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Miami Marathon Runner Comments

Back to Miami Marathon Information & Reviews

Course Rating Course 4.5 
 
Oranization Rating Organization 4.2 
 
Spectator Rating Spectators 3.5 
 
 
Number of comments: 312 [displaying comments 61 to 71]
More Comments: [ < 1 .. 5 6 7 8 9 .. 32 > ]

 

S. S. from USA (2/2/2011)
"Fabulous course; great race" (about: 2011)

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


I absolutely LOVED this course. It was THE most beautiful course I have ever seen, and has a great time. Flat, fast course, and an awesome excuse to go for a short vacation in the middle of winter.
 

M. A. from Michigan (2/1/2011)
"Well organized race, good course, fun time!" (about: 2011)

11-50 previous marathons | 1 Miami Marathon
COURSE: 5  ORGANIZATION: 5  FANS: 4


I wanted to run Miami because I love visiting there and I thought it would be a great excuse. Wow, I was really impressed.

The expo was one of the best I have ever attended. This includes Houston, Boston and Chicago. The corrals were clearly marked but there wasn't anyone to check your bib, so there was the usual problem of walkers in the wrong corral. This was an annoyance but it worked itself out after a short time.

The course was great. The race starts at 6:15 a.m. and it is still somewhat dark as you run across the causeway past the cruise ships. Great view to rev you up for the race. In South Beach there were cockatiels in the trees squawking at the runners. The number of spectators varied along the course but it was never boring because the course was interesting enough in itself. Medals were absolutely awesome! The shirts were a nice fit and made of good fabric. The finish line goodies were numerous. There were so many choices of food and drink, including beer. It was like an all-you-can-eat buffet.

This race totally surpassed my expectations. I BQ'd, which was the icing on the cake.
 

M. R. from Brooklyn, NY (2/1/2011)
"Beautiful day and attractive course" (about: 2011)

6-10 previous marathons | 2 Miami Marathons
COURSE: 4  ORGANIZATION: 5  FANS: 3


This was the second time I ran Miami, and I enjoyed the occasion even more than the first. It was a beautiful day and the course was attractive, if not terribly interesting - but it was flat and great for personal bests. Volunteers were excellent, but spectators are sparse for the second half of the race. Nonetheless, 65-degree sunshine after mountains of snow and cold made this a great tonic for the winter blues.
 

d. c. from New York (2/1/2011)
"Most previous comments don't apply to the second h" (about: 2011)

11-50 previous marathons | 4-5 Miami Marathons
COURSE: 3  ORGANIZATION: 4  FANS: 2


All the positive comments stated here are for the half marathon. After that 13th mile, as the half marathoners turn left and you turn right, you ask yourself, "Am I running solo?" The answer is YES. There is minimal fan support after that. You run through beautiful neighborhoods before reaching Coral Gables; however, it feels as if you are trespassing through people's backyards. I do this run every year and enjoy the City of Miami, but the organizers need to figure out how to bring more spectators after that 13th mile when we marathoners actually need them most.
 

V. C. from bronx -queens, ny (1/31/2011)
"Welcome to Miami! HEAT!!" (about: 2011)

2 previous marathons | 1 Miami Marathon
COURSE: 4  ORGANIZATION: 4  FANS: 3


So it's 5:30 am, 54 degrees and the music in the beginning of the race really pumps you up. They played that "Welcome to Miami" song by Will Smith a couple of times. Course was mostly flat and definitely scenic but lacks a lot of fan support except at mile 11 where there's a cheerleading squad and high school band and tons of posters that read, "You knew this wasn't gonna be easy but here you are." I loved that.

So my brother warned me about reaching mile 13, where we separate "halfers" from full participants. That's when I was disappointed. There were a lot less participants running the FULL. I mean it must have been 15,000 doing the half and maybe 5,000 doing the full, so if you're a slow runner like me you're on your own. However all the water stations were still up. The Gatorade was great and not watered down like in other races, and there was still a person cheering you on at the end! That made a difference. Time limit was 6 hours. I finished a 6:30, and having someone hand me a medal and not mail it to me made a difference.

