Just ran this today for 1st time. Been marathoning 30 years and this is one of the best especially if you like smaller marathons. Nice varying terrain, very scenic, and at times quiet - a few stretches I was the only runner and no spectators - which was fine with me. Plenty of water stops and great volunteers, Good energy. Parking close to start is not as difficult as they said. I've run some of the big ones (NYC, Boston)and many smaller marathons and this is in my top 3 favorites. Will definitely be there next year, Highly recommended.

Beautiful rolling course. Very small marathon field (300) with over 1,000 running the half. Water stops were plentiful but poorly staffed. Some were out of cups when the 3-4-hour marathoners were coming through. The overlap of the full and half courses meant that at the late water stops the half walkers were blocking the marathoners from getting to the water. Food at the end was pitiful. They were charging $2 for Gatorade and $1 for an orange??? Water, chips, bananas and sun-hardened bagels for those who didn't carry cash on the run. Good crowd support for such a small field. Recommendation to the directors: don't cap the full and staff up the water stops or consolidate them.

I'm from Sag Harbor and I'm very happy that we now have a marathon in the area - I've run the first three. This race could use much improvement, however. First, the course: there are so many beautiful vistas in the Hamptons and this race spends way too much time in the woods on desolate back roads. I've heard the excuse is that the town won't allow them to stage the race on or cross over main roads, but why then did they allow the recently started Soldier Ride bike ride to run through East Hampton and Sag Harbor villages, and along Further Lane near the ocean, especially considering the Soldier Ride takes place on a Saturday in July and the marathon is after Labor Day? The Mighty Hamptons triathalon also uses a much prettier course.

That brings me to the second problem: the lack of local involvement. The race directors are from Manhattan and I'm not sure if they just haven't had luck or haven't even tried, but there are hardly any local sponsors, businesses, officials or press involved. The race is definitely focused around participants coming from Manhattan, which is perfectly fine, as long as you don't forget about the community hosting the race. The key to a good race is to get the local community involved and I think they have failed miserably here. Most people I know don't even know of the race - whereas, in contrast, every local knows of the triathlon.

Third is the service you get for the very high registration rate: Lousy shirt, no other freebies, hardly any food at the finish, very little direction on the course, and only one GU station over 26.2 miles. They have had a beautiful medal the past couple of years, but only after getting blasted for having what was basically a cheap key chain as the medal in '07.

I ran the half last year in a downpour, and the full this year in glorious sunshine. I LOVED this marathon (my 38th - an age group winner and a BQ for me) for the following reasons:

1. Beautiful, sylvan, tranquil relaxing course.
2. Nice, low-key East End feeling to it - oh those Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts handing out water were so cute. There was no Hamptons glitz here. (However, if you want it, for us shoppers in the crowd, all of the stores had final markdowns.)
3. For a post-marathon cool-down, what is better than walking the beach in Montauk?
4. The medal is fantastic.
5. The beach towel in the goody bag and flip-flops at the finish make for a fun touch. Thanks.
6. I loved the weekly emails. It felt very personal, and kudos to Diane and Amanda for promoting East End running.
7. The organization was top notch. There was lots of water and Gatorade, and the t-shirt was terrific.


Only suggestion: Have recycling bins at the finish.

See you next year!

This was my first marathon, and I had a great experience. With only a couple of moments where it was slightly unclear which way to go (people were there, but I had to double-check; this could have been because my brain was mush by mile 17 or so), and with great hydration support and stunning weather, this course was awesome. I think the gals who organized it did a wonderful job. The police presence and volunteer turnout was pretty remarkable. You do have to adapt to running to the right. (Traffic is VERY light, but the roads are open.) Many runners did not really follow this rule, so they were lucky not to be mowed down. It can be tricky for the inside leg/ankle if you follow the rules. If I am able, I'll totally do this marathon again. Thanks, Amanda and Diane!!!

I ran this race in 2008, and thought it was very exciting to run a marathon in the rain, as I hadn't done that before! The course is the flattest of the 3 marathons I have run (Madrid and Halstead, Essex). The great thing about this marathon was that a group of my friends got together to rent a house in the Hamptons for the weekend as well as run the race - it's a very good excuse to indulge a little and I would definitely run it again!

Perhaps most importantly for me, I managed to raise over $1,000 for the American Cancer Society, which I believe raised over $65,000 in total at this race. That extra dimension pushes you harder through any challenge the weather or any hill may throw at you. Great race!

