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May 4, 2024

Santa Barbara International Marathon Runner Comments

Back to Santa Barbara International Marathon Information & Reviews

Course 3.9

Organization 3.9

Spectators 3.8

Number of comments: 41 [displaying comments 21 to 31]

More Comments: [ < 1 2 3 4 5 > ]

M. S. from Chicago, IL (11/8/2010) "Great marathon- with some potential improvements!" (about: 2010) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Santa Barbara International Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 The course was well laid out... a hilly challenge at times (mile 23.5 is tough!). There was a lack of bathrooms/porta-potties at the start, about a dozen stalls and over a 100-yard line to use them. It was a good thing the race start was delayed until 7, because most runners were in the lines anyway. GU/water/aid were all spread out nicely and the fans were good for a small race too. Although the marathon rules say that all runners HAVE to take the shuttle to the start, they were not checking numbers or names there and it would have been possible to avoid standing in the long shuttle line at 4:45 a.m. Other than those suggestions, the race was great! Perfect weather- couldn't ask for better running conditions. The last 1.5 miles are the best part... downhill and a view! I would recommend this race to other runners.
Joseph Reilly from Los Angeles (11/8/2010) "Nice, but could be better" (about: 2010) 50+ previous marathons \| 2 Santa Barbara International Marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 The race started at Los Pueblos H.S., and did an 11-mile loop around the bucolic splendor of Goleta before heading for West Santa Barbara. Unfortunately, the majority of the race was rolling hills, often steep. After 23 miles, we hit Cliff Drive, a 170-foot climb up Mile 24. After you tackled the Cliff Drive climb, if you survived, it was downhill to the finish and a spectacular view of the Harbor, the Pacific and the coastal mountains. My 5:54:00 was 6 minutes ahead of the 6 hour cut-off. Even still, they had run out of water at the finish Not good. The race was twice delayed, with no explanation given. The unintended consequence from the delays was as follows: The cut-off was listed at 6.5 hours, ending at 1:00 p.m. However, the 30-minute delayed start only allowed us 6 hours until 1:00 p.m., and not 6.5 hours. Only the last 2 miles are what you would expect from Santa Barbara. That was the only time that we ran along the coast. I have to admit that inland Santa Barbara and Goleta are pastorally scenic. But I don't need 24 miles of it. The best part about the SBIM is the last 2 miles, which are downhill and along the ocean and a dazzling finish on the track of La Playa Stadium at S.B. City College. There were 998 full marathoners. There were also about 2,300 half marathoners and about 80 marathon relay teams. If Santa Barbara wants to become one of the pillars of marathoning in Southern California, then they must change the current marathon course - 24 miles of running inland from Goletta to West Santa Barbara just won't keep attracting the runners. The first 10-13 miles can still be inland. But the last 13-16 miles have to be along the coast. Also, I wouldn't mind running onto Stearn's Wharf and possibly taking a slight detour up State Street.
G. O. from Birmingham, AL (11/6/2010) "Beautiful course, did they read comments from '09?" (about: 2010) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Santa Barbara International Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 I agree with a lot of what I read from the comments about last year's inaugural race. It was well-organized for a new, smaller race. But some of the organization was noticeable because it pertained to details that made the race unncecessarily complicated to begin with. The course should stay more in Santa Barbara. Regardless of how it's marketed, it's NOT flat. Go ahead and give runners a few hills, but let us see more of Santa Barbara, which is so much prettier than Goleta. The spectators were sparse, but the ones that were out there more than made up for it with their enthusiasm. There were some of the most engaged race spectators I've ever seen in eight marathons. Once again, the race start was delayed by 30 minutes. They never said why. That's a little bit of a psych-out when you're there and expecting a 6:30 start. Maybe there was nothing they could do, but if it was course related, there's another reason to change the course. I also agree that the food offerings at the end of the race were pretty puny. Bananas, oranges, and stale bagels. That's it. For what we paid I'd expect a little better. I'll end on a good note. The last couple of miles were among the prettiest of any race I've run. Coming down Shoreline Dr. to the Pacific Ocean was a beautiful sight, no matter how crappy I felt! :)
M. W. from Midwest, USA (12/15/2009) "If you train, it will come" (about: 2009) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Santa Barbara International Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 I agree with alot of the others, and not so much with some others!! :) (But STAY OPTIMISTIC when you run this, as with any other time we get up and run!). I'm from flat, middle America, and the course was challenging for me (everyday that we get up and run is a challenge though, isn't it?). Yet it really sets you up for a "great opportunity." A PR possible, IF you are fit according to YOUR "true standards" for yourself. It's not flat - (believe me, I know flat-land running), but can be fast if you run it properly. Course is downhill more than uphill, and has flats in between. Weather was cool and nice. Aid stations had more GU than I've had anywhere (great!). I would truly say that we had excellent spectators and support. There were pace groups, if you wish to try to control yourself, and I personally really liked the T-shirts at pick-up! (Sure, tech T's would have been an upgrade, but I got compliments on it when it when I got back to my hotel, as well as the "Wow, nice medal" compliments I received also. We stayed at the FS-Biltmore, and when I came back and they saw the medal, they actually thought I had won the race or something!!
R. W. from Palmdale, CA (12/13/2009) "Great Inaugural Marathon" (about: 2009) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Santa Barbara International Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 Great inaugural marathon. I've done 42 marathons and run in the 3:30s. Here are my thoughts: Pros: 1) Well organized 2) Outstanding official program 3) Great volunteers Cons: 1) Add more hot food/drinks at the finish 2) Start near the finish area without the transportation issue and the extra early wake-up (an out-and-back, parallel loop course without running same path might work) 3) Add outdoor heaters at the start area (maybe have a large tent) 4) More restrooms at the start. The rest of the race is very good. Hope you read this and make the adjustment for next year. Thanks, NewtonMarathoner
