Marathon Details - Potomac River Run Marathon

North America Marathons > USA > MD > Carderock > Potomac River Run Marathon

ACE Physical Therapy & Sports Medicine Institute Potomac River Run Marathon & Half Marathon

Carderock, MD USA

May 4, 2024

http://www.safetyandhealthfoundation.org/marathon/index.php

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The latest news about Potomac River Run Marathon
Jay Wind (3/22/10)

This year's Potomac River Run Marathon is on a new runner-friendly course on the C&O Canal Towpath from Carderock MD, with no street crossings and lots of lovely scenery. Please join us at www.mc-coop.org/marathon

—
I apologize for last year's problems at Potomac River Run Marathon on May 3.

At 6:30 AM, after 350 athletes started the race, National Park Service revoked our permit and took down our start and finish. Here's what happened.

HISTORY
I filed our permit application on May 5, 2008. I should have asked for a larger number on our permit application. I'm sorry that I made that error. Over the course of the year, when I asked the previous park ranger for our permit conditions, she told us to assume our permit condititions would be the same as previous years'. I asked every other week throughout the year for a meeting to discuss permit conditions.

Then, a month before the race, the original park ranger moved to a different assignment, and a new park ranger took, discovering a backlog of 20 unprocessed permits. The new park ranger told me that 20 races was way too many for Belle Haven Park, and that she intended to cut back the number and size of races there, including the 6,000-person Parkway Classic 10 Miler, which closes the entire 10 miles of the Parkway on the last Sunday in April.

The new park ranger finally met with us on April 24, 2009, six working days before the race, to tell us our conditions and to write our permit. She imposed six new conditions — five we were able to meet — increase our insurance, even though NPS received our insurance certificate in October 2008; write an emergency management plan for the first time; reserve parking for the public, although NPS rejected our plan to set aside parking for the public, so we arranged and paid for taxicabs from off-site parking to the race and back; have no more than 100 at the start line at any time, which we met by changing to an open go-as-you-please start, and have everybody done by 11 AM, unlike 1 PM in previous years, which we met by opening the start at 5:30 AM in the dark. The sixth condition — a numerical limitation for the first time ever — we were unable to meet, because by then, we already had more people signed up. Not meeting that condition cost us dearly.

RACE DAY
For the first time ever, park rangers were at the race with clickers. Once we reached our permitted maximum at 6:30 AM, National Park Service revoked our permit, even though we had hundreds of runners already out on the trail. At the time they revoked our permit, park rangers counted 91 runners waiting to start. Then park rangers actually rolled up our starting line and finish line timing mats. They also confiscated timing tags, which they then destroyed.

Fortunately, our aid stations stayed up'n'running in the rain throughout the hours of the race and did a super job of supporting the runners. I'm glad they were there for you.

We moved the post-race celebration across the Parkway and distributed food, medals, and gift certificates to everyone who came across.

Now I am painstakingly reconstructing the results, finisher by finisher, so participants get credit for the times they ran, and I will mail medals and gift certificates to all who did not receive them on race day. I'm rebuilding the results, one by one, at www.acfcoop.org/20090503.html

I apologize to everyone for overbooking, and I assure you I will never do that again.



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Reviews

Course 4.4

Organization 4.4

Spectators 3.2

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Number of comments: 42 [displaying comments 1 to 11]

More Comments: [ < 1 2 3 4 5 > ]

