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Apr 28, 2024

Drake Well Marathon Runner Comments

Back to Drake Well Marathon Information & Reviews

Course 4.1

Organization 4.7

Spectators 3.5

Number of comments: 39 [displaying comments 11 to 21]

More Comments: [ < 1 2 3 4 > ]

A. P. from PA (8/26/2012) "Challenging small town marathon" (about: 2012) 3 previous marathons \| 1 Drake Well Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 2 I would describe the Drake Well Marathon as a small community marathon. If you come looking for a big city marathon you will be disappointed. That being said I enjoyed running Drake Well more than any other road race I have run. Packet pick up was at the Titusville community center. Had to park about a block away, but it was no big deal. I highly recommend the pasta dinner. Only $6, and it was delicious. I think I was at the same table as S.F. (another reviewer). The course is hilly for the first 7 miles, more so than other marathon courses, but after getting back into town it flattens out. After passing though town you start on a ~16 mile out and back section on paved rail trail. You go downhill on the rail trail first. I didn't notice the downhill on the way out, but I noticed the uphill on the way back. In fact, I felt the return section of the rail trail was worse than the hills in the first 7 miles. When you get off the rail trail near the finish there is a short section of grass (<.25 miles), before reaching and running one lap of the track. Aids stations were every ~2 miles and had water and gatorade. No gels, so bring your own. Water, bagels and bananas at the finish. Would I run the Drake Well Marathon again? YES!!! Fun course, small field, and price was right. If you want to stay in Titusville, reserve your hotel room early as they sell out. I stayed in Cranberry, which was a 30-25 minutes drive.
S. F. from State College, PA (8/19/2012) "Peaceful course" (about: 2012) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Drake Well Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 2 We had beautiful weather this year, and the course was really nice - spectators almost nowhere, but aid station volunteers awesome and supportive. Miles 1-7 are hilly, with three or four steepish climbs and a couple of good descents. Then miles 8-the end are flat, through the town and then mostly on a wooded path next to the river. (see the very thorough review here from 2011). Shady, peaceful, lovely. Titusville is a really friendly town - the Comfort Inn put out its free and plentiful breakfast (even the waffle batter!) at 4:30 am to accommodate the marathoners (race started at 7). It's easy to get to the start and to the end, plenty of parking. Chip timed, but only one mat (at the end). Track finish. Oranges, water, and bagels were the food at the finish. Pasta dinner on Saturday night was only $6, and was delicious! All of the staff of the community center were lovely and helpful. Neither the t-shirt nor the medals have the date on them, but they both look great otherwise (and organizers allowed runners to exchange for different shirt sizes). If you're training for a fall marathon and it looks like the weather will be good in August, I would recommend keeping an eye on Drake Well. I BQed by more than 4 minutes after failing to do so both in the Boston heat and in the Poconos in May.
M. M. from Youngstown Ohio (8/19/2012) "Loved it. Loved it" (about: 2012) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Drake Well Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 2 Ok, this is a very positive review. I loved this marathon. Course was very tricky for the first seven miles with some doody hills, but starting on mile 10, all bike trail well kept and flat. Great friendly volunteers. Not many supporters but those that were out, are great.
Mark Rice from United States (8/27/2011) "Fun Small Town Run (tough yet in time for BQ)" (about: 2011) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Drake Well Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This is detailed for those who really want to get a feel for this race. The personal attention, friendliness and helpfulness of all involved were just fantastic, even though the number of spectators was low - that didn't bother me. I went away very happy. The course is well organized and reasonably well marked. Be sure to drive the first 8-9 miles in advance though, so you are not surprised (there were some sections that you will NOT expect to be in a marathon because of gravel/grade/narrow path, etc., and you don't want to be questioning that during the race). For those who want the context of my comments, see section called BACKDROP. NOTE: The posted course is slightly different from actual. See the USATF certification map (http://www.usatf.org/events/courses/maps/showMap.asp?courseID=PA11025WB)... The out & back is not to scale, but the map is accurate. OVERALL COMMENTS: Much of the course is shady, which was great. Even when the sun was out it rarely hit us for any length of time. This is a tough course. This course strikes me as a little tougher than Boston. The water stops were reasonable (~every 2 miles), but I prefer them to be slightly more frequent. In response, I took 2 cups at most stations and walked while drinking (which may not have hurt my time because it was refreshing to my muscles). PROS: I met family RIGHT AT THE FINISH LINE; Staff allowed my 5-YEAR OLD DAUGHTER to put the medal over my head!! Try that at other marathons! I treasure those pictures! At Boston, family can't even see you cross the finish line! Family met me at spots along the course; we got plenty of our own photos. Most of the course is very shady! VERY helpful staff before, during and after the race. Most of the course was absolutely beautiful and to me, encouraged one to just Zen out while running at a consistent effort. Expenses can be kept very low if one is careful (e.g. Super 8 in Franklin, PA Breakfast not so great, but nice people and less expensive than others). This is timed very well for Boston qualification. CONS: Gravel (but it didn't seem to affect performance - further, I was wearing very light 8 oz Asics DS and the gravel still didn't hurt as I had expected), cars were on some parts of the course (but they were very aware of runners and crawled by cautiously). GOOD OR BAD DEPENDING ON YOU: Tough yet rewarding course, can recover after first 7 miles, lots of solo running, friendly small-town feel. THE FIRST 7 MILES include two long stretches of gravel and choppy pavement, including the steepest downgrades. I was able to make good time down these (I do downhill well) but had to be more focused than usual to avoid any slips/ruts, etc. The first uphill (miles 0.5-1.5) was gradual. The related downhill is gravely and steep. The