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May 19, 2024

Seattle Marathon Runner Comments

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Course 4.1

Organization 3.9

Spectators 3.1

Number of comments: 182 [displaying comments 141 to 151]

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C. D. from Seattle, WA (11/29/2004) "And they say Seattle has bad weather" (about: 2004) 3 previous marathons \| 1 Seattle Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 The weather was ideal for running a marathon. It was a little chilly (42 F) but it was mostly sunny and barely even a breeze. All in all this was a fantastic marathon experience for me. The organization was good, the course was absolutely beautiful running along the water most of the way. Yes, there are some hills at the end and yes, they are as steep as people have said. But, if you train for them, they are certainly manageable. There are definitely PR's to be had on this course especially if you train well for the hills (I improved on mine by 7 minutes). As many uphills as there are, there are also plenty of downhills. So, be prepared for both. The middle part of the course is extremely flat and scenic. The volunteers were all wonderful. The only thing I noticed was that there was very little in the way of crowd support even with the perfect weather. I just don't think Seattle 'embraces' this event, and I am not sure what can be done to change that. I am not one who needs big crowds though, so this did not bother me, but others might want to take note.
T. K. from Washington state (11/28/2004) "Wooo! What a RUSH!" (about: 2004) 1 previous marathon \| 1 Seattle Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 Just got back from running this little baby. Oh my GOSH! The course is beautiful. The weather couldn't have been nicer. My husband and I ran together and loved almost every minute of it. I'd been warned not to even consider Seattle for a first marathon. The course is definitely not a 'fast' course, but it's doable. If you know, going in, that you're going to hit some nasty hills towards the end, it isn't so bad. Just remember, hills build buns of steel! Embrace the hills! The expo was great...lots of freebies and support. The shirts were a funky puke green color, but I'm not complaining about a technical shirt! The day of the race was pretty and clear. The scenery is amazing. It's so beautiful, in fact, you almost forget you're going UPHILL as you run through the arboretum. Post-race blankets, coffee, and Krispy Kremes were appreciated. Looking forward to running again next year!
Iam Nottelling from Spokane,WA (11/9/2004) "Second tier marathon." (about: 2003) 2 previous marathons \| 1 Seattle Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 New York, Chicago, RNR, LA. All are wonderfully organized. You feel like it's $80-$100 bucks well spent. Seattle is 2nd-class. Good, but not great. Seattle is gorgeous, the course is beautiful (except the floating bridge - the view becomes redundant and miserable if it's raining), the people are friendly, and the expo is all you can expect. However; the morning of race day - only water was provided; no bagels or Powerade. Spectators are scattered. The course aid was adequate, and the finish (if you are fast) offers an array of replenishment. Maybe they could have a separate replenishment aisle for half versus full marathoners? I plan on running this again.
Mary Young from Coopersburg, PA (7/8/2004) "The weather could not have been better" (about: 2003) 1 previous marathon \| 1 Seattle Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 I ran the half marathon in 2001 and 2002. In 2003, I decided to check out the middle of the course. I was pleased for most of the course. When I got to the floating bridge there was no sun and lots of wind. That had to be the worst part of the course for me. I am not dependent on crowd support while running so the sections where there were no spectators didn't bother me too much. There were plenty of water stops and port a pots on the course. There was no food by the time I finished though. That was a little disappointing. The expo was good. There were lots of interesting vendors and so many freebies. Your arms got sore from carrying your goodie bag. If I can get to Seattle over the Thanksgiving holiday to visit my relatives again, I will definitely run this marathon.
L. F. from Kent, WA (6/13/2004) "My favorite run" (about: 2003) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Seattle Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 The course is beautiful and fun to run with just the right amount of challenges. Weather was cool and windy but no rain! Fans handing out M&M's at mile 16 and Crispy Kreme's at mile 23!!
Kevin Runner from Denver, CO (5/16/2004) "Seattle is beautiful and runner friendly, but..." (about: 2003) 2 previous marathons \| 1 Seattle Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 4 The city of Seattle is a beautiful place for a run like this. The temperature was cool over the entire course. The spectators were encouraging. The hills made for a good pace change, but were not overwhelming for me. One thing to be advised of: slower runners got poor race support. The power gel stations on the course had only the nasty to eat flavors by the time I got there. The finish line had no Powerade. And the famous soup at the end was nowhere to be seen. Not so much as a cracker. The only recovery foods available to me were coffee, bottled water, and oranges. It was almost an hour after I finished running before I could get to a place to buy something to eat. Slow runners be advised: be ready to provide for your own recovery at the end.
B. M. from Calgary, Alberta (4/3/2004) "Awesome course. Great organization. Fun city." (about: 2003) 1 previous marathon \| 1 Seattle Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 The marathon course is beautiful and is a real character builder - dont change it, not every course has to be a Boston qualifier. Although it was my first marathon, I'm sure that if you can do this course you can probably do most. Overall the organization was excellent. The Pros: Awesome course - very scenic and uncrowded/real fun city/good time of year/great weather/monorail transport to start was great/stations and volunteers excellent/chowder at the end tasty/Boy Scouts bag storage in stands is efficient/expo good/stadium finish exciting especially with name called out on loud speaker/mileage well marked - only missed one sign/Westin hotel conveniently located with great food (expensive). The Cons: Downhill concrete off ramps at end deadly/big line up at first porta-potty (2-3mi?)/carbo load dinner good but expensive ($30 for plate of spaghetti) and uninspiring (how about a motivational speaker?)/no bagels at finish/technical race shirt should have Seattle Marathon Logo on it - only logo found on cheap cotton t-shirt. Overall: Highly recommended!
