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☰
Chicago Marathon Runner Comments
Back to Chicago Marathon Information & Reviews
Course 4.7 
Organization 4.3 
Spectators 4.9
Number of comments: 949 [displaying comments 111 to 121]
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R. C. from Dalton, GA
(10/21/2011)
"Great Town - Well Run Race - HOT weather" (about: 2011)
2 previous marathons
| 1 Chicago Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 I was looking forward to this race for a year. It was mostly flat, though a little hill at the end. The race organization was great - the expo was wonderful, spacious, and fun. the pre-race was easy, though the corrals were very tight and seemed to close a little too early. We paid for the Hospitality tent and it was money well spent. Though i didn't attend the main after race festivities, the hospitality tent was great - massages(no lines), beer, water, gatoraid, food, tables and cover from the heat. That was the biggest issue. It was in the mid 70's when i finished, way too hot for a marathon. Ant there were still plenty of folks on the course. It is dangerous to run a marathon in that heat. My only critism is that they could start the race ealier to avoid the heat. | |
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S. L. from Richmond California
(10/19/2011)
"The Chicago Marathon is my favorite of all time." (about: 2011)
11-50 previous marathons
| 3 Chicago Marathons
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This was my 20th marathon. My two sisters and three first time women marathoners also came with me & ran it. The weather was too warm for all of us, but I was pleased by the course changes and many tree lined streets and shaded areas. I loved the mile/kilometer markers and the meter markers at the end of the race and the fact that the last few hundred meters were downhill. I wish that access to the bleachers was more easy to get to from the runner area. I wanted to cheer my friends on at the end and had to walk a long way to get to the bleachers. | |
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D. R. from Ann Arbor MI
(10/19/2011)
"Great fans, great organization, great race." (about: 2011)
6-10 previous marathons
| 3 Chicago Marathons
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 If you like lots of runners and fans it's hard to imagine a better race. For an event with 35,000 participants, I think they do an amazing job. The energy you get from the all the cheering fans, volunteers and fellow runners is amazing. On a hotter day I thought the longer water / Gatorade stops were perfect and the sponges were a nice treat (Despite all the runners, I never missed a cup). It's obvious the organizers put a tremendous amount of thought and work into this event. | |
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D. g. from Cornwall, UK
(10/19/2011)
"Major !" (about: 2011)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Chicago Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 40,000 of us and we loved every minute of it. Crowds lined the streets for the whole duration and the best placard of the day goes to 'Worst Parade Ever!'. Very hot day but water and gatorade at every mile, excellent finish area and Celebration Village is the best I have ever seen. Free bus to the Expo from downtown, always a bonus. If I can afford to, would do it every year. | |
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R. T. from GA
(10/18/2011)
"A world major, and it shows." (about: 2011)
11-50 previous marathons
| 4-5 Chicago Marathons
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 My 4th time running, and it's a great race in every way. Everything the race director has control of, is nailed down and rock solid. I've done this basically on an every other year schedule and will continue to do that for the foreseeable future. Simply one of my favorite races in an amazing, world class city. Two wishes for the future. 1. Make some slight course changes from miles 14 through 18.. Stay on the south side, but make it a little more interesting. Get's a little boring and a lot hot in that section. 2. Move the race back by one week for more optimal weather. It's warmer more often than not in the current slot. I would be sure to mention any bad aspects of this race, but I have trouble finding a single one.. it's that well done. | |
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D. S. from Chicago
(10/18/2011)
"This is the Big Leagues" (about: 2011)
6-10 previous marathons
| 2 Chicago Marathons
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 If you run and you live in the Midwest (or like to travel) this is a must run marathon. The energy and city are truly fantastic. Personally, I ran a horrible marathon (my slowest) but had a great time. Run it once and you will be hooked. | |
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J. B. from Severna Park, MD
(10/17/2011)
"Great Full Marathon Race" (about: 2011)
2 previous marathons
| 1 Chicago Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 The course was flat, the weather was hotter than hoped. The amount of runners was great. PROS - Great place to visit and run. - Great weather, but too hot. - Great elite runners. CONS - Too many people for the starting areas. - Not enough Porta-Jons during the race, had to wait until after mile 6! | |
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P. W. from Jackson, MS
(10/17/2011)
"1st Marathon, World Class Experience!" (about: 2011)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Chicago Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 I knew I wanted my first to be NYC, Boston or Chicago. Do it big or don't, right? With a non-guaranteed NYC entry and a qualifying time for Boston, this was my chance. Loved the spectators and their signs, loved the course and thought the expo was good. I wasn't fond of the shirt or the location of the expo (too far away). I knew there would be a lot of runners, so I can't say the crowded nature of the corrals was an issue. That's just par for the course. Aid stations were plentiful with gatorade, water, sponges at some, bananas and gel. Temp was a factor in my time, but that's just the nature of the unpredictable weather. This is a world class marathon (literally) and I highly recommend you initiate yourself into the world of 26.2 with this race! | |
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D. S. from Wright-Patterson AFB OH
(10/16/2011)
"A Bucket List Marathon" (about: 2011)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Chicago Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 Knocked off a bucket list race in 2011. The crowds were amazing. I've never seen anything like it in a race. Perfect day to be a spectator. The Good: The crowds were electric. You fed off them as you ran. The course was well marked and the volunteers running the aid stations and working support to the entire expo/race/post race deserve special mention and heaps of praise. The aid stations were well spaced and well stocked. Never an issue with what you were getting and having sponge stations were a bonus. The expo was well run and the variety of events, charities, merchants, and info was first rate. The Bad: Chicago needs a wave start like Philly (a smaller race). The corrals were good but it still took time to find my stride. The heat caused me to change my plan from a PR push to training run...would a 30 minute earlier start help? Add the misters to both sides of the street so you don't have all the runners veering to one side (stagger the L/R placement so people who don't want to get wet don't have to). The medal and shirt were disappointing compared to most other venues, to include marathons with less than 300 participants. Kick it up a notch as those 2 items are advertising for 2012 and beyond! The Ugly: Porta-johns! The lines were 30-45 minutes. Paying for a perks tent made a big difference for me but for the majority, nature called as it got closer to the start. On the course I didn't see any restrooms until the 5th mile or so and those were not well marked. There were formations of runners hitting the walls in the tunnel in the first mile. I'm glad I ran one of the biggest marathons out there and running through the neighborhoods was great. I highly recommend this race. | |
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M. S. from Chicago, IL
(10/14/2011)
"Gets Better Every Year!" (about: 2011)
6-10 previous marathons
| 4-5 Chicago Marathons
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This was my fourth time running Chicago. Unlike my race times, it just gets better every year. The support along the course from the fans and volunteers was so inspiring and genuinely enthusiastic. They really motivated me to finish after the heat was getting me down. I would agree that the race shirt was lame, but I have noticed the big races (NY, Berlin, Chicago) have so-so shirts. I think they want you to buy the better looking shirts at the expo. But I have enough race shirts, so that that isn't such an issue. I will do this race again, but next year I will be volunteering & cheering for the runners! |
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