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May 14, 2024

Town of Celebration Marathon Runner Comments

Back to Town of Celebration Marathon Information & Reviews

Course 4.5

Organization 4.9

Spectators 3.8

Number of comments: 30 [displaying comments 11 to 21]

More Comments: [ < 1 2 3 > ]

D. W. from Lisbon, CT (2/3/2016) "Outstanding" (about: 2016) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Town of Celebration Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 Great organization and fantastic course. The town was beautiful and was a great way to keep your attention occupied. Plenty of hydration stops and the local radio station was a PLUS at various locations throughout. The Police and volunteers were amazing as was the town to host such an event. No problems with parking, regardless of when you show up (though, the later you show, the further you walk). I would certainly recommend this small town marathon to anyone. KUDOs to the organizers.
P. C. from Ohio USA (2/2/2016) "Enjoyable Small Marathon" (about: 2016) 50+ previous marathons \| 3 Town of Celebration Marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 Such an enjoyable marathon in a special town. Management is outstanding. Pace team is great. One of my favorite early year runs.
c. w. from pottstown, pa (2/10/2015) "Nice run in the suburbs" (about: 2015) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Town of Celebration Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 My running partner chose this race and it is nicely located close to Orlando and the theme parks. The course is pancake flat and there are water stops about every 1.5 miles. Plenty of porta-potties at the start and tons of food at the finish. Out of nearly 30 marathons, this was a top 5 for the food available at the finish. We arrived 45 minutes before the start of the race and parked within a 3 minute walk to the start. The shirt and medal design were above average. The only con is that the expo should have been larger.
E. K. from Tampa, FL (2/4/2015) "Great new race - recommend!" (about: 2015) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Town of Celebration Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 2 I ran this as a convenient local marathon, but as a veteran marathon runner, I was very impressed by the organization and experience. The race director was helpful and responsive with requests, the course was very nice with great water and nutrition. Good energy at the start and finish. A little thin on cheering along the course, but they clearly made an effort to have some support out there. The only complaint that I might have is that there wasn't much food left when I finished the full marathon - and I ran a 3:45, so I can only imagine what was available for those who were slower.
C. B. from Florida (1/30/2015) "Excellent Marathon" (about: 2015) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Town of Celebration Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 Many great things to say about this race. Pros: 1. Course - although I find Celebration generally a bit Stepford Wives-esque, it was a pretty scenic course. The boardwalk section was great and really broke things up mentally. This is a completely flat, very fast course, although it does have a lot of turns. 2. Entertainment - The DJs and band at various points really lifted my spirits and were well placed in the one stretch that gets a bit lonely. 3. Race shirt - Gender specific shirts that are wearable both as street wear and for running/gym. (As an aside, I can't believe many race directors still only offer men's shirts even though half or more of the participants are women. It's not unisex, it's a man's shirt) 4. After race party. Lots of varied food from local vendors. 5. Great energy from volunteers and spectators 6. Size - perfect size race. Lots of people the first half but not so many it was ever too crowded. Much more sparse on second loop but never lonely. 7. Transfers - the race director allows transfers between half and full and between participants. i can't understand why other races won't do this. 8. Organization - Lots of nice small touches. Separate medals for half and full, race specific disposable 'jackets' at the finish line instead of generic space blankets. A running cap in the reusable race bag. 9. Very reasonable entry fee with above mentioned transfer policy. Cons: Not really any 1. Course - not a big deal but the mile after the split from the half is a bit confusing and feels like a lot of random turns. It was well signed but I still started going down the wrong side of the street (volunteer placed there to steer me back). It's kind of a slow section with a lot of sharp turns for several miles which slow you down feel pointless right after a sudden loss of energy from leaving the half marathoners. 2015 had absolutely perfect marathon weather (mid 40s to low 50s, clear, no wind) and I also ran a pretty big PR. I'll definitely be back.
