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Philadelphia Marathon Runner Comments
Back to Philadelphia Marathon Information & Reviews
Course 4.3 
Organization 3.6 
Spectators 3.8
Number of comments: 749 [displaying comments 491 to 501]
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R. L. from New Jersey
(11/22/2006)
"Good course; nice day; not as good as last year" (about: 2006)
3 previous marathons
| 2 Philadelphia Marathons
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 2 I've run three marathons. This is the second time I've run Philly. I live in NJ so it's close and convenient. Nothing this year at the expo that piqued my interest. I didn't need to check a bag so that saved a lot of aggravation. After reading about innacurate mile markers I now know why my splits were screwed up. I ran the Marine Corps 3 weeks earlier and that was awesome compared to this one and perhaps contains some lessons for the organizers. I'll run this one again, but then again, at 63, I'm not exactly world-class, so I can handle some of the inconvenience. There are worse ones out there. | |
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M. K. from USA
(11/22/2006)
"Will not run this again" (about: 2006)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Philadelphia Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 1 My main complaints 1) There are rolling hills that eventually take a toll on you if you have IT band issues. 2) There is nearly no fan support, apart from a few folks who seem to only be able to cheer for "their" runners. 3) The mile markers were off. The splits and final times seem innacurate as well. (Mile 14 cannot be faster than mile 13.) 4) They ran out of food at the tent. 5) Surly volunteers could not help with anything. I will not run this again. | |
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J. G. from Bedminster, NJ
(11/22/2006)
"Great course" (about: 2006)
4-5 previous marathons
| 1 Philadelphia Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 2 Good: 1. The course - great for setting a PR, with minimal hills and smooth terrain. 2. The weather - cooperated this year (cool and minimal wind). 3. The chicken soup at the end. 4. There seemed to be enough porta-potties at the start/finish. Needs work: 1. Gear check - what gear check??? I couldn't find it, and my wife had to carry my bag around all day. From what I understand it seems I'm lucky I didn't check my bag. 2. Cars blocking an intersection around mile 4-5, with a cop car's piercing siren wailing. 3. Mile markers were off. 4. No one to clip your chip at the end. In closing, Philly is a great city - friendly and clean. I hope the marathon organizers simply had a bad year because of the new half they added, and people will return for 2007 to give them another chance. | |
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B. G. from Fairfield, CT
(11/21/2006)
"Disappointed in my home town" (about: 2006)
6-10 previous marathons
| 2 Philadelphia Marathons
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 3 Have to agree with most of the other comments posted here. This is not a big-time marathon. Philly should have at least a decent event because it runs on a terrific track but it is not even near ready for prime time. When American Express became the title sponsor my hopes were raised BUT they shouldn't have been at all. In fact, the organization was shockingly poor. Kind of like they had never organized a run before and were making it up as they went along. The Broad Street 10-mile run in the spring looks slick compared to this. They dropped the ball at every turn - expo, baggage, start line, signs, food, timing, finish line. It seemed like there was no one there who had even attended, let alone had responsibility for, a marathon. Too bad, because my old hometown has developed so much character in the last few years. None of it was on display in, around or near this event. I've got to give them a D+. | |
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M. O. from USA
(11/21/2006)
"Half marathon sold out; had to run all 26.2" (about: 2006)
4-5 previous marathons
| 2 Philadelphia Marathons
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 4 I wanted to run the Philly half as a training run for Miami in January. I live about 40 minutes outside of the city, so I didn't want to register until I knew that that the weather was going to cooperate. I went to the expo to register for the half marathon and I was told that it had sold out. There was no mention of the possibility of a sellout. I ended up running the full marathon unprepared. Police actually tried to stop runners at one point to let cars through the course. Unacceptable for the $90 fee I paid. Nice crowd, nice course, lousy shirt, and no goodies in the packet. | |
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F. B. from South Jersey
(11/21/2006)
"Great run; poor organization" (about: 2006)
4-5 previous marathons
| 3 Philadelphia Marathons
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 4 This was my third Philly Marathon - in 2003 and 2004 it was well-run, but this year it took a step (or two) backwards. I am not looking to slam the race, because at the end of the day it was a great run and I really enjoyed it, but in the interest of constructive criticism, it needs some more attention to detail from the new sponsors. I visted the expo mid-afternoon Friday and it was not crowded and pretty navigable. However, some more signage - as is evident in other races - would have been helpful (e.g., location of numbers, bag pick-up, etc.). At the start, I spoke with several people who were confused as where to go (1/2 v. full and pace groups, etc.) but the only complaint I had was that you could not hear the announcer at or the start of the race, which began late. I am actually relieved to hear others comment on the mile markers - I thought it was me. I think some of the early ones were inaccurate, and they definitely needed to be more visible - I think I missed about five of the first 12 and I had run this course twice before. The water stop volunteers were great - much appreciated. At the finish, however, they needed more people - the volunteers were overwhelmed and could not get the medals,and blankets distributed smoothly, and there were too few chip-getters it seemed. Finally, I can't imagine who thought it was a good idea to let non-runners into the food tent. All in all, however, these things are not really why you run a marathon, and the race itself was a terrific. The course is scenic and the peope are great - especially in Manayunk and at the end. I intend to run it again, but I hope that the organizers take the necessary steps to make this the first-class event it could be. | |
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D. S. from Hyattsville, Maryland
