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Rocket City Marathon Runner Comments
Back to Rocket City Marathon Information & Reviews
Course 4.0 
Organization 4.7 
Spectators 3.5
Number of comments: 285 [displaying comments 41 to 51]
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W. H. from Pontotoc, MS
(12/24/2012)
 "the best fan support ever!" (about: 2012)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 Rocket City Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 Rocket City is an enjoyable marathon. Great organization. The best fan support all along the course. Mostly flat route but lots of turns. 2012 was warm and humid, 70 degrees, which made for a more challenging day. All the volunteers did a fantastic job! The Holiday Inn was a wonderful host hotel however, the Embassy Suites wanted to charge for a late checkout. I refused and was not charged after checking out at 1 pm. Hunstville really knows how to put on a good marathon. | |
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J. L. from Columbus, OH
(12/24/2012)
 "Pushing 70 in December, really???" (about: 2012)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Rocket City Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 2 You would think that the second Saturday in December would work for northern Alabama but low to mid-60s and intermittently sunny weather pretty much ruined what could have been a great day&. The host hotel was a little pricey and the race discount sold out early but there were gobs of reasonably priced hotels within a few miles and free parking at a nearby downtown garage made paying up for the convenience unnecessary. Handing out bottles of cold water around mile 24 was brilliant and showed that the race organizers could improvise to mitigate the tough conditions. Traffic control was also well done and there was decent crowd support for a small race. This race is set up for cold weather with the start line just outside the front of the host hotel and the finish line in the back parking lot with the post race inside the hotel. I didn't really check out a lot of choices for Alabama but this was a good one. | |
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J. R. from Alexandria, va
(12/12/2012)
 "Good December Race" (about: 2012)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Rocket City Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 So you don't want to travel to Honolulu? Alabama's still on your 50 state list? Come on down to Huntsville. I'd say Rocket City was a good local race, executed well by the local running club. And there are some really good reasons to do this race: 1. Easy logistics. Good flights into Huntsville, with a quick cab ride to hotels nea the start. 2. Few other races on the east coast in early December. 3. Not a budget buster for flights, hotels, or meals. But how's the race? It's o.k. We had an unseasonably warm day for December, but that's historically unusual. Still, it was 60-70F thru the race, so not ridiculously warm. The course is relatively flat, with a few rollers. There's one really dull, unshaeded straightaway from mile10-15 or so. Nothing saps my energy more than a sparse, straight highway going over the horizon. Blech. But I'd be unfair if I didn't compliment the good traffic control, well-stocked aid stations, good 'cheer stations', and decent post-race set up. I stayed at the how hotel, so super convenient. All in all, servicable, and worth a December race, just don't get your hopes up too high. | |
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L. C. from Prattville AL
(12/11/2012)
"Great mid size race!" (about: 2012)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 Rocket City Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 Probably my favorite aspect of this race was the course. It was mostly through cute neighborhoods which offered many turns & broke the monotony of long distances. The size was just about perfect as well. Big enough to be interesting & competitive but not so crowded that you can't get into your stride fairly soon. I ran w/a pace group as well & I appreciated that he (pacer) had run the course a few times before in preparation for the race. | |
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D. R. from Dallas, TX
(12/11/2012)
"Disappointed" (about: 2012)
50+ previous marathons
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 I have been marathoning for many years and heard a lot of good comments about this race. So when it came time to choose a marathon to run in Alabama, I didn't give it much thought. Maybe I was just expecting too much, but I was disappointed. To begin, the race director provided misleading information in response to an email I sent. Second, the course was nothing special - just meandering the neighborhoods - no trails, parks, landmarks, etc. And most importantly (to me) is that headphones are prohibited. I wouldn't mind not having music if I have something worth looking at, but not for 26.2 miles of neighborhoods! Now, it wasn't all that bad, I was just expecting something more. I've run marathons in smaller towns with less to offer that were much more enjoyable to run. | |
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m. h. from Virginia Beach, VA
(12/11/2012)
"Nice Course But Hot Weather!" (about: 2012)
3 previous marathons
| 1 Rocket City Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 I would to start this review by saying this course for me was real nice and run through the neighborhoods of Huntsville. Course was mainly flat with very short stretches of uphill and downhill. The worst part of the day was the heat and humidity. Woke up at 6 am and it was already 60 with high humidity. It only got worse as the race went on and was really bad when the sun came out from behind the clouds. Thank goodness it was mostly cloudy that day. I was still able to get a 9 minute PR and finished with the 3:45 husband and wife team pacers. Finish line folks did a great job with the blankets and making sure everyone was doing ok. The Medal was big and really nice! The post-race food was good with a buffet line of bananas, grapes, moon pies, ice cream bars. The volunteers were awesome at the aid stations and the crowd support was good in the areas that they were at. The Race Hotel (holiday inn) had a nice pasta feed with the great Bill Rodgers the guest speaker. Bill does a great job with the stories and listening to the fans who ask him questions. He was worth the trip without the race. I didnt stay at the Holiday Inn but stayed across the street at the Embassy Suites. It certainly is nicer than the Holiday Inn but I did get charged $40 for a late checkout. Some suggestions for runners of future Rocket City Marathons: Stay at the Holiday Inn, Embassy Suites, or the Springhill Suites which is about a 5-10 minute walk around the corner. It is nice to walk out and go straight to the start and finish and walk up to the room. Sit or stand in the pool at the hotel after the race!!! I sat on the pool for 30 minutes and it helped in keeping my swelling down in legs and feet. In summary, as I am near the beginning of the 50 State project, I am glad I ran this one for the Alabama Marathon. If you train right for this race and use caution on the start, you can come away with a BQ/PR for this race! | |
