Truthfully, I'm biased- this is my local marathon and I love it. I have run all 3 years and Race Director Bob Werts and his crew put on a great race. I will run this one for as many years as I can.

Specifics:
1. Course: Tough, but hey, it's a marathon and should be. It's closed to traffic which is great. It is overall downhill but watch out: there are some uphills that can surprise you.
2. Organization: Great volunteers, parking right at the finish and buses to start. Heated school with indoor bathroms plus porta-potties! One of the school volunteers recognized me and my running buddy from the past 2 years. How's that for cool!
3. Spectators: This is a small, rural marathon. Crowds are sparse but enthusiastic. Plenty of unoffical water stops (I look forward to the oranges at mile 9) and the kids handing out warm (by the time I get there )water on Wallace Street. Our old license plates said it best - you have a friend in Pennsylvania. SO come see us and run a nice race; we'll be looking forward to it!

This race has a lot to say for it, but you have to know what you are getting into. Firstly, it is a smaller event so you are not going to get all the flash of someplace like Chicago. For the same reason, my hotel bill for three nights here was less than one night in Chicago. The expo was very small with only one vendor and a few other tables. The vendor only had gels, socks and a few other odds and ends for sale but his store was just down the street if you wanted to have a look around. The pasta supper was a mistake; I wish I had eaten at a restaurant instead. There was one bowl of rabbit food and as much spaghetti as you wanted but lacking enough sauce and any condiments; I had to force-feed myself to eat enough for the run.

Now, apart from that, the organization of the event was great. The bus left in the morning with plenty of time. A gymnasium was available at the start area for our use. A truck was parked a few feet from the start line to take our bags back to the finish area. The water stops were plentiful with volunteers who left you feeling that your being there was the greatest thing ever. Every water stop also had a person from a local hobby radio club and so the communication between everyone was good. An example was when my girlfriend walked past the last water stop on her way to the finish area and the volunteers were able to tell her that the leaders would be coming by in about 10 minutes.

The course itself is a net downhill and like their web site says, there are hills. While the elevation chart looks honest, you need to see it in a larger scale to appreciate all the uphill areas as well as the down. My Garmin tells me that the total ascent for the course was 1117 metres and total descent was 1535 metres. (Keep in mind that GPS units don't measure elevation as well as you would like). If you train for hillwork and are smart about how you run the race, I think it would be a fast course.

Regarding the hills, I think there was this half mile stretch that was actually flat; the rest of it seemed to be either up or down or a transition between the two. I had a difficult time judging my pace because of the constant up/down hills. I imagine the locals who train in this area know what they are doing. Per my Garmin again it appears that one of the early mile markers was a bit off. The entire course was on roadways that were almost entirely closed off to traffic except for the state troopers. Only the main street in town had cars and had one lane blocked off for the runners. As others have mentioned, areas that spectators can get to were few, but people did get to them and showed great enthusiasm for all the runners. Likewise, when we got into town people were sitting out on their front lawns and cheering us as we ran down their streets. At mile 26 you turn onto the high school track and finish the race in front of a grandstand. People waiting for you can sit and relax and watch as you come in. The people at the finish line were the best organized that I have seen in the four races I have been in to date. They took very good care of you with one person escorting you though to get a mylar blanket (not needed on this day as it was sunny and warm enough by that time), a bottle of water, getting rid of your chip and getting your medal. Likewise, the infield of the track was well set up with food and water including sub sandwiches and pasta salad which was a first for me.

Overall I would recommend this race. Do more hill training than I did. Don't expect a big expo. Do expect one of the most rural scenic races that you will ever see with lots of trees and winding roads. Do expect good organization, great volunteers and spectators, and a town that is proud to have a marathon that runs down their main street.

Overall, I found the race organizers and volunteers to be first-class. The course is fast, hilly and hard. Most of the quad-pounding downhill running occurs in miles 8-11. The remainder of this course is rolling terrain with beautiful scenery and minimal crowd support. This is a PR/BQ type of course, and I believe this race will grow as more and more people hear about it.

My primary recommendation would be to push this marathon back another 2 weeks until mid-May to allow runners to use the Allentown Half Marathon as a tune-up race. This also avoids the conflict with the Broad Street Run in Philly only 2 hours away. Lastly, this will provide some additional recovery time for the runners who ran Boston in late April wishing to squeeze in another spring marathon.

Minor comments:
The course accuracy was incredible!
My Garmin had the course distance to within 1/100 of a mile through mile 17, which is when I lost reception.
However, I recommend double checking the distance between mile markers 2 and 3, which I had as .9 miles.

I also recommend putting large balloons at the mile marks on the course, because its very easy to miss the spray-painted numbers on the asphalt.

I give it 4 stars because my quads are mad at the rolling hills and I'm afraid if I give it 5 stars my quads will make me pay extra for it. I'm thankful that someone chalked "last hill" at the last hill; that was helpful and encouraging. The other reviews are right: this is not a downhill race. It can be fast, but only if run right. The downs are frequent and fast, and the ups are also frequent but long.

