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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 61 to 71]
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B. B. from Pittsburgh PA
(10/28/2009)
 "Great first marathon!!" (about: 2009)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Niagara Falls International Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 The weather was perfect, and the course was beautiful. There was a headwind at times, but the generally flat course was great, and the downhill on the last mile was greatly appreciated. I loved the combination of enthusiatic aid stations every mile, and quiet solitude in between. Highly recommended! | |
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R. C. from Buffalo
(10/27/2009)
"What a Great Day" (about: 2009)
11-50 previous marathons
| 6+ Niagara Falls International Marathons
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 Aside from the wind in your face, what a great event. The expo, while packed tightly, was better than I can remember it in previous years, and it certainly was different to get a gym bag as opposed to a shirt. My wife ran the half and we found it odd that the facing of the medals didn't distinguish between the half or full and that there was no year on it. One additional thought: while out for dinner on both Saturday and Sunday, the local restaurants knew next to nothing about this event | |
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Larry Lighthouse from New Jersey
(10/26/2009)
"You absolutely have do this marathon!" (about: 2009)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 Niagara Falls International Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 This was without any doubt the most beautiful marathon in the world! Running from the USA to Canada across the Peace Bridge provided such a feeling of freedom. And the welcome from the Canadians at all of the water stops was amazing! Every mile we were cheered on. I am one of the slower marathoners. I finished in 6:30. And the buses were no longer running back downtown. My hero, the race director, drove us back to our hotel. For that I am forever thankful!!! | |
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R. S. from Fairborn, Ohio, USA
(10/26/2009)
"Great Scenery. Great Spectators. Expo Not So Good" (about: 2009)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Niagara Falls International Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 To start with, let me say that I loved this race. I ran the half. The only thing I didn't like was the expo. When we got to the Skylon to pick up race package, the guy said it costs $5 to park. Are you freaking kidding me? Five bucks to walk in and walk out. PLEASE. The packet pick up was understaffed and took a long time. My package was wrong with the wrong number of pasta party tickets; good thing I checked. There was no race shirt. Instead they gave a gym bag, which was nice, but I like race shirts. That's all the bad. The rest of this event was GREAT. Excellent pasta party at the Crowne Plaza. Bus transportation to the race was timely. The race has a wonderful course all along the water and ending by the Falls. Spectacular views. Great, enthusiastic spectators. Well supplied aid stations. Great finisher's medal. Great organization at race's end. Someone was there immediately to wrap you in a Mylar blanket, remove the chip, and give you a good bag and medal. Everyone of them quick with the congratulations. In conclusion, I loved this race but wasn't thrilled with the expo. | |
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T. H. from Buffalo, NY
(10/26/2009)
"A fantastic race on a beautiful course" (about: 2009)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Niagara Falls International Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 The race was everything I hoped it would be, and more. The course was relatively flat, with the last two miles downhill! The fall foliage was beautiful all of the way from Buffalo to the Falls. There are not spectators everywhere along the course, but that's just the way it is. STILL, the ones that ARE there are encouraging, funny, and a pleasure to see. Don't miss this great race. | |
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c. p. from Massaachusetts
(10/26/2009)
 "Headwind, but well organized" (about: 2009)
2 previous marathons
| 1 Niagara Falls International Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 I didn't expect there to be a headwind for the entire race. It was mentally challenging because of that. The water stops were very well organized with lots of noise, so you could hear it a couple of minutes before you could see it. It was nice and Pavlovian. | |
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m. k. from cambridge, canada
(10/26/2009)
"perfect race" (about: 2009)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Niagara Falls International Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 I PR'd on this one, so I'm biased. However, it can't be disputed that the weather was perfect, the course is breathtakingly beautiful, the fans and water station groups were second to none, the art gallery staff were excellent and the art gallery itself was very cool, and the whole experience was memorable. | |
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m. m. from ontario, canada
(1/21/2009)
"scenic and well-organized" (about: 2008)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Niagara Falls International Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 This was my first marathon, so although I only have half-marathons to compare it to, I loved it and would highly recommend it, particularly to first-timers. I really liked the fact that it's a small marathon - this facilitates the unique and relaxing experience of hanging out at the Albright/Knox art gallery for an hour or so before the start. As well, there's absolutely no bumping, jostling, or wasting of energy trying to move between other runners - you pretty much have the whole road to yourself, especially for the last half. Crossing the Peace Bridge and ending at the Falls were highlights of this course for me. The Niagara Parkway is beautiful, and offers a river view throughout entire Canadian-side portion of the course. The course is fast and flat, a real bonus for a first marathon. I have read other comments complaining about the cold and windy weather; hello!! You're in Southern Ontario during the last weekend of October running along a river - unless you forgot to check out the location of the course and the date, I don't understand what else you could possibly expect. That being said, if you're scared to run in wind and bad weather, you're taking a gamble with this race. The weather happened to be beautiful this year, despite the forecast, but that didn't cancel out the wind in parts of the course (although it was southwest wind - had it been blowing the other way it would've been pretty brutal). My only criticism of this race was the lack of distance markers - I know some were blown down by the wind, but they were few and far between, and all the ones I saw were in miles, as opposed to kilometers. Although it starts in Buffalo, it's a Canadian race; there should be markers in kilometers. | |
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C. M. from Cleveland OH
(12/19/2008)
 "Least organized marathon" (about: 2008)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 Niagara Falls International Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 5 Great support along the course, and the starting in Buffalo was very well done, as was the run through neighborhoods in town. But there was a lack of information - about water stops, ID's needed at what points of registration, etc. - and that was frustrating. I found the wind to be a real issue on this course too; it really beats you up pretty badly. A good marathon, but overall it was probably my least favorite thus far. | |
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Kevin O'Neill from Barrie, ON
(11/7/2008)
"Almost perfect!" (about: 2008)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Niagara Falls International Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 Previous comments about 2008 sum up the marathon very well. The organizers of this event have it down to a science. There are two things that could improve the marathon: 1. Gels should be provided, maybe just before the half-way mark, so only the marathoners have access to them. 2. Please, please, half-marathon walkers, get over to the side of the road!! Ninety-nine percent of you did a great job of watching out for marathon runners coming up on you and alerting others of our impending approach, but walking five abreast, blocking the road? Give me a break! I had one half-marathon walker listening to music and literally swerving all over the road! Petty? Maybe, but by the time I caught up to the majority of the half-marathon walkers, I was pretty tired and altering my running line took quite a bit of effort. Other than that, 2008 had pretty perfect running conditions. |
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