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Jeff Harrington from Lynchburg, VA
(12/10/2012)
 "It was a rewarding & satisfying experience." (about: 2012)
6-10 previous marathons
| 2 Rocket City Marathons
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 The Rocket City Marathon was a wonderful experience. Last years race (2011) was a good race also... but I was less prepared for the distance and it colored my feelings. Now, five marathons later... I have more perspective. From the race directors to the spectators, the volunteers, the runners, the expo, the city, and the course logistics... I thought this was a class marathon in every respect. With less than 1500 runners, it had a sort of 'family feeling' to it. Bill Rodgers gave a fun speech the night before... and we all had a fine sphagetti feast. Having a tailwind for the last 10 miles was very helpful this year, and it perhaps offset the warmer temps. The first 16 miles required some teamwork (rotating geese formation) to conserve energy. For me, it was the ideal race set up. It could have been cooler (but I won't be greedy). Congratulations to everyone involved! I plan on coming back next year. | |
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J. D. from Signal Mountain, TN
(2/20/2012)
 "Good winter race in the South" (about: 2011)
2 previous marathons
| 1 Rocket City Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 I drove about 2 hours from the Chattanooga area to run this race with a buddy who lives in Huntsville. The expo was nice (especially the opportunity to buy leftover previous years' shirts and hats for cheap). Pasta dinner and speaker were great. Weather was cool but not bad for December. Spectators were rather sparse but very enthusiastic! Medal looks great! Really my only knock on the race is the course itself ... not very scenic unless you think generic suburban neighborhoods are scenic :) And there are lots of turns (probably the most I have ever seen on a race course) so you are almost guaranteed to run the course a little long. The gel stations at miles 12 and 19 were very helpful. Overall I'd do it again. | |
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A. B. from Boston area, MA
(12/23/2011)
"Great experience overall" (about: 2011)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Rocket City Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 I ran Rocket City for my Alabama marathon as I pursue the 50 states. Overall I was very impressed with the experience. I loved that it was only a marathon and no other races were involved. The most amazing perk I will highlight now in case you don't read the rest of my post: stay at the host hotel (Holiday Inn) if you can because the race starts right out in front of the hotel and finishes in the hotel parking lot! I was able to use the bathroom in my hotel room at 7:55am and get out for the 8:00 start! And I could immediately walk right up to my room after the finish for a shower. (Alternate choice: Embassy Suites is across the street). Pros include: -nice little expo -great swag from previous years available for sale at deeply discounted prices -all miles very well marked with giant flags that you could see from far away -spectators were AWESOME, much better than expected -nice post-race food (including ice cream sandwiches!) -the medal is AMAZING, perhaps the best I've ever received -helpful race packet online before the race -they offered a post-race dinner the night of the race that didn't cost much and was a nice touch -they had Dick Beardsley as a speaker and guest this year and he was great Cons: -need more aid stations; though they did tell us ahead of time where they would be, many of them were more than 2 miles apart. At the very least, put an aid station every mile during the last 5 miles. -men's shirt was MUCH nicer than women's shirt (women's was white and paper thin and see-through and you couldn't even read the design; they did generously let me switch to a men's shirt after the race) -section on Bailey Cove Rd. (?) was a long stretch on a busy road and a bit dangerous (a volunteer was hit and badly injured...prayers to him/her and family) -need to better control runner traffic at the finish and just inside hotel on the way to food. Runners literally stopped ON the finish line and also clogged up the hallway just inside the hotel door. Post-marathon 101 is that you need to keep moving and it's hard to do that when people get in the way by just standing there. There were plenty of volunteers at the finish...just put 1 or 2 more to help direct traffic just inside door. Overall, this was a GREAT race and I give it high marks. I urge you to consider this race. You won't be disappointed! | |
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J. P. from Sioux Falls, SD
(12/13/2011)
"Thank you Huntsville" (about: 2011)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 Rocket City Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This was the 35th Rocket City Marathon so it's not surprising that the race was so well organized. With all the turns thru town, I can certainly agree with the no headphone rule- although some real weird thoughts go through a person's mind when they're used to having one. I gave 5 stars to the spectators not because of the quantity of people but quality... I wore my college 'Huskies' shirt and had countless shout-outs (and the 'Course Liar' was hilarious). Post race food inside the Holiday Inn is another plus. In spite of the cold temps and breeze on the last half of the course this was a wonderful marathon. |
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