B. P. from Washington D.C. (12/31/2003) "A pleasingly punishing traipse... " (about: 2003) COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 The course was beautiful, the weather was extremely cooperative and the hills were aplenty (and where there weren?t hills, the wind was there to keep you company). You take the good with the bad, I say. I?ve run 13 marathons now and this was probably the most difficult. Oh sure, the stitch in my side at 16 didn?t help matters, but neither did the winds along the lake. I?m somewhat glad the stitch hit before the Cardiac Hill at 20, at least I didn?t have to kick myself post-race for getting broken on that thing (a 150-foot rise in about a half mile that late in the course??... a little sadistic I think). I was hoping for a Boston qualifier, but Seattle would have none of that. Time aside... I honestly cannot say enough good things about my experience in Seattle. The spectators were very warm, as were the people of Seattle ? very nice. At the fluid stations the water flowed like wine. Though I will say the stations could be a little tight. You did have to know what was where ? water first, Powerade last. But, after the first stop all was apparent. Running through the downtown shopping district was great fun... eye candy all around ? Christmas decorations, ornate buildings, lots of cheering fans, and more than a few of the faithful waving signs. The pillars of the Monorail overhead were great fun to weave in and out of... not so fun to run into. Picking myself up post-incident added at least a minute or two to the chip time and lump or two to the old forehead. Outside of the embarrassment of colliding with a 20-ton concrete pillar at mile half-ish and the pain of a side stitch at mile 16 (both of which are fairly avoidable, the first being more so), Seattle is a fantastic place to run a THON. However, do come into this race realizing a cakewalk, it is not ? it can be windy along the lake and pack a carabineer and twine for that mountain at 20. But it is certainly one to do. My end goal of all these marathons (outside of qualifying for Boston) is to run one in every state. And this is the one to run in Washington. Best of luck to those running it next year and no messing with those Mono-rail pillars... I?m serious.
A. H. from Heber, Utah (12/21/2003) "The volunteers were the best !!!!" (about: 2003) COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This is the benchmark of how a marathon should be run. They probably had a hand in the great weather as well. The spectators and volunteers were the best. I really liked the course layout and how well documented it was. I can't say enough about it, but thank you.
R. E. from Bozeman, MT (12/12/2003) "Beautiful course, but the wind & hills got me" (about: 2003) COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 This was my first marathon. I found the course quite scenic and interesting but beware: the hills at the end are tough! This is not a fast course. My favorite part of the course was the run around Seward Park and the first mile through downtown Seattle (I liked running under the Monrail and between the tall buildings over the first mile). The course has tougher hills than what I anticipated based on my pre-race examination of the topo map. I ran the first 19 miles at a 6:41 average mile pace then got into big trouble after mile 20. I hit the ?wall? pretty bad and my brain bonked the last 3.2 miles (took me 29 minutes to run this section). I have never felt so lost and hungry before. Over the last 7 miles of the course, the first important uphill section occurs on McGilvra Blvd (it?s a short section, not too bad) at about the 19.5 mile mark. After you get up this short hill, the course levels off. When you take a left onto E. Galier Street things get nasty. E. Galier Street is a short section of the course but the hill is steep! The incline reminds me of the hills in San Francisco. My legs could feel the lactic acid build-up. You then take a left onto E. Madison where the uphill continues about half-way down this street (though the slope is not as bad as E. Galier). Half-way down E. Madison the hill peaks and its then downhill to Lake Washington Blvd. Most of Lake Washington Blvd and E. Interlachen Blvd, including the run through the park (lots of turns) has a slight uphill. After you leave the park the course goes downhill slightly until you hit Mercer Street where there is a slight uphill section, then you take a left into the stadium. The weather in Seattle for the race was wonderful. It was clear and temperature at the start of the race must have been in the high 30?s or low 40?s. The wind was blowing pretty well (from the NE) during the race. During the run out to Mercer Island on the floating bridging the wind was really in your face. This was the only part of the course I did not like. Also, during the run north along Lake Washington the wind was hitting you pretty hard. The fans along the course I thought were great. The cellist playing at mile marker 22 (I think it was mile 22... hard to remember the brain was bonking) made me smile. Also, some of the area residents brought out a tray of doughnuts which I should have sampled. It might have done something to ease the hunger pains. The post-race food I thought was good. I really liked the slurpies. There should have been bagels or muffins though. Maybe the race directors will take care of this next year. The one thing I really would have liked were more chairs in the recovery area. After running 26.2 miles, a person needs a place to park their fanny. Overall, I had a great time in Seattle. The race organizers I thought did a wonderful job. I will definitely consider running this course again next year. I want a rematch with those hills at the end!

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