The organization was fantastic and I was amazed at the level of road closure that was done. This was a long section of traveled road completely shut down. The spectators were sparse, given the nature of the course (and the road being shut down), but when they were there, they made sure you knew it. A group of 6 sounded like 30. Ample aid and nice scenery. The food afterwards was plentiful - big subs were a nice touch - and the people very helpful and physically supportive.

Two improvements that could be made: adding a note to the start information that was emailed out saying that the bag check at the start will be available (we weren't sure, so didn't plan for it), and the race shirt is a long-sleeve cotton with a very heavy logo on the front (nice looking, but a nipple chafer if I've ever seen one). The shirts the staff were wearing would be preferable - short-sleeve, so I can at least wear it for something other than running (what's with all the long-sleeve shirts these days?).

This is definitely a PR course. It was my 3rd marathon in less than 3 weeks (Boston and Pinickey Trail) and I actually PR'd, as did one of my friends, whose husband promised her a BMW if she PR'd. All I got was no sympathy from my wife for being so sore! Be warned, though: there are hills out there even though the elevation chart shows otherwise.

PROS
1. The organizers and volunteers were first-class. I was talking to someone who was selling the shirts and he asked what I thought and I mentioned that the only bad thing I saw was that there was no Gatorade at the finish. About 10 minutes later I saw the water people filling up the water bottles with Gatorade.
2. The course is FAST, though there are hills in there.
3. Having a school gym to warm up in and keep warm in can NEVER be a bad thing.
4. Volunteers were friendly and enthusiastic.
5. If you're trying to bounce back from Boston and qualify while you still have the training miles in you, then this is a MUST.
6. Boston was unbelievable with the crowds, but this can work against you. When you need to dig in and concentrate, it's a lot easier to do when there is little to distract you. The smaller marathons are a lot easier to get back in the rhythm.

CONS
1. The one mile marker was off (4 I believe).
2. There was a 360-degree turn at around 4-5 miles. This is NEVER a good thing.
3. The last 2 miles had way too many quick turns.

Overall this is a quality marathon, and I highly recommend it!

I agree with the comments from 2007 regarding the route and elevation chart. Most of the downhill is between 7 and 10 and is so steep that my quads were gone early in the race. The rest is composed of rolling hills, with a few tough ones late in the race. This isn't a PR or negative split course, unless you train in the hills.

Pros:
~Very well organized, and volunteers were very friendly.
~Great that 100% of proceeds go to Red Cross.
~Having a school with a gym and restrooms was very nice before the race.
~Free pasta party the night before.
~Scenic course that was closed for traffic.
~Fans were sparse... but vocal.

Cons:
~Worst finisher "medal" I've ever received... I think it is a hard plastic.
~8 a.m. start? Too late.
~Need someone calling splits and/or time at mile markers.
~Provide a better elevation chart. You really need to drive the course if you're a first-timer.

We just returned home from running our first Run for the Red Marathon. It was a great experience. This was our seventh marathon, and it rates as one of our top. If you're looking for a marathon that is just for the sheer pleasure of running, this one's for you. There are no "big race" amenities. We barely heard the gun fire for the start of the race, and there were only a few spectators to see us off. There were very few spectators on the course, and no music or cheering. Very different from our experience last year in Nashville. But the course is beautiful, with no "ugly" areas, and for us it was a fairly easy course. There are lots of hills, but they were fun and not nearly as much as what we train on. We PR'd by five minutes. We highly recommend it, but don't look for a fancy expo, and lots of cheering. Run it because you love to run! Thanks to all the great people who volunteered. Everyone was very nice, especially the state troopers who did a fantastic job!

The expo was advertised as having speakers, and the pasta party was described as having lots of pasta, bread and baked goods. The expo had 4 tables; nice people but no speakers, per se, and the pasta party had watery, flavorless spaghetti and NO bread or dessert. The hotel had turned off their heat for the year (in the Pocono Mountains!!!) and was extremely small. But the marathon was pretty well organized, and the volunteers were the most encouraging and fabulous cheerleaders you could encounter. There were a lot of hills, even though it was advertised as downhill. The scenery was the most beautiful, most breathtaking I have encountered. I plan to run it again, but skip the pasta dinner.

I ran this last year (2007) after having blown up at the Boston Marathon 3 weeks earlier. I could not have been happier with it. I knew the course was fast, but was very impressed with the organization. The only misstep I saw the whole day was a single mile marker out of place. That was it.

Most of the course was scenic, the volunteers were good, and they blocked off the entire road for us the entire way. I thoroughly enjoyed my experience

I've run 3 marathons now, but this was my first. I like to refer to it as "Steamtown Jr."

Course: A lot of downhill running to start and some hill action on the back stretch. A scenic, enjoyable, fast run.

Organization: Well organized. No complaints.

Local support: Not a great deal, but you go through fairly small towns or sparsely populated areas.

Personal support factor: Since my wife attends my marathon runs, I've learned to try to find courses that are good for the spectator. This one is not. Being a point-to-point race, your cheering section pretty much has to wait for you at finish line.

Overall experience: This is a fairly small marathon and it did get desolate and lonely and times. However, it's worth running since it is organized well and for the scenery.