I'll be back again, but the sun in your eyes and the heat would make anyone think twice, and there's little fan support on the back half. Even the Miami Herald wrote an article this morning about having more high schools and local bands out there next year. Beautiful scenery too and it's a perfect excuse to go to Miami. So great course, great scenery, and good expo and goodie bag. (The bag had Gatorade, a fruit snack pack and the t-shirt - the rest flyers.) Lots of vendors, and if you wanted to do that cruise dinner thing, another 85 bucks. In any case, only my 2nd marathon, so what do I know?? See you out there.
 

J. C. from New York City, NY (1/31/2011)
"Flat and fast, but room for improvement" (about: 2011)

6-10 previous marathons | 1 Miami Marathon
COURSE: 4  ORGANIZATION: 2  FANS: 2


Let me start off by saying that I broke my old PR by 5 minutes on this course. It was fast, flat and fun. That being said, there is definitely room for some improvement. For starters, the organizers kind of defeated the corral system by opening them all up more or less at once and letting us all (full and 1/2) start together. This led to a substantial amount of congestion for the first couple miles, especially since it was a (relatively) narrow course. A lot of energy was burned trying to get through the crowd, many of whom were walking/barely jogging at mile 2 (I'm a 3:15 marathoner). I don't understand how they organized the corrals at all. Then again at around mile 11, the crowd crowded the street so much (no barriers) that we had to run almost single file. I have to wonder, if these things were avoided, would I have run the 2:37 seconds faster I needed to BQ? Really upsetting and frustrating to be that close.

And of the 21,000 runners, only about 3,500 ran the full - we should get separate starts. Also, there were several bridges with metal grates all across them, and as a VFF runner, I was not prepared for that. I know I'm very much in the minority there, and I did choose my own footwear, but a heads up would have been nice. I did enjoy it overall, and hope they reconsider the corrals and starts for future runners. This could be a great BQ for people: perfect temp., flat course, and where there were crowds (here and there) they were supportive. Great volunteers and aid stations as well.
 

J. S. from Detroit, MI (1/30/2011)
"Delays, and only a few spectators." (about: 2011)

6-10 previous marathons | 1 Miami Marathon
COURSE: 4  ORGANIZATION: 4  FANS: 1


I ran the half. There were more spectators in Detroit, and the race was delayed by 10 minutes. Otherwise, scenic, comfortable and enjoyable course.
 

M. L. from Palm Beach Gardens, FL (1/30/2011)
"This race is a must-do!!" (about: 2011)

6-10 previous marathons | 3 Miami Marathons
COURSE: 4  ORGANIZATION: 5  FANS: 5


The Miami ING marathon is a GREAT race. I've run several halfs and 3 fulls, and year after year this is my favorite. Running in 60-degree weather in late January is a must-do - especially for northerners - and the scenic views are amazing, even for a local like me!!! The traffic is a little crazy and the crowds are big, but that's half the fun! Great support, awesome volunteers and fast, flat course! I can't wait to do it again next year!!
 

T. S. from Orlando, Florida - United States (1/26/2011)
"Great, Organized Marathon in a Beautiful Location" (about: 2010)

2 previous marathons | 1 Miami Marathon
COURSE: 5  ORGANIZATION: 5  FANS: 5


I ran the Miami Marathon in 2010 and absolutely loved it. I had heard from others that the course runs through some pretty shaddy areas of Miami but I did not find that to be true at all. It was a beautiful course that started along MacArthur Causeway and led runners down South Beach, downtown Miami and further south to Coconut Grove before turning back to finish in downtown Miami. The only negative aspect is that half-marathoners and full-marathoners start at the same time and run the first half together. This caused me to run a faster pace than I wanted to. Better to have separate start times.
 

John Waddington from Southern California (11/24/2010)
"Great Destination Marathon" (about: 2009)

11-50 previous marathons | 2 Miami Marathons
COURSE: 4  ORGANIZATION: 5  FANS: 3


I ran this marathon in 2008 and 2009 - and I had the time of my life. Of the 15 marathons I've run, this ranks up near the top. Miami in January; what else needs to be said? How about this: a CRUISE! That's right, the perfect reward for your marathon effort is a Caribbean cruise immediately after you finish your marathon. The cruise ship terminals are about a half-mile from the finish area. Have yourself a nice lunch at Bubba Gump's and mosey on over to your ship with plenty of time to spare. You will not regret it and you won't be the only runners to do it. Pamper, baby!
 

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