May 16, 2024
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SEAFAIR Marathon Runner Comments
Back to SEAFAIR Marathon Information & Reviews
Course 3.2 
Organization 3.4 
Spectators 3.0
Number of comments: 65 [displaying comments 11 to 21]
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R. N. from California
(7/2/2008)
 "steep hills, no shade, poor shuttles, chip time?" (about: 2008)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 SEAFAIR Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 5 Thanks to everyone who cheered us on and sprayed us with water hoses and water guns. Why bother giving us a chip if there is no chip time or splits? What happened to the bus service? We waited in the shuttle line a long time and then other passengers seemed to be giving the driver directions to the start. We arrived 13 minutes after the scheduled start time and as we stepped off the bus the start gun went off. They did have enough water though. | |
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Gene Morris from Seattle
(7/2/2008)
 "Extremely poor course" (about: 2008)
50+ previous marathons
| 3 SEAFAIR Marathons
COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 1 I run a marathon a month so I have been on most of the major courses. This had to be the worst. You had it right the previous years. The person who set this course is not a marathon runner, or at least has never run this course. Hills help to work different muscle groups, but this series of hills trashed the quad and put runners at risk coming back down. Unfortunately, you shot yourself in the foot for a great cause. The course demoralized the experienced marathoners and discouraged novices and potentially new marathoners. Get your organizer at least to WALK the course and you will get the point. | |
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K. B. from Georgia
(7/1/2008)
 "Terrible race organization. Stay away!" (about: 2008)
50+ previous marathons
| 1 SEAFAIR Marathon
COURSE: 1 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 1 I didn't get to run the marathon because there weren't enough buses to take all of the marathoners to the start. I'm talking over 400 runners who were stranded at the shuttle area. The race organizers told us we could run a half marathon starting at Mile 13. I registered for the marathon, but I needed to salvage something from this race day. BUT WAIT! Really, we had to wait over an hour for the marathon leaders to pass the halfway point before we could run. Unbelievable! This course is terrible: Hilly, unattractive, and boring. People in their cars were impatient and rude. This is the worst race experience I've ever had. I can say enough bad things about this race. | |
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L. B. from Spokane, WA
(7/1/2008)
 "I loved the hills and the course overall" (about: 2008)
3 previous marathons
| 1 SEAFAIR Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 2 I heard a lot of complaining along the way about the hills, but I thought it was a great run and have no complaints about the course itself. I have done two trail races this year that had killer hills so this was NOTHING! I am just glad to be out there with all the other runners and still have the ability to run another day. I loved the shirt, and loved crossing the bridge. We had no trouble getting on a bus because we planned to get there early, and I feel for those who did not plan so well and did not get the run they had trained for. I would do this course again and just prepare for limited water and porta-potties. The heat was not the fault of the organizers. It was a beautiful day in Seattle! | |
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M. P. from Oak Harbor, Washington
(7/1/2008)
"Great supporters and relentless hills." (about: 2008)
4-5 previous marathons
| 1 SEAFAIR Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 5 I think a better course layout would include a start/finish at the downtown park and an out-and-back across the 520 floating bridge. Doing this would eliminate the costs of bus rental and potential coordination issues. Although the host hotel was nice and offered runners a great rate, it was too far from the start/finish. The volunteers and residents along the route made things happen. When stations ran out of cups, water bottles were quickly refilled and makeshift fountains were created. Many thoughtful residents charged up their hoses and lit off sprinklers in an effort to provide a break from the heat. They are the only reason I might consider running this race again. | |
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D. K. from Mill Creek, WA
(7/1/2008)
 "Hot, Hilly, Beautiful, Poorly Run" (about: 2008)
3 previous marathons
| 1 SEAFAIR Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 2 We all knew this was a hilly run and the weather would be hot. The first 10 miles were hilly but beautiful, and there was lots of crowd support, with sprinklers, Vaseline, hoses, and otter pops. After 11, it was still hilly (as expected), but there was zero crowd support (need those cheers and sprinklers on hot days) and no shade after 16. There were no cups of water at the midpoint, so the only way to get water was if you carried your own bottle to refill. At mile 11 the water stop volunteers said, "We have no cups, but I can pour the water on your head, which is all you need." Huh? Don't get me wrong - BLESS, BLESS, BLESS ALL RACE VOLUNTEERS!! But warm water doesn't cool my body temp or rehydrate me if I can't drink it with 15 miles to go. By mile 18 the water was 90 degrees and there was no way to cool the body. Porta-potties didn't go much better than hydration. Before the start, there was a crowded 20+ minute-line to pee, and sparse porta-potties from there on out. Race instructions encouraged runners to use the shuttle (plus friends/family), yet they left 400 runners that never made the start. I ran across the finish line, but my results are not recorded after 30 kilometers. This course is challenging but beautiful, and worth the hills. Race organization needs serious work before ever contemplating running this again. | |
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R. B. from East Granby, CT
(6/30/2008)
"Hot, hilly, great volunteers, sub-par organization" (about: 2008)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 SEAFAIR Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 2 You can't blame a race organizer for record heat, but you can for several water stations running out of cups, busses being confused, and a host hotel a mile from the finish (and other attractions). Kudos to the police support and volunteers (several of whom gave you drinks from water jugs, fountain like, to make up for no cups). Course also had lots of hills, and no shade for the last 8 miles. For next year, start the race earlier, move the race hotel, get out a contour map, but keep the great volunteers. | |
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K. D. from Florence, KY
(6/30/2008)
"Never runnin' this one again" (about: 2008)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 SEAFAIR Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 3 I can appreciate a tough course, which this one had. However, the aid stations were not evenly spaced. A couple of early stations had so few volunteers that people were lining up for water, and a couple of late water stations ran out of cups. The fan support was ok, but there was no entertainment on the course. I pre-paid for the pasta dinner as part of my registration, but no one at the expo knew anything about the pasta dinner. | |
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J. H. from Stanwood, WA
(6/30/2008)
 "Amazing" (about: 2008)
1 previous marathon
| 1 SEAFAIR Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This was my first marathon, and although the course was rough (with all of the hills), the organization and fans were great. I would recommend this race to anyone because it was a great course with tons of help along the way from fans and event staff. I will be back and and would like to thank all the volunteers for their support. | |
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A. F. from Olypmia WA
(6/30/2008)
"not my favorite race" (about: 2008)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 SEAFAIR Marathon
COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 4 My first Seafair Marathon, and it did not make the cut on my list of must-run-again races. 1) Mandatory Saturday packet pick up. 2) Point-to-point course meant getting there at 5 a.m. to catch a bus. 3) Starting the 1/2 marathoners at the same time as the full - 5,000 runners with no clear line up as to projected pace. That made for a crowded, jostling first couple of miles. 4) Most roads were open to traffic with orange cones, giving us little room and safety. 5) They had overwhelmed water stations at the first two stops. It did get much better after that. 6) Gluekos drink. Who really drinks that? 7) We were ignored at the finish. Volunteers really should be checking on finishers to make sure they are OK. I found cups of hot water and orange slices at the finish. I did have a good time and don't usually complain, but compared to other races, this one did not seem to cater to the runner so much. |
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