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May 5, 2024

Gettysburg North-South Marathon Runner Comments

Back to Gettysburg North-South Marathon Information & Reviews

Course 4.2

Organization 4.5

Spectators 4.0

Number of comments: 53 [displaying comments 21 to 31]

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K. S. from Blue Bell, PA (4/30/2013) "A great scenic, historic and challening race" (about: 2013) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Gettysburg North-South Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 I ran the Gettysburg Blue-Gray Half Marathon (sister event) in October and I liked it so much I came back for the full marathon. This race is even better! The course is challenging (especially the first 11 miles) with lots of rolling hills, first crossing a part of the battlefield for about a mile and then running through the beautiful farms and orchards nearby. The course is well marked with flaggers and police at intersections, water stations were well staffed by volunteers, traffic was minimal except for a mile or so near the end where you need to run along the shoulder or bike lane. The organization of the packet pick-up, bus to the start and return, start, finish line (chip timing), post-race refreshments and awards ceremony were top-notch. Excellent medal and nice tech shirts. I ran the first half too aggressively and burned out by the end. I'm eager to come back and run this one again next year!
L. B. from Hay Springs, Nebraska (4/30/2013) "A challenging but doable course if in good shape." (about: 2013) 50+ previous marathons \| 1 Gettysburg North-South Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 The course was real hilly the first half but not too bad the second half. Going up made it hard but then you had time to recover going back down the hills. They had plenty of help at the water tables and plenty of Gu at miles 16 and 20. I wanted some chocolate to drink but they were already out by the time I finished. Would have liked to listen to some civil war music at the end.
E. K. from Hyattsville, Maryland (4/30/2013) "Gorgeous course, Would Recommend and Do Again" (about: 2013) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Gettysburg North-South Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 I thoroughly enjoyed this course. While the hills were a challenge I didn't find myself wishing I never signed up. Spectators and locals were all so very nice and supportive. I never saw a medic station. It would have been nice to get some bio-freeze or ibuprofen along the way. I also wasn't fond of the traffic that kept coming at us or behind us as we had to look back to make sure we weren't going to be hit while crossing roads. Overall, I recommend this course to the intermediate/advanced runner. Spectate for a year if you are interested because it is the most beautiful course I've been on so far.
A. G. from Lancaster, PA (4/30/2013) "Well organized race that is well supported" (about: 2013) 1 previous marathon \| 1 Gettysburg North-South Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This was my first marathon and I was anxious. The race director was fantastic at getting back in touch with information and such. The course was beautiful...loved the orchards in full bloom at the most difficult portion. The aid stations were frequent, as were the porta potties and the volunteers were amazing! Being a slow runner, I was worried about closed aid stations and found them all to be staffed with smiling faces. I loved that they had flagger force in full swing with at least one at each intersection and sometimes 2. The local police parked to block parts to alert traffic to be cautious. The only part that scared me was Goldenville Road around mile 19 where there are hills and it is difficult for oncoming traffic to see you as they fly by. Perhaps a police presence there? That would honestly be my only complaint. I'd love to run it next year!
Keith Straw from Malvern PA (4/30/2013) "If you're local, just do it" (about: 2013) 50+ previous marathons \| 1 Gettysburg North-South Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 2 Lowell Ladd and his volunteers have got this very well organized. It's logistically simple. The start, finish, packets, and drop bags are all in the same location. You have race day packet pickup and a good porta-potty to runner ratio. It's not a fast course, but if you are local then this run should be on your race calendar.
D. J. from Brooklyn, NY (4/29/2013) "Gorgeous hilly country run; easy logistics" (about: 2013) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Gettysburg North-South Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 Gorgeous small-town/rural event, warm supportive vibe, well organized and supported by volunteers, really fun to run due to beauty and challenge of course. Prerace logistics were super easy and met all needs, just drive up, park, easy bag check, and plenty of porta johns. Postrace was pleasant. Hats off to Lowell Ladd and crew for pulling together an exellent event. Hills weren't giant but pretty relentless. The biggest climb is at 11 but there's plenty more to come. I was 10 minutes slower than Wineglass in fall 2012 and was in at least as good shape. I had no problem with roads being open - most were very lightly used country roads, the few cars gave wide berth, and there were tons of flaggers and bike marshals keeping things safe and orderly. Spectators were sparse except at a few spots where folks gathered - you're running past farms most of the way - but you'd come across people often enough and those who were there were nicely supportive. My only on-course issue was missing or hard to see mile markers - the first one I saw was at 4. My only not-on-course gripe - pasta dinner was pretty sad, though it met my nutritional needs. And - if it matters to you - while this is a lovely runners event there's not a big buzz around town.