R. W. from Miami Lakes, FL (1/29/2015) "Outstanding! When Can I Register for 2016?" (about: 2015) 3 previous marathons \| 1 Town of Celebration Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 I have only run 3 marathons but this was by far the most enjoyable course with the best organization. Everyone involved was extremely friendly, polite and pleasant - organizers, volunteers, spectators and other runners. The Town is simply beautiful and spotless. The course was flat, interesting, well-marked and fun. The post-race experience was very good with lots of food in market area of Celebration. I really have no complaints and would have given 5 stars except that I am reserving 5 stars for some truly remarkable natural settings. (A few more porta-potties would have avoided lines during the race.) When can we register for next year?!
Bill Pauls from Columbia, Missouri (1/27/2015) "Most Beautiful Course! I have run 85 marathons" (about: 2015) 50+ previous marathons \| 1 Town of Celebration Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 I am an RD & a marathoner.In only it's 2nd year this marathon is fantastic. One of the most beautiful courses I have run (85 marathons). Very well organized, run like a finely tuned machine. You won't be sorry you signed up for this one. Almost flat & pretty fast. Nice size (2500 both races 1/2 and full), nice finish area. GREAT job RD & volunteers! Rated 1/2 star down because spectators were sparse in many areas, but where they were, they were great, especially at the finish. GREAT finish area Band! I 'danced in' when I heard them :)
C. H. from Virginia (1/26/2015) "Worth the trip!" (about: 2015) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Town of Celebration Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 I chose this race to get Florida for my 50 states, and I was happily rewarded! This is a great small-but-not-too-small race. We were lucky with the weather, with a cool morning, warming up to the high-50s by finish, which allowed me to get my 2nd fastest time! The small touches made all the difference: Good small expo with massages, Great bamboo shirts, tons of spirited volunteers and all aid stations were well-stocked for the marathoners, even though it was a 2-loop course. The boardwalk section was a nice alternative to roads, although they were slightly slick, and with lots of quick turns, you had to watch your step. My only recommendation for the RD would be to work on a way to better identify the split where the half and the full go separate ways...it kind of caught me off guard, and several people seemed a bit confused. Otherwise, great post-race party, thankful for the numerous and helpful pace groups, and overall a great experience!
A. H. from Lake County, Florida (1/25/2015) "Fun course, fun town, great orginization" (about: 2015) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Town of Celebration Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 I ran Celebration today. Kudos to the organizers. They lived up to their claims! Post race food was awesome. All water stations were manned and organized. The race started on time. The course was safe and highlighted the cute little town of celebration. I am a tough critic. I value my money, and don't like parting with it.. But the celebration marathon was well worth the entry fee.
francis kwok from New York, NY (2/13/2014) "Great inaugural maratjon" (about: 2014) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Town of Celebration Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 I really don't like inaugural races but took a chance as the RD was veteran marathoner, and I am happy I did. The biggest compliment I can give was the entire process (from the expo to the finish) felt like this was the all volunteer committee 5th year organizing the race. The second biggest compliment is I would give is I would run this race next year. While all races have issues, it really wasnt any more or less serious than the other 16 marathons I have run. There is a nice vibe to the race with energetic volunteers at all the aid stations and there was some support from the residents, though it appears that many escaped to avoid all the road closures, but there was a nice family to put out a bottle of Makers Mark and whiskey along the course. The two loop course was very flat, with one tiny ascent early to go over a small bridge, and was on road and wooden boardwalks. The best part was running through on the boardwalk through a small woodsy area, even with the many turns. Be warned that there are residents who use the course. Lots of porta johns at the start, parking was easy if you got to the lot by the expo before 5:30 am. Nice medal. The only major negative was the lack of sufficient signage or guidance at the first half mile at the start of the second loop. We had to run in the street against traffic and for a bit I thought I missed a turn. The only other issue was the beer guy at the finish said I had to obtain a postcard before serving me, so why did they issue blue bracelets at the expo for food and beer? I heard reports the sponsors ran out of food so the RD bought pizzas for the 5-6 hour finishers, which was a nice touch. Nothing like pizza and beer at the finish at a low key, next vibe race organized by runners for runners.

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