V. R. from Virginia (5/4/2015) "Well put together marathon, way too hot" (about: 2015) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Potomac River Run Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 2 A very affordable low-key marathon, with a great organization. The course along the canal is great, and the double out-and-back makes it easy to keep track of time and effort. Plenty of water along the course. Now, if only the Race Director had supernatural powers and could control the weather. Wow, was it ever hot.
M. R. from Olney, Md (3/3/2015) "Easy Marathon" (about: 2014) 1 previous marathon \| 1 Potomac River Run Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 1 This is a no frills race-No time chip, the shirt went straight to Good Will, my kid's T-ball participation medal was better than this one. But hey- it's not expensive and it's not crowded either! The course is an out and back times two on hard dirt packed towpath/trail or hard packed pebbles- so it was easy on the joints; 100% flat/ no inclines. The path is shaded most of the way. My plantar fasciitis was not an issue during or after the race :) There was water & Gatorade every 3miles with accommodating volunteers. The finish line was well stocked with DD bagels and cream cheese, bananas, PowerGels, PowerBars (20g protein!) and no food line! If you need a bunch of bling to run 26.1, this is not for you. This one feels like a friendly training run along the C&O Canal with a free FOOD table to hang out at the end.
Rosemary Good from USA (5/4/2014) "Great Race" (about: 2014) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Potomac River Run Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 I ran the marathon this morning May 4,2014. I enjoyed the race. The only thing I didn't like there seemed to not be enough water stations. Or it just seemed long between distances
J. P. from silver spring md (5/9/2013) "small local race format with expert organization" (about: 2013) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Potomac River Run Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 I ran this strictly to get a BQ time, so I was less focused on having fun as on getting a certain result. Even so I enjoyed myself thoroughly. This race is limited to 300 people, and uses old-school timing, so it has the feel of small locally organized 5k. The RD is very nice and as an accomplished marathoner and experienced RD, he knows his stuff. Thus, the race was USAT approved, well staffed, and well organized. I could have used one more aid station at the end, but otherwise I got just enough water, gatorade and encouragement from spectators. As others have commented, the race is on hard-packed trail and has 2 out/back loops. I had pre-race concerns that I would loose time on the softer surface or get mentally fatigued by the repetition. Neither was the case. I would definitely run this again!
T. C. from Howard County MD (5/21/2012) "Great low key race with an awesome RD" (about: 2012) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Potomac River Run Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 2 I had a terrible experience at RNR USA and was looking for a low key 'redemption' race. The website said the race was full, but I called Jay Wind (the RD) and he said, 'yeah, sure, no problem, just fill out the entry and mail me a check.' He was SO accommodating and so friendly. The race was VERY low key: no chip (kind of unheard of today, even for 5Ks!) but the field was small so you crossed the start line seconds after the race started. The course is 2 out and backs one side is the C&O Canal and the other is the Potomac River. Very pretty. It's mostly packed gravel but was uneven at parts. Not a lot of spectators but the ones that were out were very loud and friendly! Awesome volunteers, too. If you are looking for a big race with lots of pomp and circumstance, this isn't for you. If you are looking for a low key, small field race with a great RD, sign up !
A. B. from PA, usa (5/7/2012) "Friendly, low key marathon" (about: 2012) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Potomac River Run Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 4 I really want to write a positive review about this lovely marathon. The race director (Jay) is really nice and friendly and kept the runners informed on his webpage and on Facebook. The volunteers were friendly and tried their best to do a good job. But there are a few things that one should know before running this event. If you are looking for a professionaly executed event with very little room for errors and good resources for runners, this is NOT it. On the other hand if you are looking for a very low key, stripped to the bare bone basics event, this is an awesome one to run. You'll love it. The trail is packed dirt but with quite a bit of loose gravel - so it's not so easy on your legs. You run out and back twice which provides some mental breaks but it's not so exciting either. The organizers had the best of intentions yet things were not, how to say it, so professional. Lets start with the fact that the turn around point was placed about 0.04-0.05 miles too far, now multiple this by 4. As a result all mile marks from mile 7 and beyond were not placed at the right spot. Moreover, when I say mile marks I mean a piece of paper placed on the ground. The race had a 6:30AM noncompetitive start and a 7:30AM competitive start. Each of these had full and half marathon runners in them. So the 6.55 (actually 6.60) miles stretch was packed with runners going at all sort of different paces in both directions at each point of this 6 feet wide path. For the most part it wasn't a problem but it was confusing and some points felt a bit crowded. The trail wasn't closed for the marathon and there were other runners and cyclists on it and at one point a group of kids with kayaks were crossing the trail. There were only two water stops on the trail and another one at the start/finish turnaround. It was humid and rather hot and I could use more water. There was no food at the finish line and at some point also no water or Gatorade. You had to walk 1/4 of a mile back to the parking lot to get food and water. No chip time and people who had no business lining up at or near the start line did it anyway. But really nice and friendly event. Perfect for the 50 states people but also for everyone else. I got a nice PR on this flat course.
K. G. from Pasadena, MD (5/1/2011) "Such a fun race!" (about: 2011) 3 previous marathons \| 1 Potomac River Run Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 This was a nice change from the over crowded marathons I usually run. The volunteers were WONDERFUL! Friendly faces from start to finish. Only advice is bring your own water. Some stops are spaced far apart. Thanks for the fun race. Will do it next year.
M. S. from Laurel, MD (5/1/2011) "A beautiful, quiet, little marathon" (about: 2011) 3 previous marathons \| 1 Potomac River Run Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 1 I just got home from my first experience running this marathon and wanted to post a review. This marathon had the best volunteers I've seen in a long time, they were very accommodating especially at water stations. Every stop was extremely friendly and helpful while filling my water bottle. I found this race while looking for a small race experience after having run Marine Corp Marathon in 2010. If you are looking for a nice, small race that limits the weaving and general chaos of a large event, this is it. This year had a limit of 300 runners combined for marathon and half-marathon. It offered a 6:15am and 7:15am start, whichever a runner preferred. The course itself was an out-and-back 2 times on the C&O canal trail, which did get boring. The C&O trail is packed dirt/gravel so it was important to watch where you are going. Additionally, the trail was still open to the general public which did get frustrating when approaching large groups of walkers or having bikers come up on you. I was disappointed in the spectators but can write that off to being such a small race. There was very little cheering, until the end. It was the quietest race I ran, which gave it a long run day feel. Overall, I will definitely consider doing this race again! A small race that supports a worthy cause! This was a low-drama race with great volunteers!
L. L. from Falls Church, VA (5/1/2011) "Great small marathon" (about: 2011) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Potomac River Run Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 2 Jay does a great job of personalizing this small marathon. The course is out and back twice - I thought I would find that annoying but actually it provides an excellent sense of how much, and what, is to come. The aid stations are staffed by enthusiastic volunteers but much of the course is pretty desolate (though beautiful) - if you need lots of cheering crowds this is not the race for you. The entire run is on packed dirt trail and is much easier on the legs that most road races.
Betty O'Dea from St. Louis, MO (5/6/2010) "Lovely, flat course!" (about: 2010) 11-50 previous marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 2 Jay puts a lot of effort into personalizing this event. After meeting me at the expo, he greeted me by name at the race, at the turn around and at the end. It was a nice touch! The course is flat and shady, which was fortunate as it was very, very hot. I had been warned to bring my own water bottle and I am very glad I did. There were coolers allowing for refills, which I needed as the water spots were pretty spread out. The volunteers were helpful! The layout of the race is not conducive to easy viewing, so it was a very Zen run. I will have to say that the runners were very accommodating. I'm not sure if it was due to the heat, or the camaraderie of a small race, but people were checking on each other as they passed. I would recommend this race to anyone who wants a break from the cast of thousands that show up in Chicago, NY, Boston, etc.

