Harrisburg is a wonderful small marathon. This year a friend and I just ran it with no watches at all. What a blast just to run with the only goal being to finish. We talked for 26 miles. The course is varied and the city is wonderful. I ran this race as a youth in '80 and '81 and gave up running but when I started again a few years ago this was on the top of my list. Still has that same feeling.

Let me just say that the Harrisburg Area Road Runners Club should be extremely proud. This year's version of the race was wonderful.

The course is scenic and relatively flat, and the support on the course (volunteers, police, fire police, etc.) is terrific. There are a few areas where cars were driving along side of runners without any barriers, but the drivers were respectful and courteous to the runners so this wasn't a problem. The weather cooperated fabulously, and with the Fall foliage still ablaze, I found myself running among a beautiful mixture of urban, suburban, and natural areas.

The organization at this marathon is top-notch. The race started right on time (actually about a minute or so early, which is fantastic), and the course is well-marked and staffed with plenty of people to assist you and point you in the right direction.

The only negative thing that I can say about the race (and this is no reflection at all on the organizers) is that spectators were few and far between in many areas. Some of the miles got pretty lonely, although I had my iPod so I was golden. I will say that the folks that did turn out were great and very encouraging, and I rated the spectators at three stars as opposed to two solely due to the enthusiasm of those who were nice enough to support us.

The HARRC has been putting this race together for 33 years, and as the city of Harrisburg is looking to revitalize itself, they should be using the marathon as a beacon to rally around. It is so well put together, and the city really needs to make much more of an effort to get behind the race, and use it as good PR for the city.

Once again marvelous job by all involved. By the way, I crushed my PR by over 15 minutes. Thank you Harrisburg!

If you're looking for a solid race in mid-November, I highly recommend this one.

PROS:
-Fast course with enough short, rolling hills to keep it interesting. Definitely a PR/BQ course - I pr'd by almost 10 minutes (3:32).
-Course is very accessible to spectators. The race also provided a detailed narrative on the best places to watch from.
-Varied running locations. Running along the river and across the bridges was excellent. The two running trails (at miles 4 and 17) provided a nice break.
-The hills in the second trail were not bad - steeper than I thought they would be but, extremely short in duration (and always followed by a downhill or flat section).
-The replenisher they supplied was excellent - I drank it from mile 10 on. I also consumed 3 of the Gu's they provided from miles 12 or so, on. My energy level has never been better.
-Weather was ideal, 48 at the start, 58 at the finish, very light wind, no humidity. Best I've had in 21 marathons.
-Baggage check was simple and efficient
-Small, yet enthusiastic crowds mainly around the bridges, the island and the relay exchanges.
-Inexpensive race - $45. Coolmax Shirt and medal were decent.
-Host hotel was very convenient to the start, plus allowed for a 3pm checkout (race started at 8am).
-Very well organized - course marked off very well with clearly visible mile markers. No chance to get lost.

CONS:
-Expo was small, but, this is common at small marathons.
-Out-and-back portion at mile 16. This was a 1/4 mile out, a turn-around at a cone and a 1/4 mile back. It was good in that you could see other runners; but, I would think they'd be able to add 1/2 mile elsewhere on the course (maybe extending the run along the river??).
-Running through the industrial park - although it was extremely flat. Overall it wasn't a big deal, keep this get rid of the 1/2 mile out and back.
-Quite a few sharp turns - again not a huge deal.
-No chip timing. This race is getting big enough where chip timing should be utilized.

Overall, it's an top tier course as far as speed and beauty. If you have a mid-November opening in your marathon calendar don't think twice about entering this one - definitely do it!

I loved this race! It was my first marathon. The course was set up very nicely and the volunteers are terrific! Very friendly and helpful. Spectators were very encouraging and now I am reminded how much fun a race can be!!!

This race had 700 runners.... Just a nice enough size that you're not elbow-to-elbow. Course is very varied.... Trails, roads, rivers, historic buildings. I'm surprised Governor Rendell wasn't out there making the most of a photo-op. Though, he isn't exactly an example of fitness, what with a local fattening messy burger on a soft pretzel named in his honor. My only complaint was the starting gun, or the lack of it. I was 3 rows from the starting line and heard nobody say 'runners... go!', if you can believe that.

Also, no electrolytes until mile 7 or 8.... They really should have been at every water stop. The infamous hills at mile 18/19 through Wildwood Park were actually a good change of pace, and a good time to use some different leg muscles. There was also an official giving inaccurate times at mile 10 and 20 (way too fast!!!), but this will teach me to start wearing a watch again.

