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May 19, 2024

Pocono Mountain Run For The Red Marathon Runner Comments

Back to Pocono Mountain Run For The Red Marathon Information & Reviews

Course 4.2

Organization 4.4

Spectators 3.5

Number of comments: 195 [displaying comments 151 to 161]

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T. T. from Pennsylvania (5/11/2007) "Fast, downhill course with challenging inclines" (about: 2007) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Pocono Mountain Run For The Red Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 Well-organized, well-supported, small marathon - and the ENTIRE race entry fee went to charity. Very fast declines with some challenging hills - especially the one in the 23rd mile. I'll be back next year.
Eliot W. Collins from Raritan Borough, NJ (5/10/2007) "Wonderful Race in the Pocono Mountains" (about: 2007) 50+ previous marathons \| 2 Pocono Mountain Run For The Red Marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 I might as well pretty much repeat what I said about last year's race. This is a great race, especially if you enjoy running in solitude on rolling country roads. For most of the race I could see no one either ahead of me or behind me. The best part, was that the majority of the roads were entirely free of traffic, except for an occasional policeman on a motorcycle. The local residents, instead of complaining about being inconvenienced, continually cheered me along. The volunteers were outstanding, and remained remarkably upbeat, even after waiting for the last finishers. My only negative comment was that all of the busses to the start had left by 6:30 a.m. (and the race did not begin until 8:00 a.m.). I recommend this race, and I will return in 2008.
M. M. from South eastern PA (5/10/2007) "Great race both years" (about: 2007) 6-10 previous marathons \| 2 Pocono Mountain Run For The Red Marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 I have run this race both in its inaugural year and this year, its second year. I love small races and this fits the bill. This year there were just a little over 400 runners. The course is very nice and scenic with a lot of down hill as well as a bunch of uphill. The aid stations are frequent and well stocked and very friendly, most had port-a-potties as well. Since the race is so small, the aid stations are never crowded and everyone is eager to help. The Buses from the finish to the start on race morning went very smoothly and the start at the school was nice. Lots of bathrooms for everyone before the race began. The spectators are very nice and encouraging. many of them had the local paper and read our names off of it to cheer us on. Good people.
D. C. from NY (5/10/2007) "A wonderful marathon" (about: 2007) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Pocono Mountain Run For The Red Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This race was great. The organization was terrific, the locals cheered, the volunteers were phenomenal, and the course was scenic. The roads were closed for most of the course, and cars and trucks were strategically placed so that it would have been difficult to go off course, particularly in the later stages when the brain gets a bit addled and any decisionmaking (do I go right or left here?) is suspect. Water and Gatorade at all stops, well-trained and enthusiastic volunteers, and a school to wait in (including ample bathrooms!) before the start only added to the overall class feel of this small but extremely well-run event. My only quibbles, and they are small and I hope easily fixed, are to improve the information available on the website (links to local hotels and a better course map, for example), and better food at the finish would be nice. Otherwise, this is a marathon that deserves serious attention from anyone looking for a great spring marathon.
steve&paula boone from Humble, TX (5/8/2007) "Excellent running experience" (about: 2007) 50+ previous marathons \| 1 Pocono Mountain Run For The Red Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 2 This marathon provided an excellent running experience. Packet pickup was fast and efficient and was followed by a complimentary pasta meal. Race morning, the buses dropped us next to the elementary school where we went inside out of the cold wind. The course was scenic and completely closed to traffic. The aid stations were fully stocked and the friendly volunteers thanked us for running the marathon. The course was downhill overall with a few small runable hills which helped balance the wear and tear on our legs. The temperature increased as the altitude decreased and varied from the high 30's to mid 60's. The course marshalls were among the best in the country and were made up of public service employees from every department. We look forward to returning in the future.
