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May 16, 2024

Georgia Marathon Runner Comments

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Course 4.1

Organization 3.1

Spectators 4.0

Number of comments: 459 [displaying comments 71 to 81]

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J. M. from Tennessee (3/22/2011) "Who would wear that shirt??" (about: 2011) 1 previous marathon \| 1 Georgia Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 4 My first marathon. Not a good choice for a first race. Very hilly and demanding course. The shirts were a sickly yellow with a washed out logo; I expected something better. Much pressure on slow runners to finish. Again, not a race for a beginner.
P. C. from Atlanta, GA (3/22/2011) "Amazing experience!!" (about: 2011) 4-5 previous marathons \| 2 Georgia Marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 I ran this race in 2007 and swore I would never run it again after the terrible experience I had. I decided I would give it another shot this year. I am so glad I gave this race a second chance!! The course was tough, but quite interesting. The volunteers, staff and spectators were AMAZING!! The port-o-potties were plentiful, parking was easy, and getting into my corral was a breeze. I have already signed up for the 2012 race. Thank you to Publix for sponsoring this race!!
B. L. from St. Johns, Florida (3/22/2011) "Tough Course but Well Organized" (about: 2011) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Georgia Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 Overall, this is a good race. A very tough course and the hills just keep coming one after another. Don't go into this one expecting a PR. Aid stations well supplied and the volunteers were fantastic. Not a large crowd, but those that were out in the neighborhoods were loud and supportive. Expo was well organized and efficient. Very nice medal.
A. J. from TEMPE, AZ (3/22/2011) "Getting friendly with hills" (about: 2011) 2 previous marathons \| 1 Georgia Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 I agree with everything that's been said about the hills here. I train in the flat Phoenix desert and this was a wake up call for my quads! The nice thing is that there were clearly quite a few of us who just weren't totally used to the rolling hills of GA, so there were quite a few walkers (at least uphill) towards the end of the race... that helped me not feel so lame! Support was great, and there was plenty of water and Gatorade and GU. No iPods needed (but people did have them) because there's enough of a crowd to keep you entertained (and beautiful neighborhoods to gawk at). If I do this again, I'll train more on hills.
J. W. from Manchester, England (3/21/2011) "Fantastic marathon through the streets of Atlanta" (about: 2011) 11-50 previous marathons \| 2 Georgia Marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 This is a difficult course, with rolling hills throughout: you're either going up or down most of the time. But you get to see a lot of Atlanta, and there are plenty of hydration stations throughout the course. Well organized, and a decent amount of crowd support.
M. M. from Guilder land Center, NY (3/21/2011) "Nice, tough race." (about: 2011) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Georgia Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 2 I was expecting the hills, and wasn't disappointed. But they are endless, and they do wear you down. Going uphill the last mile is a bear. The course is nice, though, with a good variety of scenery. Fans are few, except for the nice folks in Decatur. The volunteers, aid stations, and traffic control were all excellent. The medal was very nice. I have just one complaint, and it's one we see on these pages far too often. More and more, those of us running the full marathon are being shorted due to a huge influx of half-marathon runners and walkers. It is very dispiriting to finish the full and find the post race food ravaged by those who ran half the distance and paid less to enter. I ran a 3:39, and the only food available was cupcakes and cookies. Are you serious? I saw half-marathoners walking around with BAGS of food! Granted, they are inconsiderate swine, but organizers owe it to the marathoners to end this nonsense. I later saw an official at an information booth handing out sandwiches. When I asked for one, I was told they were only for people who 'weren't feeling well'. What!? I guess the woman I saw walking away with two must have been feeling awful. It was ridiculous. Too bad, because otherwise the race was a great experience. We stayed at the Embassy Suites, and it is a one minute walk to both the start and finish line. Very nice.
R. T. from Atlanta, Ga (3/21/2011) "The hills are alive.. part 4" (about: 2011) 11-50 previous marathons \| 4-5 Georgia Marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 4 4th time running the full 26.2 here. The first three were on the old course that ran through the highlands. This time, was on the new course that took the full marathoners up 12th. 1. This is a tough course. No sugar coating that one. It will test your limits, but as with any event worth doing, that's how it should be. The first half is pretty fast, but also has it's fair share of hills. The steepest coming at mile 7.5, then another notable climb up Ponce and East Lake. The second half starts off with a few flat miles, but then the hills start in around 17, and never let up. I'm not a fan of the out and back section in Piedmont park. I'd rather the course toured the west side of the city for that extra mile. That out and back section seems like a cheat for the organizers, and essentially, that's what it is. Once out of Piedmont park, there is the climb up 12th street. Honestly, that was not as bad as I thought. I was already in hill shock by this time, and it, to me, was just another hill. The last 4 miles were segmented from the Half Marathoners. A very very nice touch. I like them being there, but not mixed in. A perfect example of how that should be done in every race. 2. The medal was nice. Well done. The Expo was perfect, also well done. The Start / Finish, excellent in every way. I love the streaker shirt I got for racing either the full or half all 5 years. In fact, I raced in it. I never do that. Aid stations were all well stocked and staffed nicely. 