(11/21/2006)
"I expected more..." (about: 2006)
2 previous marathons
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 Well, the running course is extremely nice in terms that you can can do some sightseeing on some very historical places. So the course receives a five-star rating! Now, things that I didn't like: 1) Organization at the expo was terrible. I agree with the other runners on that. One suggestion: At the main entrance they should place an information desk with some volunteers to answer basic questions that runners (like me) may have! 2) Food at the finish line: Just apples, bananas, and pretzels? I paid $70 to register and I got only that? Where are the cookies, oranges, Gatorade, and salty snacks? 3) Mile markers were very confusing. Suggestion: They should separate them either by writing or by color (if they correspond to either the marathon or the half marathon). 4) It was over-crowded at the first six miles! Suggestion: I think people in Baltimore very smartly separate the first eight miles of the marathon from the half-marathon. Maybe people in Philly should do the same next year. Conclusion: It was a nice race, in a very historical city. However, the organizers should increase the quality of service if they want to charge such high registration fees. I felt like I was paying for a one-night stay in a Mariott and getting the service of a Motel 6. | |
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D. A. from Tampa, Florida
(11/21/2006)
"Poorly organized and NOT flat!" (about: 2006)
3 previous marathons
| 2 Philadelphia Marathons
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 3 This year was my second Philly Marathon and I can say with confidence that it will be my last. Expo: A complete mess. It was in a small tent with not nearly enough room for all of the people. The bib pick-up was in the back and the lines were very long and completely unorganized. Also, they ran out of safety pins! How do you run out of safety pins the day before a marathon? They had some cute shirts and apparel, but nothing in small sizes was left. That was a bummer. I wanted to meet my pace leader and he wasn't there. That really annoyed me. Gear Check: My husband was my gear check but several of my friends used this option. I would call it a "luxury" but it was a complete, unorganized mess. The line was so long that my husband decided to drop their things off for them AFTER the start or else we would have never made it. After the race they had to sort through PILES of bags to find their own. Just a disaster. Course: I am from Florida. When you tell me flat, and do not provide an elevation map, I think it is FLAT! It was NOT flat. I still PR'd by 21 minutes so I can't really complain about my time. Oh, speaking of time, it would have been nice to have the mile markers CORRECT! I saw the 11-mile marker twice! I realize now that one was for the half, but do they not realize what that does to the mind of someone who doesn't get to stop running in two miles? Another thing that drove me crazy was that there was a half marathon, full marathon and a relay. It just seemed like there was way to much going on. This also made for a very crowded start. Oh, by the way, the race started about 10 minutes late. Thank God I found a nice squatting area in the woods or else I would still be in line for the port-o-let two days later. The course was pretty scenic and the spectators where pretty good in the city, in Manayunk and near the art museum, but it was pretty lonely everywhere else. Finish: I though the finish was the only thing that was organized. I crossed, immediately got water, took my chip off, got my medal and went on with life. The volunteers were not overly friendly, but they did a good job. I never got a "congratulations" from the lady who gave me my medal. Instead she asked me if I ran the half or the full. No more comments on that one. Post-race food: A banana, an apple and some water do not replenish me after a race. I LOVED the chicken broth but that was the extent of the food tent. I wanted a bagel. Too bad, there were none. I have run 5K's and gotten bagels. How did they miss that? | |
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J. B. from R.I. , USA
(11/21/2006)
"Organizers Took On Too Much This Year" (about: 2006)
6-10 previous marathons
| 2 Philadelphia Marathons
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 4 The 2005 Philly Marathon ran like butter - it was very well run. This year they added a half marathon and well, some of the quality went by the wayside. I got to the expo at about 4:00 on Saturday and had to wait in the longest line I've ever seen for anything at an expo - and this line was just to get into the tent! Took about 20 minutes to get in (I ran Boston and there were barely any lines at that expo - 20,000 runners). Then once inside, you could barely move or breathe - it was complete chaos. They had no saftey pins for the numbers. Had to buy some at the hotel. Gave some out. The bag check-in became non-existence and three people I know lost their bags to the void. The start was very crowded, and it started late. The third mile marker was at about mile 3.25. I have no clue about some of the others. Everything else was okay - water stations, volunteers, crowd support, and I really like the course - not too flat, not too hilly. The wind was a factor. All I saw was bananas and apples for food. Most of it was gone, and I finished about 3:20-ish. I truly hope the race director gets it together in the future, as it was such a great marathon in the past. I think the greed to bring in more runners by adding a half marathon superceded their vision to handle them, and subsequently ruined the once-great marathon. | |
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D. T. from Columbus, OH
(11/21/2006)
"A good race going bad" (about: 2006)
6-10 previous marathons
| 2 Philadelphia Marathons
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 3 The 2006 Philadelphia Marathon was a tremendous disappointment. After a great experience in 2004, I was shocked at the nearly complete disintegration of race organization. The marathon has transformed from an efficient, no-frills operation into a bloated, disorganized mess. The problems with the expo, bag check, start, and mile markers have been well-documented by others. In addition, I found the well-intentioned volunteers at the water stops and finish area to be totally unprepared for the event. The course is great, and the rolling hills don't detract from the possibility of running a very fast time. This race was, for me (and many others), a second chance after Chicago to attempt a Boston-qualifying time at a well-run, medium-sized event. Until competent organizers assume responsibility for planning, I won't return. |
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