Click Here: Please visit our Sponsor

May 3, 2024

Buffalo Marathon Runner Comments

Back to Buffalo Marathon Information & Reviews

Course 4.1

Organization 3.8

Spectators 3.3

Number of comments: 315 [displaying comments 31 to 41]

More Comments: [ < 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 .. 32 > ]

B. B. from Pittsburgh, Pa (5/27/2014) "Very Scenic Course" (about: 2014) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Buffalo Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 A very scenic course through beautiful neighborhoods, nice parks, lakeside roads and a very cool finish downtown. Course was generally flat with a few gentle hills. A great staging area in the convention center with indoor plumbing and chairs! It was very welcoming before, and especially, after the race. Perfect running weather,but a little cool before and afterward. This race was quite a value at $70, including a really good shirt and medal and free pre-race meal. On- course support was more than adaquate, with good community support. My only complaint is the difficulty I had getting into the very congested starting area from the back of the corral. It made it quite a challange to get near my pacer. Maybe next year have a few different openings into the starting area. A really good experience through a very nice smaller city.
M. T. from Baltimore (5/26/2014) "Awesome" (about: 2014) 3 previous marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 My girlfriend ran this marathon and it was fantastic. I jumped in and did the second half with her. I was completely blown away. I did Boston a month ago and although it didn't have the 'specialness' of Boston it was a vastly easier/more pleasant experience. We stayed at the Hyatt (really nice) which was 200 yards from the finish and start. It cost about 60% what our hotel cost for Boston, which took us two hours to get to after the race. Course was great/fast, volunteers were friendly, post-race/awesome. Good fans. Expo was great. Bart Yasso gave an amusing talk. Free beer and pizza!! Complete home run.
B. P. from New jersey (5/25/2014) "Ok marathon" (about: 2014) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Buffalo Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 2 I thought there were a number of positives and a number of negatives with this marathon. Let me start with the positives... 1. Very easy to get to the start and parking was no problem which made getting out of the area after the race much easier 2. Nice marathon shirt 3. Flat course - I felt as if I was going downhill much more than uphill 4. Adequate number of water/Gatorade stations as well as vasoline, gel stations, fruit, etc. And now for the negatives... 1. I thought the organization was a little spotty. I had to pick up my number on Sunday morning before the race and all I received was my number and shirt - no goody bag? My friend actually asked one of the volunteers for a shirt and she gave him one! I didn't feel that there was adequate leadership directing us around near the start and finish 2. Medals - seemed a bit cheap looking and small. Not like the one on the website. 3. pacer - I started the race with the 3:50 pacer and was going along well with him but then he switched with another guy about halfway and the new guy was going much too fast. 4. A little too crowded for the first half of the race until the half marathoners finished. There were a few points where the course really bottlenecked. The second half was much lighter crowds. Almost too light. Felt like most people only ran the half. Overall I was happy with race and I would run it again. I guess I'm more used to running bigger races and might need to change my expectations when dealing with a smaller race. If you are looking for a small city race with a nice scenic flat course this is nice race for you.
D. L. from Buffalo, New York (5/25/2014) "Warning: Roads are terrible" (about: 2014) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Buffalo Marathon COURSE: 1 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 Warning: roads are terrible. Potholes, large cracks, chucks of asphalt missing. Have to pay a lot of attention to the streets. The mile markers were displayed at ground level and are easy to miss. Only a couple clocks on course. It's flat. But there is no way I would do this race again. Post race refuel line was the worst I've ever seen for a race this size. Just had water, bananas, and a pretzel bag. My recommendation: find any other race if you are looking for a New York marathon.
M. M. from Rochester (1/20/2014) "Great Marathon for a PR" (about: 2013) 11-50 previous marathons \| 3 Buffalo Marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 I have run this marathon 3 times. The course is awesome! Its relatively flat and fast-paced. Miles 16-22 are a little boring but the last couple miles are great! I'm definitely going to run this again
D. O. from Arkansas (11/20/2013) "great time" (about: 2012) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Buffalo Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 Awesome time had by myself and my wife. She actually got a PR in the half and I was 8 minutes short of a PR in the full.