More Comments: [ < 1 2 3 4 5 > ]

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V. R. from Virginia (5/4/2015) "Well put together marathon, way too hot" (about: 2015) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Potomac River Run Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 2 A very affordable low-key marathon, with a great organization. The course along the canal is great, and the double out-and-back makes it easy to keep track of time and effort. Plenty of water along the course. Now, if only the Race Director had supernatural powers and could control the weather. Wow, was it ever hot.
M. R. from Olney, Md (3/3/2015) "Easy Marathon" (about: 2014) 1 previous marathon \| 1 Potomac River Run Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 1 This is a no frills race-No time chip, the shirt went straight to Good Will, my kid's T-ball participation medal was better than this one. But hey- it's not expensive and it's not crowded either! The course is an out and back times two on hard dirt packed towpath/trail or hard packed pebbles- so it was easy on the joints; 100% flat/ no inclines. The path is shaded most of the way. My plantar fasciitis was not an issue during or after the race :) There was water & Gatorade every 3miles with accommodating volunteers. The finish line was well stocked with DD bagels and cream cheese, bananas, PowerGels, PowerBars (20g protein!) and no food line! If you need a bunch of bling to run 26.1, this is not for you. This one feels like a friendly training run along the C&O Canal with a free FOOD table to hang out at the end.
Rosemary Good from USA (5/4/2014) "Great Race" (about: 2014) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Potomac River Run Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 I ran the marathon this morning May 4,2014. I enjoyed the race. The only thing I didn't like there seemed to not be enough water stations. Or it just seemed long between distances
J. P. from silver spring md (5/9/2013) "small local race format with expert organization" (about: 2013) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Potomac River Run Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 I ran this strictly to get a BQ time, so I was less focused on having fun as on getting a certain result. Even so I enjoyed myself thoroughly. This race is limited to 300 people, and uses old-school timing, so it has the feel of small locally organized 5k. The RD is very nice and as an accomplished marathoner and experienced RD, he knows his stuff. Thus, the race was USAT approved, well staffed, and well organized. I could have used one more aid station at the end, but otherwise I got just enough water, gatorade and encouragement from spectators. As others have commented, the race is on hard-packed trail and has 2 out/back loops. I had pre-race concerns that I would loose time on the softer surface or get mentally fatigued by the repetition. Neither was the case. I would definitely run this again!
T. C. from Howard County MD (5/21/2012) "Great low key race with an awesome RD" (about: 2012) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Potomac River Run Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 2 I had a terrible experience at RNR USA and was looking for a low key 'redemption' race. The website said the race was full, but I called Jay Wind (the RD) and he said, 'yeah, sure, no problem, just fill out the entry and mail me a check.' He was SO accommodating and so friendly. The race was VERY low key: no chip (kind of unheard of today, even for 5Ks!) but the field was small so you crossed the start line seconds after the race started. The course is 2 out and backs one side is the C&O Canal and the other is the Potomac River. Very pretty. It's mostly packed gravel but was uneven at parts. Not a lot of spectators but the ones that were out were very loud and friendly! Awesome volunteers, too. If you are looking for a big race with lots of pomp and circumstance, this isn't for you. If you are looking for a low key, small field race with a great RD, sign up !
A. B. from PA, usa (5/7/2012) "Friendly, low key marathon" (about: 2012) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Potomac River Run Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 4 I really want to write a positive review about this lovely marathon. The race director (Jay) is really nice and friendly and kept the runners informed on his webpage and on Facebook. The volunteers were friendly and tried their best to do a good job. But there are a few things that one should know before running this event. If you are looking for a professionaly executed event with very little room for errors and good resources for runners, this is NOT it. On the other hand if you are looking for a very low key, stripped to the bare bone basics event, this is an awesome one to run. You'll love it. The trail is packed dirt but with quite a bit of loose gravel - so it's not so easy on your legs. You run out and back twice which provides some mental breaks but it's not so exciting either. The organizers had the best of intentions yet things were