P. N. from NYC (5/8/2007) "Have A Fine PR Time In The Poconos" (about: 2007) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Pocono Mountain Run For The Red Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 If you are looking for a well organized, beautiful, scenic, fast, yet challenging course, look no further. I have nothing but good things to say about this race. The course was mostly comprised of quiet country roads and finished in the nice sized town of Stroudsburg about an hour west of NYC. The entire course was closed to cars which must have been no small feat (kudos to the local community and race organizers). The spectators (while small in numbers)and volunteers were spectacular. The course has some pretty substantial uphill portions, but all of them seemed to immediately follow equal or longer downhill portions, as a result, my lungs always felt relatively rested leading up to the uphill portions. This was my third marathon in 07 and despite the relatively heavy schedule, I pr'd by 20 minutes! Needless to say, I fully intend to run this race again and again.
Phil Eisenberg from Hastings on Hudson, NY (5/8/2007) "Challenging well-run marathon" (about: 2007) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Pocono Mountain Run For The Red Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 Great smaller marathon. My previous marathons have been on relatively flat courses (ex. Philly, NJ) so this was a bit of a challenge. I'm definitely glad I did some hill work on my longer training runs. Even though there is an overall loss of elevation, after a while downhills are as hard as uphills. Very well-organized, though a little silly to have us drive out to Great Wolf Lodge for the tiny expo. Also, I passed on the afternoon pasta dinner and opted instead to head to Bethlehem (near where I was staying) for a great pasta meal. It's really terrific that all proceeds go to charity. Wonderful crowd support for a small marathon. Also very nice that all but a bit of Main Street in Stroudsburg was run on closed off roads. It seemed as though there were always some runners around me, so not as lonely as I had feared. Temperatures were ideal. Nice welcoming finish at the H.S. track with your name read by the announcer.
G. R. from Jackson, NJ (5/8/2007) "Applause for the Organizers, Volunteers, and Fans!" (about: 2007) 1 previous marathon \| 1 Pocono Mountain Run For The Red Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 Wow! This was my first marathon and it was an experience that will last a lifetime. The race organization (thanks Bob) was perfect, the course is scenic, the many wonderful volunteers were everywhere you needed them to be, and the spectators were inspiring. At 43, I trained hard for my first marathon, but despite everything I read that told me not to, I still went out too fast. I was ahead of Boston Qualifying pace, 3h20m for my age group, for a good part of the race, but there are some hard, long hills in the latter stages, especially around Mile 22, which took their toll and I finished in 3:28. I made a point to thank as many of the volunteers and spectators for their support as I could, as none of these races would ever happen without them. They did themselves proud! I had read that this is a very fast downhill course, given its net 1,500 foot drop, but if you extend yourself to the max like I did for the first 16 to 18 miles, the hills will get you in the end. I hope to run this again next year, and with another year of training and a better strategy, improve my time. More importantly, I hope the race grows in numbers, as this event has the ability to support many more runners, and continue to raise money for a great charitable cause.
B. K. from East Coast (5/8/2007) "A great small-town marathon with a fast course" (about: 2007) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Pocono Mountain Run For The Red Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 I entered this race based on its stellar reputation from the first year, and it did not disappoint. This is really one of my favorite events now. This course is very fast, but also deceptively difficult, as the hardest section is in the last few miles. This is definitely a PR course, but it will be a painful PR. The streets are closed to traffic, which means you can cut the tangents on the curves, and you can run in the middle of the road to avoid the camber on the sides. The aid stations were frequent, and all of the mile markers were accurate, except for one. At the end of the course, there is some (very enthusiastic) crowd support when you probably need it the most, and finishing on the high school track is a really nice touch. As for the rest of the course, it can be a little lonely, but residents of the small towns along the way come out to cheer, which is really nice. The volunteers at this event are great, as is the organization as a whole. As one who has taken wrong turns during races before, I really, really appreciated how well-marked and easy to follow the course was. This is sometimes a drawback with smaller events, but on this course, there were actually trucks blocking some of the wrong turns, and that scored huge points with me. My only very, very minor complaint is that the expo was sort of far away from both the start and finish, which made it a little inconvenient. Overall, it was a great and memorable experience, and I'll definitely come back.
D. G. from NY State (5/7/2007) "Great event" (about: 2007) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Pocono Mountain Run For The Red Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 Congratulations to the organizers - this is a well run event with a great course. The people were friendly, and the declines and scenery were great. I highly recommend Running for the Red, and hope to be back next year.

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