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May 17, 2024

Empire State Marathon Runner Comments

Back to Empire State Marathon Information & Reviews

Course 3.9

Organization 3.6

Spectators 3.2

Number of comments: 28 [displaying comments 21 to 28]

More Comments: [ < 1 2 3 > ]

T. G. from Brooklyn, NY (5/5/2012) "Nice half but not well set-up" (about: 2011) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Empire State Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 3 I ran the half with a friend, and it was flat, a little boring, but I imagine it'd be fast if you were trying to run a fast time. Expo and crowd support were okay for me. Anyway, after I finished, we waited for another friend and watched runners come in at the finish line. The metal structure at the finish FELL on a runner. EMS came and people tended to the person hurt, but this is not something that should have happened.
N. L. from Chicago (10/20/2011) "Beautiful Marathon!" (about: 2011) 11-50 previous marathons \| 6+ Empire State Marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 I was very pleased with the Syracuse Marathon. The medals and shirt were some of the best that I have received. The course was beautiful and challenging. I would have preferred Gatorade on the course. Also, the aid stations in the last few miles seemed to have shut down and the the mile markers were wrong or missing. Other than that, it was great! I was surprised by the crowd support and hope that will continue to grow in the coming years. Great Job Syracuse!
P. P. from East Aurora, New York (10/20/2011) "good first race, things to work on" (about: 2011) 2 previous marathons \| 1 Empire State Marathon COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 2 I'm echoing what was said in some of the other comments. I'm giving them credit since this is a first-time marathon and I'm assuming some of the glitches will be ironed out. The expo was small. The nearby Fleet Feet store was full of marathoners and the staff was knowledgably about the event. Parking was fine. It was easy to park near the starting line. The t-shirt and finishers medal are both nice, well above average. Plenty of facilities, I didn't have to wait long for the port-o-potty and the post-race festivities were generous. Since the expo was small (as expected) it would have been nice to have a later pick up time (it ended at 4) or race-morning pick up for people from out of town. Maybe runners could do the pick-up at Fleet Feet and not have to arrive in town so early. The course was hillier than expected, there are no steep ascents but you do spend a fair amount of time gradually climbing. This was not a fast course. The first part of the course is pleasant, going through a park, along the lake, and down country roads. There was some congestion in the early stages that might be an issue if the race expands. The course was very well marked. There wasn't a whole lot of fan support. It seemed that most of the people cheering were family and friends of runners. The live band on mile 18 was great! The section through Baldwinsville was nice where folks did turn out to cheer. My primary concern is that the course was not closed. Traffic was an issue. One pickup truck weaved in and out while turning on and off the street and other cars would nudge through runners or not move over. I have to give credit to the one police officer who stopped and reprimanded a driver. I don't know who she was, but I appreciated her looking out for the runners. Leaving Baldwinsville we ran up hill along 31. The road was not closed. We were running on the side of the road, which was at a pitch and had poor footing. It was narrow enough that there were sections we ran single file with traffic cones (marking the course) to watch out for. Traffic did not make way and was coming to our backs. If you needed to pass you sometimes had to step out on to the road, which was unnerving. The section along 31 would not be able to safely accommodate many more runners. In the future, organizers will have to close a portion of the road or find another course. The course was closed for the final few miles on 370. This was a nice feature. However, there was very little crowd support in the last couple miles. As someone else noted, they had two 24 mile signs, about ¾ miles apart. Please don't do that again.
M. J. from WNY (10/20/2011) "Room for Improvement" (about: 2011) 3 previous marathons \| 1 Empire State Marathon COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 2 Overall this marathon experience wasn't negative, however there were certainly areas in which to improve the course and community involvement. -Start of race was very low key, no music etc. from where I stood I didn't even hear any indication that the race had started. -The first few miles had pylons (a common theme) down the middle of the path making them very difficult to see amidst the crowd of runners, I saw several people stumble on them. -The park run was very nice, as was the cornfield, path to Baldwinsville, and the village. The hills were not that difficult, yet were ever present in the 2nd quarter (as well as in parts of the 3rd) -The run out of Baldwinsville was ruff. Traffic was not rerouted and runners had to share a very narrow, very sloped shoulder for miles. This really took its toll on my legs. -The Band at 18 was great; could have used more along the way. -Mismarking of the 24th mile was rough. -The final 2-3 miles were very isolated on a closed down (expressway) no spectators and limited aid stations. -Postrace was fine, could have been more places to sit/lay down. -Perfect Weather
J. B. from Syracuse, NY (10/18/2011) "Not bad for the 1st year" (about: 2011) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Empire State Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 I've been waiting for a Marathon for Syracuse, and am very happy that this is finally here. Getting bibs at the expo was easy...small expo, as expected. The course itself was great. A little hilly leading into Baldwinsville, but overall, a pretty flat course. No drastic hills. A couple things to improve upon would be a key check. If they had one, I didn't see it. Also, the mile markers seemed to be missing or hidden towards the end of the marathon....and please don't ever put mile marker 24 at mile 23 again :) Overall, a good experience, volunteers were great, and I look forward to doing this again...if I decide to ever run another one.
t. c. from syracuse (10/17/2011) "Nice small marathon" (about: 2011) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Empire State Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 The course was very pleasant with the first third being flat and through a park alongside Lake Onondaga. The middle third was a series of rolling country hills with great views and the last third was back along the lake, finishing at the baseball stadium. The course was easier than Boston or Lake Placid but harder than Chicago or Miami. If you have the legs for it, you can BQ on this course. The weather was absolutely perfect and the autumn leaves were at their peak. The race was fairly well organized for the inaugural running of this event. The start and finish were at the same site and there was little or no fuss or confusion. There was ample parking. The marathon started a half hour before the half marathon, and that kept the start less congested - it was a good idea. The post race refreshments were fine and results and times were posted almost immediately. There were a couple of things that they could improve on to make a good thing better. The aid stations were plentiful, but many of them had only water and no sports drink. The stations that had sports drinks sometimes had the sports drinks before the water and others afterwards-somewhat confusing when you're on the fly. Not all of the roads in the middle third of the race were completely closed to traffic and the runners were on the shoulder of the road. I hope that as this race grows - and it should - the townships are more accomodating and close those roads completely. (I would give the course 5 stars if they fix this.) The expo was in a suburban mall; as the race grows I hope that the expo could be moved someplace more exciting downtown. There were only 700+ finishers in the marathon, so some of the race you were running alone, but that is OK with me. The spectators were plentiful and warmly supportive especially when considering the relatively small number of runners. The local media and community were enthusiatic about the event. I hope the organizers keep at it, and I plan to be back next year.
E. W. from Albany, NY (10/17/2011) "Great first year for this race!" (about: 2011) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Empire State Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 This was the first year of the Empire State Marathon, and it went very smoothly. The course was beautiful, and the organization and support were terrific. I was thrilled to find so many water/gel stations. The foliage was highlighted throughout the course, and the course directors and volunteers should be very proud.
A. E. from Howell, NJ (10/16/2011) "Great Inaugural Race!" (about: 2011) 3 previous marathons \| 1 Empire State Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This was an amazing race! The course was nice and varied and the 3 hills, though challenging, were over by mile 19. The organization was excellent, the medal and tech shirt gorgeous. Water/Gu/SportsDrinks were readily available as previously announced. Nice job!

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