not, how to say it, so professional. Lets start with the fact that the turn around point was placed about 0.04-0.05 miles too far, now multiple this by 4. As a result all mile marks from mile 7 and beyond were not placed at the right spot. Moreover, when I say mile marks I mean a piece of paper placed on the ground. The race had a 6:30AM noncompetitive start and a 7:30AM competitive start. Each of these had full and half marathon runners in them. So the 6.55 (actually 6.60) miles stretch was packed with runners going at all sort of different paces in both directions at each point of this 6 feet wide path. For the most part it wasn't a problem but it was confusing and some points felt a bit crowded. The trail wasn't closed for the marathon and there were other runners and cyclists on it and at one point a group of kids with kayaks were crossing the trail. There were only two water stops on the trail and another one at the start/finish turnaround. It was humid and rather hot and I could use more water. There was no food at the finish line and at some point also no water or Gatorade. You had to walk 1/4 of a mile back to the parking lot to get food and water. No chip time and people who had no business lining up at or near the start line did it anyway. But really nice and friendly event. Perfect for the 50 states people but also for everyone else. I got a nice PR on this flat course.
K. G. from Pasadena, MD (5/1/2011) "Such a fun race!" (about: 2011) 3 previous marathons \| 1 Potomac River Run Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 This was a nice change from the over crowded marathons I usually run. The volunteers were WONDERFUL! Friendly faces from start to finish. Only advice is bring your own water. Some stops are spaced far apart. Thanks for the fun race. Will do it next year.
M. S. from Laurel, MD (5/1/2011) "A beautiful, quiet, little marathon" (about: 2011) 3 previous marathons \| 1 Potomac River Run Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 1 I just got home from my first experience running this marathon and wanted to post a review. This marathon had the best volunteers I've seen in a long time, they were very accommodating especially at water stations. Every stop was extremely friendly and helpful while filling my water bottle. I found this race while looking for a small race experience after having run Marine Corp Marathon in 2010. If you are looking for a nice, small race that limits the weaving and general chaos of a large event, this is it. This year had a limit of 300 runners combined for marathon and half-marathon. It offered a 6:15am and 7:15am start, whichever a runner preferred. The course itself was an out-and-back 2 times on the C&O canal trail, which did get boring. The C&O trail is packed dirt/gravel so it was important to watch where you are going. Additionally, the trail was still open to the general public which did get frustrating when approaching large groups of walkers or having bikers come up on you. I was disappointed in the spectators but can write that off to being such a small race. There was very little cheering, until the end. It was the quietest race I ran, which gave it a long run day feel. Overall, I will definitely consider doing this race again! A small race that supports a worthy cause! This was a low-drama race with great volunteers!
L. L. from Falls Church, VA (5/1/2011) "Great small marathon" (about: 2011) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Potomac River Run Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 2 Jay does a great job of personalizing this small marathon. The course is out and back twice - I thought I would find that annoying but actually it provides an excellent sense of how much, and what, is to come. The aid stations are staffed by enthusiastic volunteers but much of the course is pretty desolate (though beautiful) - if you need lots of cheering crowds this is not the race for you. The entire run is on packed dirt trail and is much easier on the legs that most road races.
Betty O'Dea from St. Louis, MO (5/6/2010) "Lovely, flat course!" (about: 2010) 11-50 previous marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 2 Jay puts a lot of effort into personalizing this event. After meeting me at the expo, he greeted me by name at the race, at the turn around and at the end. It was a nice touch! The course is flat and shady, which was fortunate as it was very, very hot. I had been warned to bring my own water bottle and I am very glad I did. There were coolers allowing for refills, which I needed as the water spots were pretty spread out. The volunteers were helpful! The layout of the race is not conducive to easy viewing, so it was a very Zen run. I will have to say that the runners were very accommodating. I'm not sure if it was due to the heat, or the camaraderie of a small race, but people were checking on each other as they passed. I would recommend this race to anyone who wants a break from the cast of thousands that show up in Chicago, NY, Boston, etc.

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Marathon Details - Potomac River Run Marathon