second uphill (~mile 3.5) is very steep (pavement), but only 0.3 miles long& after that, it's very gradual and I could make good time. There is a second short uphill (~mile 5.5) that is steep (paved) and then a paved steep downhill (ending around mile 6), followed by a dark gravel (or chopped asphalt) downhill (a little steep). After some smaller ups and downs, you hit a very short VERY steep downhill (0.10 of a mile or less?). I'm glad it was short because I was in survival mode there (to prevent out of control downhill running). After this, you can recover while progressing in the flat streets of the town. MILES 8-25 are relatively flat, but make no mistake, the run out to the mile 17.5 turnaround is slightly downhill overall, and the return (to mile 24.5 or so) is slightly uphill. By that time, the slight incline was quite noticeable. The shade here is FANTASTIC! And the gentle grades and beauty made it a great run. I usually train alone so the solitude did not bother me. If a person relies on crowds or other runners for motivation, this section will be lonely. I loved it here. MILE 26 and the 0.2 were mostly level, but had some uphill grades (I wouldn't normally think of them, but after 25 miles of my best running, even level seemed uphill). The run across the grass, while not long, was irritating because it was uneven and I was so tired that watching my step was a slowdown. I liked finishing on the track, but would like a way to remove the grass part. BACKDROP: Some may want the CONTEXT of my comments. I train on hills, and had reasonable training up to April 2011, then from May to this marathon had exceptional training (Pfitzinger schedule in Advanced Marathoning). This is my 5th marathon (1 in Nashville 2008 and 3 in Boston 2009-11). My history has been about 3:30:00 with a prior best of 3:28:11 (Boston 2010). My Drake Well time was about 3:26. I believe this PR is because of my training before this marathon rather than any lower level of course difficulty & I think Drake Well is slightly more difficult. The Drake Well hills are clearly more intense, yet they are at the start (for some that's better).
S. H. from Atlanta, GA (8/24/2011) "Worth the challlenge" (about: 2011) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Drake Well Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 A small town race that is just going to get They had the best aid stations I have seen. Ice cold water and very efficient. The course is challenging in the first 7 miles but easy for the rest of the course. It finishes on a track which is always fun.
V. S. from Ohio (8/22/2011) "Tough course for spirited and friendly runners" (about: 2011) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Drake Well Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 There are hills, there are steeper downhills too, and then there is an asphalt trail under canopy. But more importantly, what this marathon offers is a friendly community of runners who respect, support, and greet each other on the way (quite amazing); very effective and helpful volunteers staffing the water stations; and a solid running challenge. The finish on the track is a very nice finale.
T. S. from Cleveland,Oh (9/19/2010) "Small town marathon needs more small town" (about: 2010) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Drake Well Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 2 First I'd like to say that I enjoyed this marathon. The first seven miles were in town and on some back roads. Yes, it was very hilly, but not too tough. Then this course has a fault, in my opinion. You get on a bike path and run an out-and-back for about 17-18 miles. Very few (NO) spectators. I understand the race director - a very nice guy, by the way - did this because it was flat and contrasted the hills early on. I say go for more atmosphere even if it comes with some hills. Maybe I'm nuts but I think this would improve the overall experience. Otherwise it was an awesome event. Friendly people. Well organized. Neat little town. Good job, Titusville. Cool shirt also!
David Terrill, Sr. from Tarentum, PA (8/29/2010) "This course makes one work." (about: 2010) 50+ previous marathons \| 3 Drake Well Marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 Since the course hasn't changed since last year, I won't spend keystrokes describing it again. I will say that it makes one work, and work hard. Temps at the start were a lot more comfortable than last year, but the humidity level was again high. We should expect that to be the norm from now on. So try to get acclimated ahead of time. I thought I was well prepared, but a net time of +9 minutes from last year indicates otherwise. An unscheduled pit stop at the 10-mile point cost a couple of minutes, but you can't fool the body. You've got to take care of business so you can get on with taking care of the racing business. I regained my position in the standings, but could do no better. I have no complaints. It is what it is. Forrest Gump put it best when he said, "It happens." Train for the hills, which come early. Spend whatever time it takes to get acclimated to the summer heat and humidity, because it is a safe bet you will contend with one or both. Know your strengths, and run accordingly. If you need energy gels, carry them. It works for me. Pin them inside your waistband so they don't flop around, and they will be very fluid when you need them. Super easy to get down. Bottom line is to prepare well and control what you can and you should fare well. The organization crew did a stand-up job again. No complaints will be heard from me. This is put on by runners for runners. Enjoy the experience, and make the most of the opportunity.
P. D. from New York State (8/24/2010) "I love this course" (about: 2010) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Drake Well Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 Pretty much the whole thing is peaceful and wooded. You'll never see a car. Maybe cars haven't been invented yet out on this course. I've run lots of marathons. This course is one-of-a-kind, and a nice one.
P. N. from PA (8/24/2010) "Boring" (about: 2010) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Drake Well Marathon COURSE: 1 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 I was impressed with the organizers of the course, who were very helpful and friendly. However, the 14+ miles run on the towpath were, in my opinion, very boring. There were virtually no scenic views and the humidity was very high. The rest stops did not have any power gels or ice. I had major problems with cramping because of the high humidity and the killer hills early in the race. I think that this race has great potential, but the course should be re-routed.

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