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May 10, 2024

Niagara Falls International Marathon Runner Comments

Back to Niagara Falls International Marathon Information & Reviews

Course 4.2

Organization 3.7

Spectators 3.2

Number of comments: 172 [displaying comments 131 to 141]

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T. C. from Atlanta, GA (11/2/2004) "Great marathon with unique side events!" (about: 2004) 3 previous marathons \| 1 Niagara Falls International Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 Nice, flat, scenic route along the Niagara River ending at Niagara Falls. Water stations at every mile with enthusiastic volunteer groups. Watch for the bikers at about mile 18. You bus over the border from Niagara Falls (stay in a hotel overlooking the falls) and then wait for the start in a museum. Wandering around I saw Picasso, Monet, Van Gogh, Matisse, Jackson Pollack and many others. Catch the early bus and enjoy the art! They also have a half marathon and a 5k so the whole family can run. Mine did.
A. C. from Grimsby, Ontario (11/1/2004) "An excellent experience." (about: 2004) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Niagara Falls International Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 Prior to running this race, I read numerous comments from runners who completed the 2002/03 versions in order to prepare for some of the same problems. It quickly became apparent on race day that the race organizers also paid attention to these comments. Everything was corrected, even the weather! This turned out to be the best organized marathon that I have encountered. Registration, customs clearance and bussing all went smoothly. Three gel stations were evenly distributed along the course and were positioned at a good distance in front of water stations. The volunteers were fantastic; very supportive and enthusiastic. Support at the finish line was excellent. The course is very interesting, from beautiful old homes in Buffalo, a great view from the Peace Bridge to the Niagara Parkway with the river on the right and more great homes on the left. After crossing the bridge, there was almost no traffic to contend with. No fumes, no irritated and inconvenienced drivers. And a tailwind to boot! The only remotely negative comment that can be made is that I would have liked to have seen more people along the Parkway. There were very few spectators at some locations. Overall, I had a wonderful time. I PB'd and qualified for Boston so I'm clearly quite happy. But even if things didn't work out as planned, I would still rate this marathon very highly and would strongly recommend it to anyone.
Justin Ad from Buffalo,NY (10/30/2004) "Great course, wish for more spectators next time" (about: 2004) 1 previous marathon \| 1 Niagara Falls International Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 First marathon. Loved the course!!! The weather was good compared to years past (I understand). Great volunteers, great traffic control, glad to see all the port-a-potties. The post-race party could have been better ($5 for a beer?).
J. P. from North Attleboro, MA (10/26/2004) "A gamble with the weather but it's a great race" (about: 2004) 6-10 previous marathons \| 4-5 Niagara Falls International Marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 I've run this race four times and each time I see improvements. PRE-race: customs check in was fine. A nice array of vendors for the expo, especially for a race with fewer than 1,000 marathon runners. RACE itself: The number of portable toilets has increased, the power-jel stations throughout the course were a nice addition. The high school volunteers were great as usual, and I thought the bag check was well organized. It took ten seconds for the guy to find my bag. POST RACE: Good food stations, plenty of Gatorade/water, etc. And the PowerBar guys were there with that chocolate milk-like stuff. So that was nice. Great work, especially for a small race.
Matthew Mangas from Orchard Park, New York (10/25/2004) "Very pleased with this marathon..." (about: 2004) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Niagara Falls International Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 ... Admittedly, when you have a personal best it is hard not to be pleased. Nonetheless, I still think everything was great. Power gels at the 7 mile mark (and again later) was a BIG plus. Even the large-scale marathons don't hand any out until you're at the 18 mile point. The bag-buses were well organized. The water-stops where frequent, loud and very high-energy. The route had a good number of spectators for a 900-runner marathon. And the views (picturesque old neighborhoods, the Peace Bridge, the view of Buffalo from Canada, the Niagara River, and of course the Falls) were all great.
D. C. from Mississauga, ON (10/25/2004) "Good Half Marathon" (about: 2004) First Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 This is the second half marathon I have run this year, with the first in Ottawa in May 2004. The course was beautiful and the organization and crowds were great. This is a great half marathon and I hope to be there next year.
Richard Hubbard from Tonawanda, NY (10/25/2004) "Fantastic" (about: 2004) 1 previous marathon \| 1 Niagara Falls International Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 This was my first full marathon, but I would rate this run very highly. The weather was perfect (cool, no bright sun, and the rain never really came). The course was beautiful, winding through some of the nicest parts of Buffalo, NY, across the Peace Bridge, then down the Niagara River to end at Niagara Falls. The water stops were all well run with great volunteers cheering, dancing, and providing power gels. The expo the day before was well stocked by verious vendors, and the pasta dinner was delicious. My own personal highlights were the talks by Katherine Switzer, Roger Robinson, and John Stunton. Mr. Robinson's talk about the myths of the marathon was brilliant - entertaining, informative, and perfectly delivered. Ms. Switzer's telling of the real story was enlightening (she never broke any rules! The entry form said nothing about only men allowed) and she was very personable. John Staunton was very funny and very encouraging. The only thing keeping the score from being perfect was a small number of fans on the American side. Maybe next year I'll try to shake some trees to get more people out to watch. I will run this one again!
K. T. from Canada (10/24/2004) "Excellent First Half Marathon" (about: 2004) 1 previous marathon \| 1 Niagara Falls International Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 This marathon is an excellent one to start with as it is flat, fast and has lots of space and scenery. I had a very good experience.
D. L. from Montreal, Canada (2/15/2004) "Beautiful course, only weather needs to be better!" (about: 2003) COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 In fact, a few things could be better but they wouldn't discourage me from going there again. I don't know how it was on other years, but this time the bag check was awful. They piled the bags on in a fairly disorderly way. They weren't ordered by bib number and they (volunteers) had to unscramble that at the finish line. Also, customs agents (at the borders) grumbled about how that year's (2003) marathon wasn't as well organized, that in the past they (customs) were given lists of people, etc. Plus, toilets were far apart, as noted by others...(not that I suffered from it, personally, but if there had been any need... ;-)). And the weather was alternately rainy and drizzly, but no strong winds; however, in sunny conditions this course would have been very nice.. The historic, beautiful section of Buffalo we started from was a treat. The rest of the course, once we are in Fort Erie, is also beautiful. It was on a bycicle/pedestrian paved trail, as I remember. It was like running in a long, linear park, between nice neighborhoods and the lake. The weather was my main complaint... at a different time of the year it could be better.
J. H. from Denver, Colorado (11/2/2003) "Beautiful course!" (about: 2003) COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 This was my 9th marathon, in a quest to run the most beautiful and scenic marathon courses, and I wasn't disappointed. Points: * ID was needed to cross the border; I didn't learn this until boarding the bus; thankfully, I had stayed at the host hotel so it was not a big deal to go back and grab the ID. * we had to wait at the border for one person on the bus to clear immigration - thankful that we had plenty of time. * it rained pretty much the entire race, but we didn't have much wind, so I didn't mind the rain. * the aid stations were incredible - both in quantity and in the enthusiasm of the youth groups who staffed them. An aid station almost every mile in a 'thon of this size? Amazing, and much appreciated. * Beautiful course!!! Too bad the marathon is so late - maybe 2 or 3 weeks earlier and it would be spectacular. * access to this course is difficult, and much of the course is fairly remote, so there aren't many fans. But the people who came out in the rain this year to cheer us on were wonderful.

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