Police for the excellent traffic control.

 

D. S. from Baltimore, MD (10/21/2005)
"Had a blast" (about: 2005)

First Marathon
COURSE: 5  ORGANIZATION: 4  FANS: 5


My first marathon, and I am from this area. So take my comments with that in mind.

I enjoyed myself, crowds were great except during some of the middle miles 17-21. Music, party atmosphere everywhere. Some pit stops ran out of water. It appears somebody stole it. I saw a homeless person take load of chips, etc. Also some confusion after the race; no food to eat. Course was tough but fair, lots of hills.

Start slow, otherwise you will crash as I did in last few miles.

 

B. S. from Baltimore (10/20/2005)
"Way to go Baltimore!" (about: 2005)

50+ previous marathons | 4-5 Baltimore Marathons
COURSE: 4  ORGANIZATION: 4  FANS: 3


The changes in the course (other than the change necessitated by construction at Lake Montebello) were all great. The course highlighted a great city. Definitely a race to run again. Someone said this was their toughest.... Come on, now, there are many more challenging than this one. This had the right amount of challenge.

 

Ralph Firehouse Grill Racing from Whittier, CA (10/20/2005)
"Worth a weekend!" (about: 2005)

6-10 previous marathons | 1 Baltimore Marathon
COURSE: 4  ORGANIZATION: 5  FANS: 3


There is nothing better than a Saturday marathon if you're traveling. Great place to visit, but the hotels in the inner harbor are a bit pricey. The course is hilly, lots of concrete, but the police at the crossroads are great! Everyone was really nice in the area, and I had a great time!

 

L. P. from Pittsburgh, PA (10/19/2005)
"This is a horrible race - aside from the free UA s" (about: 2005)

1 previous marathon | 1 Baltimore Marathon
COURSE: 3  ORGANIZATION: 1  FANS: 3


There were not enough volunteers on the course. Fellow runners and I had to pour our own Gatorade on the course and they ran out of water on the course. The finish line was out of water (about hour 4) and it was poorly organized. Besides that, the course included a decent number of hills and a boring run through the ghetto with no spectators. Only do this race if you are interested in a free UA shirt. Baltimore is a nice city and the police did a good job handling traffic, but the race was poorly organized in its 5th year!

 

E. B. from Richmond, VA (10/19/2005)
"Need music for a challenging course!" (about: 2005)

4-5 previous marathons | 1 Baltimore Marathon
COURSE: 4  ORGANIZATION: 3  FANS: 3


No question about it, the course was hilly (with big, long continuous hills), but I like it. Other than the Inner Harbor where lots of people lined the street and friendly Federal Hill neighborhood, the crowd support at other places were spotty at best. Definitely need some music/bands along the course. I only recall passing through 4-5 spots with music (2 bands, the rests are boomboxes); it's kind of depressing leaving those areas and back into the quiet drone of footfalls up the hills.

 

R. L. from Queretaro, Mexico (10/18/2005)
"Tough, small." (about: 2005)

11-50 previous marathons | 1 Baltimore Marathon
COURSE: 3  ORGANIZATION: 3  FANS: 3


A marathon that can get better. Small expo, course hilly, pavement in bad shape, and there are sections without any spectators. Organization can improve. Beautiful Fort McHenry.

 

m. z. from Chicago, IL (10/18/2005)
"Wonderful 1/2 Marathon" (about: 2005)

4-5 previous marathons
COURSE: 5  ORGANIZATION: 4  FANS: 4


Acceptable level of organization, good crowd and level of enthusiasm, fantastic way to see Baltimore, especially once you get up by Johns Hopkins and look back across the harbor. Also, many more hills than I expected. Great event shirts!

 

W. R. from New Jersey (10/18/2005)
"This one is DNR - do not return" (about: 2005)

11-50 previous marathons | 1 Baltimore Marathon
COURSE: 2  ORGANIZATION: 1  FANS: 2


Almost no porta-pots on the route, ran out of water at mile 19 and had no water and no ice at the finish when temperatures were in the upper 70's. It borders on negligence.

 

P. M. from Chesapeake City, MD (10/18/2005)
"I'll be back next year." (about: 2005)

1 previous marathon | 1 Baltimore Marathon
COURSE: 4  ORGANIZATION: 4  FANS: 4


Based on the comments for previous years, the crowd's enthusiasm this year was much improved: great during the middle and end, sporadically throughout. The organization was great save for the end, which I thought was too crowded; all I could think of doing was getting out of that tight area; forget the food and drink. You're warned that once you leave, you won't be allowed back, so if you have some loved ones waiting to greet you AND you want to stay in that area for the refreshment, you're out of luck. The police and volunteers were the best! (THANKS AGAIN, ALL OF YOU) Aid stations were very well staffed. The race shirt from Under Armour was very cool. You pretty much get to see the all the varieties of Baltimore neighborhoods, including, for the first time this year, a circle around Fort McHenry ('...gave proof through the night, that our flag was still there...' fame). The pace groups are nice to have, but I recommend having a solid back-up if their pace is either off or simply not to your liking. Mine went out too fast and I paid for it later on. Funny to have read some of the previous comments about the red cones and the rats. I counted three dead rats in the roads, and the cones were a hazard (mostly when the race crowd was thickest). This was my first marathon; I'm pretty sure I'll be back next year, better prepared for all those hills.

 

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