S. W. from Madison, WI (7/21/2013) "Thank you Buffalo!" (about: 2012) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Buffalo Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 I was so lucky to get to run in this race. I was originally going to run the Madison Marathon that day, but because of the heat, it got cancelled. Since I was able to register at the expo, I decided to travel to Buffalo to do this marathon instead and I was so lucky to get in and run it last minute! The course was beautiful at some points (such as along the lake and in some residential areas), but I didn't enjoy running next to a factory or in the park. I could have used more crowd support throughout the last half of the race because I got quite lonely at times. I am so thankful that I was able to run this race at the last minute. Thank you Buffalo!
C. D. from Pennsylvania (6/7/2013) "Love the course!" (about: 2013) 4-5 previous marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 After running 3 big city marathons (NYC, Philly, Nike Women's San Fran) I wasn't sure what to expect from a smaller marathon. My expectations were vastly exceeded by Buffalo! I loved the free pasta dinner (free for runners, only $5 for anyone else), especially the free beer! The course really is flat and fast...and scenic! Great views from the shores of Lake Erie and the park we run through in the 2nd half was lovely. Also terrific volunteers on course, handing out not only water and Gatorade, but fruit, gels, Vaseline and therma-freeze! The final element that I appreciated about this marathon is the ease of staying at the Hyatt (which gives a great runners discount and serves a delicious breakfast!) I walked right out the front door 15 min prior to the start and was in back in the room, in the shower within 20 min after finishing! My ONLY complaint was music was being played at ridiculously high decibels at post race party/awards ceremony. I would have immediately exited, but sat around waiting for my award while none of my family members could even talk to each other! Otherwise, awesome marathon...I highly recommend and would love to come back!
B. F. from Wellsboro PA (5/30/2013) "At least you can find good wings..." (about: 2013) 11-50 previous marathons \| 2 Buffalo Marathons COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 Expo - an upgrade from the single hotel room expo in 2008 but still falls very short of expectations for a 'big' city marathon... the second most populus metroplis in NY Course - features some of the tourists sites of downtown, but running on open roads, a bike path, and an open access area in Deleware park are huge dissappointments Medal - leaves quit a bit to be desired, as a runner who runs for medals and experience rather than running for BQ times, i was disappointed Spectators - other than the group that traveled with me, the others seemed like stereotypical new yorkers (rude and put out that you were holding up traffic while running in their city) Post Race Party - THE ONLY BRIGHT SPOT...plenty of pizza and free beer, a perfect way to celebrate a PR (which i did set in spite of my complaints and no thanks to the pace team)
R. M. from New York City (5/29/2013) "Pleasantly surprised - great organization" (about: 2013) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Buffalo Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 In looking to put in a serious effort, I was pleasantly surprised after entering at last moment - another marathon cancelled. I didn't need to be overwhelmed by numbers of runners, spectators, or organizational requirements, but wanted to feel part of something. I felt was very well organized, and volunteer support far exceeded expectations (drink stations far more frequent than advertised). Did not notice hills, other than few short overpasses. Relaxing scenery without being spectacular. Breeze was annoying but limited to one direction by lake; otherwise sheltered. Was usually able to find a small group to run with, but it might have been lonely for backmarkers. Sufficient spectators, both in masses and small groups. Easy pickup, but Buffalo expo competes with larger nearby marathons in Ottawa (soldout) and Burlington (hills) on same day. Some may prefer different starts for marathon and half, but inevitably slow participants impede faster runners in the other, and combined fields provided early atmosphere for the relatively small marathon field (not big enough to cause real traffic). Buffalo easily accessed by travellers, although absolutely NOTHING available downtown outside of hotels. A valid option for a pleasant marathon and fast time.

More Comments: [ < 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 .. 32 > ]

Quick Links

Marathon Search
Upcoming US Marathons
Upcoming International Marathons
Search Marathon Results
Latest Running News
Recent Newsletters
Race Director Tools

Become an Advertiser

Click Here: Please visit our Sponsor

Click Here: Please visit our Sponsor

Click Here: Please visit our Sponsor

Click Here: Please visit our Sponsor

Become an Advertiser

© 2000-2024, All Rights Reserved by MarathonGuide.com LLC

Privacy Policy Refund Policy Terms of Use