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☰
Kansas City Marathon Runner Comments
Back to Kansas City Marathon Information & Reviews
Course 4.2 
Organization 4.1 
Spectators 3.7
Number of comments: 207 [displaying comments 11 to 21]
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B. H. from Kansas City, Missouri
(10/24/2016)
 "Beautiful course with downhill finish" (about: 2016)
2 previous marathons
| 1 Kansas City Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 I loved this marathon! For me, it was just the right size, festive in some sections, peaceful in a few. The crowd was fun and supportive. The marathon runs from downtown to Liberty Memorial, Westport, the Plaza, the Nelson-Atkins, Loose Park, Ward Parkway, Waldo, Brookside, Paseo, and back to downtown. I'm from Kansas City, but was still struck by the beautiful path we were taking through the city. Overall, you are climbing gradually the first half (to 75th Street), and then head downhill for the second half. There are also some rolling hills throughout the course. The biggest climb is Sunset Drive, but that's also one of the prettiest streets on the course. I appreciated the downhill finish, which lasts for several miles. I hope to run this many more times! | |
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R. R. from Texas
(10/18/2016)
 "Beautiful urban course showcases the city well" (about: 2016)
50+ previous marathons
| 1 Kansas City Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 Moderately hilly course that runs through the pretty parts of the city that keeps your interest. Only moderate amount of spectators but those that came out were very vocal. Well aided run with gatorade and gu stations every 1-2 miles. Nice hooded race shirt. Good food and drink at the finish with beer, hamburgers, chick a filet, chocolate milk and more. Really enjoyed this race. The medal went over the line in size and gaugyness. Prefer smaller and interesting local designs. Parking was extremely convenient for the race start and free. Plenty of porta potties at the start and on the course Would do it again. | |
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a. e. from united states
(10/16/2016)
"gorgeous but challenging course" (about: 2016)
50+ previous marathons
| 1 Kansas City Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 I registered last minute because another race was cancelled. I stayed at the Sheraton which was very nice (but got bed bugs on my neck) so beware. Westin was right there too at the start/finish. Expo was organized but small. Shirt is a thin hoodie which was different. Course was hilly so challenging for me but was a tour of the city. They ran you thru the most gorgeous parts of town, homes were incredible, parks all green. Aid stations were adequate with great volunteers...thank you. Spectators were intermittent, but where they were located was full of enthusiasm. I thought it was very organized. Hotels at the start/finish were perfect. I really enjoyed this | |
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T. C. from Medford, MA
(10/22/2015)
"Beautiful Course, Well Organized, Affordable" (about: 2015)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Kansas City Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 This marathon is well organized and has a beautiful course. I did not know much about Kansas City before I arrived and I did not know what to expect. Someone told me Kansas City is big into fountains and you will see plenty throughout the course. Also look for the giant shuttlecocks at about six miles. There are some hills on the course but nothing a New Englander could complain about. The expo was fun but not overwhelming. If you need cheering spectators on the entire course, you might want to find another race but if you need some gentle motivation like I did, the pacers were awesome. | |
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D. Z. from G'bury, CT
(10/19/2015)
"Scenic course, excellent pacers" (about: 2015)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Kansas City Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 The course is hilly. It also lets you experience many of KCMOs varied neighborhood and scenery. The pace groups that my family experienced worked perfectly for us. They lay out their plan on the website; the pacers we used understood it; and they made it work for their runners. | |
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B. D. from Naperville, IL
(5/4/2015)
"Beautiful Course" (about: 2012)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 Kansas City Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 I really enjoyed this marathon. This is a great way to see some of the most beautiful parts of the city. The course is very hilly so I would recommend incorporating hills into your training if you sign up for this race. The medal is awesome. Overall, this is a very nice race. | |
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M. U. from Ft. Leavenworth, KS
(2/3/2015)
"Beautiful well organized fall marathon" (about: 2014)
4-5 previous marathons
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 This was my 4th marathon and my goal was to qualify for Boston 2016. I did it, finished in 3:37. So freaking excited about that!!!! The weather was fantastic, very well organized expo, beautiful medal, and awesome tech shirt. The food after was delicious with BBQ sandwiches and chocolate milk. Even Chick Fil A was walking around giving out chicken sandwiches. I think this was an added bonus. The course was challenging at times. Train on lots of hills and you will be fine. I loved that the Crown Center was open early morning hours before the race with some shops open inside and the bathrooms too. Awesome! For the first time I ran with a pace group. This grop was from Smart Pacing and they are phenomenal. I high recommend doing this. Since this was my first time running this particular marathon and I didn't know the course they knew exactly how to pace the group. My family was able to cheer me on in several locations which really was an energy boost. The spectator support was fantastic. Well done Kansas City!! I look forward to coming back in 2015!! | |
