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☰
City of Los Angeles Marathon (L.A. Marathon) Runner Comments
Back to City of Los Angeles Marathon (L.A. Marathon) Information & Reviews
Course 3.8 
Organization 3.6 
Spectators 4.4
Number of comments: 472 [displaying comments 41 to 51]
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E. A. from California
(3/22/2013)
 "First time I ran a Marathon" (about: 2013)
1 previous marathon
| 1 City of Los Angeles Marathon (L.A. Marathon)
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 I loved my first race. It was a great experience, and the support of our sponsors made it incredible! | |
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F. T. from USA
(3/22/2013)
"Hard course that will tear you apart." (about: 2013)
1 previous marathon
| 1 City of Los Angeles Marathon (L.A. Marathon)
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 Had a great race, but the course has some very hard hills throughout. The downhill sections are steep and shortlived. Be well trained for the long stretches of uphill grinding. Crowd support was awesome. Never had issues with organization. Timing chip didn't work for many miles so people couldn't track. | |
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d. d. from ohio
(3/19/2013)
 "big race in a big city" (about: 2013)
50+ previous marathons
| 1 City of Los Angeles Marathon (L.A. Marathon)
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This is an extra large race with all the fixings, including all the good you need and some of the bad you dont't want... first it was easy to find everything, well organized, nice shirts, lots of support, and 26 aid stations wow! great post race party, now the other stuff - parking for the expo is $15, hotels are $2oo a nite average, also hotel parking is between 10 to 40 per night, driving is at best a challenge and slow before and after the event, be sure to be early to avoid the last minute upsets, our bus driver to return us to the downtown site after the race - got lost, many of the kids running wild in and out of the runners was a pain - many were wreckless and dangerous to themselves and others this was part of their students run la challenge, but last and the best part was finishing the LASF challenge - the medal was very cool! | |
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K. N. from Los Angeles, CA
(3/18/2013)
"Great course, but we need marathon posters back!" (about: 2013)
6-10 previous marathons
| 6+ City of Los Angeles Marathon (L.A. Marathon)s
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 5 My daughter loved the posters and I have them all over the wall from 2006. But you stopped giving out posters from 2010. WHY?? For what you charge, we deserve to get the posters back!! | |
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S. S. from SF, CA
(3/18/2013)
 "Very nice one-way course" (about: 2013)
11-50 previous marathons
| 3 City of Los Angeles Marathon (L.A. Marathon)s
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 5 This is the only race I've run where there was not an out-and-back portion of the course. And it was just wonderful. The course started in the city at Dodger Stadium and ran through all the well-known neighborhoods to the sea in Santa Monica. Just enough easy hills to keep your interest, but not overwhelm you. Lots of shuttle buses to the start line. However, no buses back to the start after the race, so it's best to park or stay in Santa Monica. Lots of water stations with both water and sports drink. Also several food stations. Very nice medal. And this year, there was an SF/LA challenge medal for those who ran both the SF and the LA marathons consecutively. Really nice medal as well. Now to the areas for improvement: First, the race should start earlier. Starting at 7:30AM is tricky because, even in March, the weather could heat up to uncomfortable levels by the end of the race. We were luck this year in that the early part of the race was partly sunny and getting warm, but not too much, and the last half was overcast, nicely cool. Second, at the water stations, the water and the sports drinks were located together. So it was difficult to sort out where each was. I grabbed water a few times, only to find out it was sports drink, and vice versa. All in all, a good race to run for both the novice and the veteran. | |
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N. K. from Orange County, CA
(3/18/2013)
"Finally, a marathon LA can be proud of!" (about: 2013)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 City of Los Angeles Marathon (L.A. Marathon)
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 This was my 9th marathon, but 1st one in LA, even though I'm a local. I had heard for years that the LA Marathon was badly organized and the course itself was not the best. But, ever since Frank McCourt bought the race, he's been on a quest to bring LA the big city race it deserves. So, I finally decided to give it a chance, and I LOVED it. So many great sites to see!!! Expo at the Convention Center was well organized. Hotel race shuttles from/to downtown LA were efficient. | |
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M. N. from Bay Area, California
(3/18/2013)
"Big city marathon with a great downhill finish" (about: 2013)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 City of Los Angeles Marathon (L.A. Marathon)
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 Overall a great experience. Pros: 1. Nice elevation profile- good rolling hills throughout, and the 3 miles at the end was amazing- a break right when I needed it. I think it definitely contributed to my PR. 2. Fans were good. Nothing compared to NYC, but definitely fans throughout, some of whom were fun and loud. 3. Weather was good. 4. Water stations were well organized. Not a fan of the Ultima option, though. Cons Most cons were due to the size of the race. 1. Parking for the expo was a pain- $12 to park at the convention center, and $10 for most other nearby lots 2.Was dropped off for the start, and it took awhile, got off the freeway exit around 5:45, made it to the drop-off point by about 6:25am. 3. Crowded at the start, even though I was in corral C. | |
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J. A. from Los Angeles
(3/18/2013)
"Simply the Best" (about: 2013)
11-50 previous marathons
| 3 City of Los Angeles Marathon (L.A. Marathon)s
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 By far the best part of the race is its course. Starting near downtown, then heading west to the cooler temps and ocean views of Santa Monica, it has great views, nearly perfectly varied terrain, above average spectators and entertainment (the Cheerleader Corridor, and drummers at the top of the main hill are the best!), and the organization and amenities are at the top of the class though they cant quite get their bag-check situation in order& I will continue to run this marathon as long as I have it in me, it has become my favorite. | |
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John Bozung from Orem, UT
(2/3/2013)
"Have run every course variation, This is my fave!" (about: 2012)
50+ previous marathons
| 6+ City of Los Angeles Marathon (L.A. Marathon)s
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 Have run all the courses over the years (2013 will be my 22nd LA, which was my first back in '88, 336 total marathons) And except for the course that started and finished at the Coliseum, loved the downtown historical route, this is my favorite course. It's nice because as the day is warming up and you get closer to the beach it is actually staying cooler and there is a nice gradual downhill as you go down San Vicente and turn on Ocean to the finish! | |
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Joel White from San Diego, CA
(11/9/2012)
"Nice, big city marathon on a good course" (about: 2012)
1 previous marathon
| 1 City of Los Angeles Marathon (L.A. Marathon)
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 This is one of the largest marathons. It has about 20,000 participants. It is very crowded at the start, making it difficult to settle into your pace in the early miles. You can eliminate this issue if you have run a previous marathon and submit a time to get into a seeded corral. The course itself starts at Dodger Stadium and runs through scenic parts of LA including Chinatown, Hollywood, and Beverly Hills, and ends in Santa Monica. The course drops about 400 feet in elevation from start to finish, but includes a gradual climb between mile 16 and 23. For this reason, it is essential that you do not go out too fast. Going uphill after hitting the wall is definitely not fun. The good news is that the last three miles is a steady decline into Santa Monica. Because it is LA, there were a ton of spectators like I assumed there would be. The event was also well organized with the exception of missing mile markers. This marathon has a large amount of first timers, which make up more than half of the field, so if you run a 4:30 or faster, you will place high on this course. I recommend this marathon if you like big city marathons or if you are a first time marathoner. |
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