S. T. from Charlottesville (4/29/2013) "Good race but a lot of room for improvemnts" (about: 2013) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Gettysburg North-South Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 4 This was a third annual race of Gettysburg. There is a good potential here but there is a lot of room for improvement. Positives: - Interesting course with rolling hills, gorgeous farmland scenery with rosebuds in full bloom. Weather was also perfect. -Outstanding course support with excellent volunteers - Small race with simple logistics -A lot of parking space -Nice medal -Historic significance of place Constructive criticism: -Course would be much improved if it would include battlefield and city downtown -There must be more mile markers on the sides of road, not on the pavement -Course was not marked with cones so traffic was a problem especially last two miles appeared very dangerous. -Registration is overpriced since you get for your money only a poor quality tech shirt and a medal! If you ran for South you would need to pay additional $5 for commemorative mug. Sorry, I do not carry money during the race. - This was one of the worst post-race food parties I have seen with dry bagels (no spread), bananas, water and chips only. Overall, I would like to return to Gettysburg to visit but not necessarily to race unless thing get improved.
W. M. from Washington, DC (4/29/2013) "Was not impressed, and won't do again" (about: 2013) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Gettysburg North-South Marathon COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 2 Would not recommend. COURSE: I didn't have an opportunity to drive the course prior to race day, so I was going based only on the online elevation chart, along with a couple other runners who described it as 'rolling hills'. To me, this ended up being a vast understatement. True, there wasn't one singular, truly awful climb, but there are 10-12 medium-sized ones. The majority of these are in the first half of the course, but there are three solid ones from mile 14 on, including one at mile 24. This is a slow course. It's also extremely desolate you will go a few miles without seeing a single spectator, and that is not an exaggeration. The country roads and farms are mildly interesting at first, but for me the boredom factor came into play pretty quickly. ORGANIZATION: This is not a well-organized race. To start, about a 1/4 mile in, a cop let the two leaders overshoot the course by roughly 100 meters (they ran right by him without him saying anything) until OTHER RUNNERS had to yell for them to double back. Most egregiously, there were no aid stations set up between mile 8 and mile 14 when I passed (admittedly, near the front, but still). There was a table set up for the mile 10.5 aid station, but no cups of water and Gatorade and nobody manning the station. Guess the volunteers were running late? That's a pretty cardinal sin for my money. Also included in the comedy of errors was a shuttle bus driver getting lost and causing a large contingent of spectators to arrive late at one of the designated 'viewing areas'. SPECTATORS: Like I said, it's pretty desolate, but I will say that the locals that you do encounter are at least enthusiastic. So that's something. Still, if you're someone who uses the energy of the crowd to get you through that last 10K, avoid this race. I didn't encounter a single spectator after mile 20, until I got to within 200 meters of the finish line.
D. N. from Greenwich, Connecticut (4/6/2013) "Challenging, not scenic and traffic" (about: 2012) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Gettysburg North-South Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 When I registered for Gettysburg I was expecting a plethora of history. This was not the case. The course starts at a school, then heads west then turns north on to country roads with rolling hills. Only once did you get a glimpse of a battlefield. And, the last few miles were on US 15's shoulder (with traffic). I was disappointed because after the race i noticed the beautiful architecture of the downtown area and historical Gettysburg College. I am not sure why the race organizers who started the race at 7 AM couldn't get access to this area (there was no traffic at that hour). I found the race course challenging, the aid stations adequate and the volunteers terrific. Additionally, I like the glass mug for being with the winning team (the North).
J. K. from Bath New York (5/28/2012) "What a pretty run!" (about: 2012) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Gettysburg North-South Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 Had a great time, nice course with lots of cheering and support from the local citizens.Can't wait to do again.

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