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Apr 29, 2024

Chicago Marathon Runner Comments

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Course 4.7

Organization 4.3

Spectators 4.9

Number of comments: 949 [displaying comments 51 to 61]

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c. w. from pottstown, pa (10/25/2014) "Great big city marathon" (about: 2014) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Chicago Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 After all of the rave reviews from the fellow runners, I had to try Chicago. The organization is 1st rate. Packet pick-up is easy. After 25 marathons, I never thought that I would see an expo as good as Detroit's but Chicago is the equal to the motor city. The roads have potholes that the other reviewers noted. Excellent post race food. There were substantial lines to get your packet and will probably be improved in the future. Getting to the race from the outer suburbs and airport was very easy and highly recommended to avoid the over priced downtown hotels. I would recommend this race over Boston without hesitation.
M. O. from Cincinnati, Ohio (10/19/2014) "Fantastic" (about: 2014) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Chicago Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 This was my first time running Chicago, and I hope to run it again. It was truly a first-class event, from start to finish. I really enjoyed running through the city and the crowd support was great. My only criticisms are the fact that there aren't clocks at every mile - sometimes they were at the mile, and other times they were at the kilometer. My Garmin died at mile 20, and I had no idea how fast I was going for the last 6 miles. Clocks at each of the last 6 miles would have helped me a lot! My only other real criticism is the banana stations at the end of the course. People peeled their bananas and threw the peels - or whole chunks of banana - on the ground. It was messy and slippery. Overall, I had a great time and would love to run this race again next year, lottery permitting!
M. R. from Brooklyn, New York (10/16/2014) "An Excellent Big-City Marathon" (about: 2014) 11-50 previous marathons \| 3 Chicago Marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 I've run this race twice before, and it just keeps on getting better: I PR'd and BQ'd. Course is still flat, the weather this year was perfect, and the crowd support was consistently excellent throughouteven in the less-populated areas toward the end of the race. To organize 40k+ runners through a major metropolis requires extraordinary logistical command and volunteer commitment, and I thought both were peerless. One complaint is that the line to pick up one's bag post-race is overlong, but that can be easily addressed. All in all, a superbly staged marathon, which showcases the city and its people in the best possible light.
B. C. from Sydney, Australia (10/15/2014) "First Class" (about: 2014) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Chicago Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 The Good: Absolutely top class organisation for such a large event (at 41,000+ runners this race is a beast). Lots of information provided before the event. Expo was great, the free buses from downtown locations were fantastic. Flat fast course, perfect weather. Start/finish in downtown location made this a very easy race to run, no hassles (I always found the early morning ferry to Staten Island for the NYC marathon quite irritating). The course takes in some very diverse neighborhoods - not particularly intersting in parts, but always enjoyable. Despite the crowds I never felt boxed in and was never required to slow to a walk due to crowds/bottlenecks. Great spectator support along much of the course, not quite at NY or London levels but still fantastic - the city of Chicago seems to really support the race, and the locals are a friendly and supportive bunch. Aid stations were fantastic - plentiful, long, well stocked, consistently laid out so you knew exactly where to find water, gatorade, etc. The Great: Start corrals. The best starting sequence and organisation of any race I have run. Was not required to pass a bunch of slow runners at the start, nor was I passed by faster runners. The start is so smooth due to the corral assignments, which contributes a lot to the race being able to support such a large field. I wish other marathons would learn from Chicago. The Bad: Nothing really. If I was to be pedantic: the course has lots of tight corners that some don't like. The streets are very rough in places (cold winters mean they have to plow the streets of snow, which cuts up the road surface) - need to take care not to trip on the potholes. Gear pickup after the race could be better organised (the volunteers had to sift through boxes of bags to find runners' gear - was quite slow and inefficient. Would have been horrible on a cold day, not a big deal in 2014 due to the perfect weather). Defintely a world class marathon, I will be back.