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J. L. from Kansas City, MO
(10/22/2014)
"Great Hometown Marathon" (about: 2014)
3 previous marathons
| 1 Kansas City Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 Everyone's comments have been pretty much spot on, and were helpful in training for this marathon. It was my 3rd marathon, 1st one outside of florida, though I am from KC, MO. This year (2014) due to construction they changed the course for the first four miles considerably instead of going by union station the course now goes up hospital hill, I believe that made it slightly more challenging. Other significant hills are mile 11 (Sunset Dr off Ward Pkwy) and Mile 21-23, which comes at a REALLY BAD time during the marathon. Loved the scenery, great way to see the city! I disagree with previous comments in that I thought the marathon was very well organized. I ran the half marathon in 2013 and both times Crown Center was open as was the bagel shop inside it, loved the REAL BATHROOMS! (even if they had long lines it wasn't too bad). We ended up starting towards the back of the crowd, near the 14 min mile group, and I averaged a little under 12 min miles, very little congestion, but that might be that I am used to Disney races which have TONS of congestion. Spectator support was very good until about Mile 21 and then it dried up makes for a challenging last 3-4 miles especially since a bit of it is uphill. Again enjoyed both the marathon this year and 1/2 last year, will be back next year! | |
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D. R. from Cincinnati, OH
(10/22/2014)
"Beautiful course and great organization & support" (about: 2014)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Kansas City Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 I recommend this marathon: Pros: 1) Nice medal 2) Beautiful course 3) Organized expo and great support on course 4) Delicious barbecue sandwich and chocolate milk at the finish 5) Convenient location near hotels to expo and race start/finish 6) Beautiful time of year - fall colors in full swing 7) Very friendly city Tips: 1) Train for hills - the course is beautiful but relatively hilly 2) At the finish, need to ask where the food is, but very convenient once directed 3) Saturday race so late checkout is unlikely, but Westin allowed use of their gym and showers after the race and allowed late pickup of car from valet parking. | |
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M.V. Hake from Mission, KS
(1/13/2013)
"Excellent marathon highlighting Kansas City" (about: 2010)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 Kansas City Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 The KC Marathon is an excellent race that shows off the best, most scenic and historic districts and neighborhoods of Kansas City. Both packet pickup and the Start/Finish line are in Crown Center, which is a great place to accomodate both; just be sure to arrive with a good 20-30 minutes to spare as the port-a-john lines can be long (but move fast) and the starting corral starts filling up with 15 or so minutes to go. The course has some challenging hills; the first mile warms your legs up with a gradual 100 foot climb before it goes back down that same 100 the next mile. One of the two big, long climbs is just before the 2.5 mile mark, just past historic Union Station, where you'll climb 140 ft. to Liberty Memorial, then climb another 60 ft. a quarter mile later. There are also notable ascents around mile 11 and mile 21, but once you've reached the peak around mile 23, the final 5K is all downhill by about 150 ft. to the finish line. As a whole this is a hilly marathon by most standards, but a PR or something close can be earned here with smart pacing and patience. As menacing as a few of the climbs can be, the downhills can be equally as generous, and though there are very few flat parts (if any), valuable seconds and minutes can be made up on the rolling downhills if you are prepared and adept at doing so. Course support is more than ample, water and Gatorade at all stations with GU and fruit at some of the final stations in the last 10 miles. The beautiful parkways and boulevards throughout the route are one of the best parts of the course, and KC residents do a good job of coming out to support and enthusiastically cheer on the runners. The finish line festival is a good time, lots of action and excitement around Crown Center and a good spread of food and KC's own Boulevard beer to celebrate your accomplishment with. The finish medal is one worth showing off with pride; full color and tastefully big but not oversized. The finishers tech shirt is also very nice, with different sizing/styles for men and women. All things considered this is an outstanding race that makes me proud to call this area home; it has fast grown into one of the best marathons in the Midwest. For KC-area runners like myself it is a staple of the season schedule, for out-of-towners I would strongly recommend making the trip to come run KC, you will not be disappointed! |
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