I was sooo looking forward to this race. I'm sure others have chimed in on this, but the weather was dreadful, with biblical rains at times - and to make matters worse, I really didn't dress appropriately. With the rain and mist, the runners couldn't even enjoy the beautiful setting. It can be a lonely run at times and the spectators were sparse, but when they were there they came in handy and were very nice. I thought there was plenty of water stops, but I don't recall much in the way of food. I think one stop had GU. The town of East Hampton is just as you'd picture, an upscale beach town. Personally, I had a terrible race. I had injured my foot a month from the race and never really recovered. I got to mile 23, but the rain and my awkward gate took their toll, and I was not able to finish. I would love to go back, probably not this year but maybe next. I would recommend it. It's mostly flat; just pray for good weather!!

As for organization, you get tons of email updates from the organizers, which is great. I felt like part of a small community. It was nice to meet them, too, after hearing from them so often during many months.

I have run the race now for 2 years and I can tell you that Amanda and Diane perform an OUTSTANDING job organizing this major East End event! Amanda and Diane take care of every detail - whether large or small, they personally address all problems. I have run many other races and I can tell you that the Hamptons Marathon is not only one of the most well organized races, but more importantly, the most "personalized" race I have ever run! Amanda and Diane communicate weekly with runners, and they offer training runs as well as motivation and great energy. They give so freely, cheering EVERYONE on no matter their level of fitness. The Hamptons Marathon is great from start to the finish; the goody bags are filled with useful items, the t-shirts are the best that I have ever been given from other races, and the medals are presented at the finish. I am thankful that these two women put this fantastic course together to give the East End an incredible time to shine!!! Thank you, Amanda and Diane!!!

I have been to this race for two years now. The first year was perfect! Perfect weather, great size and lots of support. The second year was even more impressive, due to the fact the weather was so rainy (nothing can be done about that). But in spite of the weather, the support and fans were amazing. There were always people to answer any questions. The course is beautiful, and at times very peaceful. There were water stands with cheering support every mile or two, and I needed that after 17 miles in the pouring rain! I wish cars were not allowed on the course, but the pre-race emails more than made up for it! I think it's a great race, at a great time of year, with great people. See you next year!

I don't agree with some of the rainy day posters here that there was too much traffic and the course was too difficult for runners because of the hills. This course was designed obviously to be a Boston Marathon qualifier. In other words, it is supposed to challenge you. Having run it many times in all sorts of weather, because I live in East Hampton, and having run half marathons, Boston and other challenging courses, the Hamptons Marathon ranks right up there with some of the best half marathon and marathon courses in the country. This course merits its selection as one of the ten best new courses in the country. If you go out too fast, you get a reminder with the hill at mile 1.5 to slow down. The next three miles give you a slight downhill to get on race pace. Don't have a race pace? Yikes! The terrain varies, the wind direction varies, and the surface varies. This is definitely a tougher half marathon course than New York or Hartford, as it should be. As to the hills, if you can qualify here for Boston then you will do well in Boston. That's the secret. The Hamptons Marathon doesn't seduce you into going out too fast the way Boston does, but it is no coincidence that you get three miles of hills beginning at mile 17. That was done precisely to get you a feeling for Boston. This is a prep course for Boston. It's not meant to be an easy, flat, Boston qualifier. The half is used by many runners to prep for NY just like the Cherry Blossom in Washington is used to prep for Boston.

As to comparisons with other post-race runner spreads, no doubt Hartford is better, but it has ING as a sponsor. The Hamptons Marathon is doubling in size each year, and it is only in its second year. Give the organizers another year and I'm sure the post-race party will get much much better. My favorite post-race is Bridge of Flowers (you don't like hills!!!), where they give out organic veggie burgers. But the NY Marathon post-race gives you a banana. Who runs New York for the banana? Some of us hardcore New England runners don't even want a banana.

It's too bad that someone thought the traffic was bad. Come out here in the summer and you'll see traffic. I have run all of the roads in East Hampton, and if you don't want to see traffic, then the Hamptons isn't the place to be. The Hamptons Marathon is tranquil by comparison to anything that can be encountered out here on any summer weekend. The course is positively rural. When you pass through the fishing village of Lazy Point, there isn't anybody cheering because they've all gone clamming.

As to a scenic and historic course, I'm sure De Kooning and Pollock had smiles on their faces, as the griping rainy day runners passed the Green River cemetery twice without knowing they were passing one of the most important areas for 20th Century art (Springs) in the country! That General Store near the finish is where Pollock did his grocery shopping.

When it rains some runners get cranky, and I guess they post when they get cranky. You are running in Jackson Pollock's backyard in one of the most beautiful spots in the United States, and you don't know it. Duh. My, my; let's get back to Hartford, Martha - I don't like those guys holding hands over there. Thank God THAT course sticks to downtown and never passes that old, nasty, immortal Mark Twain's residence. Huruff!