Mike Weaver from Carrollton, GA (10/15/2014) "All Around Best Marathon in the USA!" (about: 2014) 11-50 previous marathons \| 2 Chicago Marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This was my second time running Chicago, and it again did not disappoint. Wonderful weather, great (mostly) flat course, and cheering supportive fans over the entire 26.2 miles. Bib pickup was a breeze (with free shuttles), corrals were very well supervised, lots of water, gatorade, bananas throughout the course. The most fun part of this race is running through 29 different neighborhoods, each going out of their way for support and enthusiasm. If I could only do one marathon each year, Chicago would be the one!
R. G. from Fort Wayne, IN, USA (10/15/2014) "Everything they say about it is true" (about: 2014) 3 previous marathons \| 1 Chicago Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 Too many good things happened this year to single any out as the best. The weather was perfect no adjective is needed for that. The start and finish were well-oiled machines. The finish line food was better than a lot of parties I've attended. And it really IS FAST, and NOT as pancake flat as I feared. There were a few rough patches on the street, but I didn't see anyone having any trouble with them. The only problem I encountered was a less than satisfactory hotel that gouged me for parking. Be sure to ask about that.
M. G. from Arizona (10/13/2014) "Still the best, large-scale marathon!" (about: 2014) 50+ previous marathons \| 6+ Chicago Marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 16th time there and ready for #17. This monster-size race (almost 41,000 finishers this year) executes almost flawlessly. Expo/packet pick-up is a breeze. Corral system works. The race starts on-time (two waves helps keep it all smooth). Water/Gatorade tables are consistent and looooong! Easy-to-see mile markers/clocks/first-aid/alert system. Course pancake flat. Weather was PERFECT. The ARMY of volunteers and 1.7 million spectators embrace every runner. Post-race goodies/wrap/medals/beer, etc. all work fine. Results posted before you get back to your hotel. This is one finely tuned machine. Nike stuff everywhere, too. A couple minor things they can improve on: many rutted streets/uneven pavement (they had a bad winter and it shows) and half the volunteers at water stations were glove-less. Minor things that don't detract from this world class event. The city/press embrace this race and it shows. A must for first-timers and repeaters looking to renew their energyeasy to PR here (weather permitting).
T. P. from Athens,Georgia (10/13/2014) "Great running event for a beautiful town." (about: 2014) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Chicago Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 It was my first time to Chicago. Beautiful city. Had great weather. Nice large expo. Well supported by community with many spectators and volunteers. Would recommend at least once for all marathon runners.
B. S. from New York, NY (10/12/2014) "A great race in a great city" (about: 2014) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Chicago Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 I had only been to Chicago briefly on two other occasions. Spending a little extra time there, it truly is one of America's best cities. Other than arguably New York, it has to be the coolest looking urban jungle in the country. Running through that is a blast. Pros: - Amazing army of volunteers - Great crowd support, especially at the beginning, but it trailed off at the end - Good expo - Great to race with so many other good runnersit helps the pacing - As flat and fast as advertised, but be prepared to run 26.4 with all the corners - Fun post race scene in the park Cons - The best part of Chicago is used in the first couple miles, then it is nondescript - I guess there is a tradition to maintain, but 30 90 degree turns is too many - Medal, t-shirt, swag were all blah. All together, my favorite marathon so far after Boston.
J. S. from Quincy, IL (9/15/2014) "Most Supportive Marathon From Spectators" (about: 2013) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Chicago Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 I kid you not, this marathon has spectators cheering for you (whether you know them or not) throughout the whole course. It made the race go by much faster mentally and it's great to have people motivating you the whole way. The only reason I marked 1 star down for spectators (even after all the praising about it) is that I was not able to find my family at all cheering for me throughout the whole race and they went to several spots. I recommend that spectators make a sign that would stand out and be an easy find for us runners. This has been my most favorite marathon to run so far out of the 8 I have already done because the experience was just amazing. As a person aiming to do a marathon in all 50 states, I highly recommend this one for Illinois!

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