M. S. from Chicago, IL (12/9/2009) "Who wouldn't want to run Santa Barbara?" (about: 2009) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Santa Barbara International Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 2 An outstanding inaugural event with perfect weather, a spectacular and challenging course, and an awesome finish. The race starts and winds twice through the bucolic splendor of Goleta. Once in Santa Barbara, you pass through ranches on a bike path. Next are some rolling hills; then a left to Cliff Drive, and the 170-foot climb at mile 23. After you tackle the climb, it is downhill to the finish and a spectacular view of the harbor, the Pacific and the coastal mountains. Other then a delayed start for an unrelated accident on the 101, the race was well organized from expo to the finish. Rusty and his organization did a great job. I'll be back.
T. D. from Northern California (12/9/2009) "Well-run inaugural marathon" (about: 2009) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Santa Barbara International Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 The course definitely has rolling hills, but the scenery is very pretty, and the community seemed to support it completely. Shirt could be better for such a high entry fee, and the finish line needed bottles of water and maybe a bit more food.
G. C. from Los Angeles, CA (12/9/2009) "Great potential, but need to change the course" (about: 2009) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Santa Barbara International Marathon COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 This was my fourth marathon (one small one, Surf City, and two large ones, Chicago and Los Angeles). Given that this was a small and inaugural race, I thought that it went very smoothly, with the exception of the half-hour start delay, but this was very well managed by the organizers, even though it was caused by an accident out of their control. I really love the finisher's medal, which was beautiful. I did not care so much about the shirt, which many people did not like, but I bought the long-sleeve technical shirt, which was quite nice. The expo was small, but this was OK since I usually do not stay too long at expos to save my legs. I did not stick around at the finish so I can't comment too much on that part, but the food/drinks were relatively scarce. I stayed at the Bacara Hotel, which was advertised as being a half-mile from the start. This was unfortunately grossly incorrect. While the entrance road to the resort is indeed a half-mile away from the start line, the resort itself is 1.5 miles away because it is a the end of a 1-mile-long, up-and-down, winding road that leads to Hollister, and the hotel did not provide any transportation whatsoever. So for people planning to stay there, be careful or you will end up walking 1.5 miles, with a steep uphill - not great, given the hills you will have to run afterward (see below). Regarding the water/GU stations, I would have liked more frequent GU stops, and better separation between H20 and GU Brew, but given the size of the field (1,700 marathoners), you cannot expect too much. The volunteers did a great job and there was some crowd support pretty much everywhere except on the bike path portion. One thing that annoyed me a little bit was the fact that in the second half, I was getting passed by some fast runners, who, in fact, were running the relay. I understand that this is a good way for organizers to fill the race, but it's psychologically hard for marathon runners in the second half, and especially from miles 20-26. The course was advertised as a fast course; I cannot completely argue with that because I beat my PR by seven minutes; but the elevation profile was deceptive as it seems like there were more hills on the course than on the profile. These rolling hills really beat me up as I did most of my training and long runs on relatively flat areas, and resulted in calf cramps at mile 20 (someone else suggested that this was because of the slanted portions, but I don't know). For people interested in running this marathon, I would definitely suggest training on hills (especially downhills portions) - if they keep the same course. Finally, it would be nice if parts of the course took place on some more scenic areas of Santa Barbara. We did not need the initial loop in Goleta through the business park and UCSB housing residence; the parts at the foothills and on the bike path were nice, as was the downhill to the ocean, but it would be great to run on State Street and more on the waterfront. It might be hard to get the authorization from the city, but it would definitely attract more runners and they could really sell it as a scenic marathon. So I would keep the start in the same area, cut out the first loop, but add more miles towards the end in the downtown/State Street and the waterfront. Overall, I am very glad that I ran it, but I do not think I would come back, unless they change the course for a more scenic one that shows the best Santa Barbara has to offer.
C. T. from Fair Oaks, CA (12/9/2009) "MUCH Room for Improvement" (about: 2009) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Santa Barbara International Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 1 The course is beautiful. Unfortunately, that's about all this race had going for it in its inaugural year. When I pay a triple-digit entry fee, it is unacceptable to receive a cheap cotton t-shirt and only a banana and energy bar at the finish line. The 30-minute delay for the start is also a first, and this was my 31st marathon. But worst of all, the mile markers were not accurate!! This was confirmed by comparing notes with friends and fellow runners, including one with a GPS device. For those of us trying to qualify for Boston, having inaccurate splits is a disaster.
Deb Brassfield from Los Gatos, CA (12/9/2009) "Best City In The USA" (about: 2009) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Santa Barbara International Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 What better city to run a marathon in? Beautiful scenery; beautiful people. It IS the French Riviera of the USA. A lot of rolling hills and a great finish to the beach. You have to run this marathon at least once in your lifetime!!!!!!!!!!

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