To the good stuff: the Cytomax drink instead of Gatorade (or even worse, Allsport) was a superb added bonus. This drink is superior to anything I've ever used. Thank you. All in all, a spectacularly organized small race which, again, makes me wonder why the idiots in Pittsburgh - my hometown - can't get their heads together and bring back their marathon. I highly recommend running Harrisburg.

My first 3 marathons have been big (20,000+) so I was wary of a smaller marathon such as this one. The expo was small, but the people there were great, and very helpful. The pasta dinner was a lot of fun. The course was great, it starts at the steps of the capital building, runs through wooded, cinder trails over a RR track, along and over the Susquehanna for many miles, through a nature preserve and ends over a footbridge in a park. In one word, gorgeous.

For much of the course it is quiet with few spectators, but the ones that are out there were fantastic and we as runners can't thank them enough for their support.

There was plenty of water along the course, ALTHOUGH, during the last few miles, especially miles 21-25 there could have been another water stop - I was dying! All of the volunteers who really make this marathon happen were wonderful.

This marathon does have its share of hills, especially the wild rolling ones in the Wildwood preserve, but all in all I was very, very happy with the course, the spectators and the organizers for putting this marathon together. They have truly made me appreciate smaller marathons and it will be hard to go back to a big one after this. It didn't hurt that I beat my PR by 14 minutes, but I owe that to a woman who volunteered to be a pacer for 4 hours. Having pacers is a great idea and something maybe the race could look into in the future, as well as chip timing, but as it is, I would highly recommend this marathon to anyone who is tired of being one of 30,000, having to push through a crowd and unable to find their own pace and appreciates beautiful scenery and really nice people.

This was my first marathon -- convenient, only 90 miles from home. 2005 had good weather: start in low-40s, finish in mid-50s, and wind along river did not develop as threatened. I prefer overcast to sun, but it was mostly sunny, a beautiful day.

There were something like 500 runners and 120 relay runners preregistered -- a relatively small race, but perhaps the largest ever here. One advantage of this size is that there's no long delay in reaching the starting line after the gun. And there are still enough runners so that you always have others in sight, usually many.

The organization was terrific. The HARRC did a fantastic job, from registration to post-race. Water stations were numerous and well-staffed. Everyone was friendly and helpful. The music and cheers at mile 10/22 provided a nice lift.

The course is nothing, if not varied. Starts downtown, circles the state capitol building, heads south for an out-and-back (details of routes differ, some on greenbelt paths), then west out to the island and back, north for an out-and-back (along the river, then through residential, industrial, HCC, and Wildwood Park areas), ending on the island. The course is mostly flat, with some hills in Wildwood Park. The many turns might slow the fastest runners a little, but it might be a good course for the rest of us to get PRs. I especially enjoyed the very pretty bits along the river and in the parks.

The spectators seemed to be associated mainly with the race (HARRC volunteers) or friends/family of runners. They were scattered along the course, with concentrations in the central downtown/island area. If you need large, cheering throngs to run well, this isn't the race for you. The spectators who were there were great.

Two thumbs up on this one. An excellent first-race experience.

This is a nice, small November marathon. I live in the Harrisburg area, so it's a logical choice for me. I've run it two times - 2000 and 2002. Everything went well in 2000. In 2002 it was warmer than normal and the second water stop was dry(?) when I got there (middle of the pack). I never caught up on my hydration and I was dizzy and walking for most of the final 8 miles. A good race to have a family member or other support person at a couple of spots along the course, as it can get a bit lonely. Overall, the organizers of this race should be commended for keeping it going for so many years.

The course was great and the few spectators that showed up were great.

I have no complaints whatsoever.

Make sure you do sufficient hill training for this race. The course is flat, but if you are not ready for the hills, the section from 17-19 will humble you.

This was my first marathon, and the experience was fantastic! The course is scenic and, although relatively flat, is deceptively challenging (especially the path around Wild Wood Lake). This was one of the best organized races I've seen. My family appreciated the detailed directions provided for spectators to watch the race at various points. The course was well marked, safe, and staffed with plenty of volunteers handing out drinks and gel along the way. The spectators were a little sparse at times, but were very enthusiastic. My favorite part of the course was the street in front of the high school where inspirational messages to the runners were written on the road in colored chalk. The rush of crossing the foot bridge onto City Island and heading into the finish line with all the spectators cheering was awesome! Don't change anything about this race. You really have a gem here!