3. Now.. food. Post race food was the worst ever, and that is saying a lot. There was a mini chocolate cupcake.. and a bottle of water. It was absolutely terrible. The organizers absolutely need to correct this. I don't 'need' food at the end, but if you are going to do it, then don't make it a joke. 4. Overall, Publix is a great sponsor and added a nice touch of class to this years event. Some tweaks need to be made for next year, but all in all, I highly recommend this event. If you are going to put a Georgia Marathon on your list, make this the one.
A. B. from North Carolina (3/21/2011) "Great organization and atmosphere" (about: 2011) 1 previous marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 This is my first US-based marathon. This was a great event with plenty of participants to make the course lively, great volunteer support along the route handing out drinks and cheering on the runners, and awesome police supervision to regulate traffic. We shared the road with motorists alongs long swaths of road, but the cones and the police presence kept everyone safe. The course is rather hilly. The hills are not big but tend to break the momentum of the short, flat surface. Lol. I think the only flat surface present was the one leading to the finish line. Overall, it was a great experience and will hopefully run it again when I can.
J. S. from Atlanta, GA (3/21/2011) "Keep those hills coming!" (about: 2011) 1 previous marathon \| 1 Georgia Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 I live in one of the neighborhoods that the course passes through so (1) I have the advantage of training on these hills so they weren't so bad to me, and (2) I had several people along the route to boost my morale. This was my first official marathon and I did it in 4:12, way better than I expected. However, this means I don't really have anything to compare to. I did run the Country Music Marathon in Nashville last year but the race was shut down due to tornadoes and I, along with a lot of other people, got diverted at mile 22 to the finish...so it counts in that I experienced the expo, organization, and most of the course. But I didn't run the whole 26.2 so it doesn't count a whole marathon. In any event, I thought this event was well organized. The bag drop off was great. Unlike some others, I really dug all the hills! There are only a few things I'd change. 1. Centennial Olympic Park is way too partitioned off, making it hard to get to the bag drop or the porta-potties, or to LEAVE the park to get on MARTA. 2. I would prefer not to run 2+ miles through Druid Hills. Sure, the homes are lovely but it's kind of boring. This might be because I live in Candler Park, which is just south of Druid Hills, and run through Druid Hills all the time. But to go down Lullwater, then up Oakdale, then down Springdale was just a bit too much Druid Hills. 3. I REALLY don't like the out-and-back through Piedmont Park. Nobody likes an out-and-back and I think the course could instead wind through Midtown or Ansley Park before cutting through Piedmont Park to head towards GATech. But those are my only criticisms. I was happy with the course support and fans are always a nice perk. Some people complain about corral jumpers but I have never been any race where this is well-controlled. I think so long as the elites are protected then it's good.
S. M. from Atlanta (3/21/2011) "Beautiful but challenging" (about: 2011) 4-5 previous marathons \| 2 Georgia Marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 This is my second GA marathon and this one was better than the first one only because I wasn't caught off guard with regards to the number of hills. They just don't stop! I would have rated this marathon a 5 star but due to the sheer number of hills I had to award only 4 stars. The expo was great! There were a large number of vendors and packet pick-up was organized and quick. Pre-race refreshments were available if you needed a small pick-me-up before the race began. Gear check was very well organized and fast. My chief complaint was that there were not enough porta potties for the number of runners. Make sure you train on hills for this race because the hills are one right after the other. The course winds through some really beautiful areas of Atlanta and it is nice to be able to see these are.as on foot as opposed to how we usually get to see them from our cars. This race had some of the most enthusiastic volunteers I have ever encountered at a race. They were amazing throughout the entire course! As for the post race refreshments, there was plenty as long as you finished quickly enough. I have heard that they ran out of refreshments and some finishers didn't get anything at all! That is inexcusable but it the only really big hiccup in an otherwise well run race. Before I forget, the hardware was so pretty! It made up for a rather plain shirt. However I was pleased to see that the shirt was made by a company that makes their shirts from 100% recycled polyester and I have to say they are very soft and comfortable. The overall experience is an A. I would give it an A+ if it weren't for the food shortages and all those pesky hills!

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