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May 9, 2024

New York City Marathon Runner Comments

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Course 4.7

Organization 4.3

Spectators 4.9

Number of comments: 604 [displaying comments 71 to 81]

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R. S. from New Jersey (11/10/2011) "Spectacular!" (about: 2011) 6-10 previous marathons \| 4-5 New York City Marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This was my fourth New York City Marathon and it is still a thrill just to be part of it. Everything about this race is spectacular. From the start on the Verrazano Bridge, to the course, crowd support and the finish in Central Park. The course isn't easy. More hills than you might expect. And the streets and bridges of New York are hard on my knees, but I still love this race. From the moment you set foot in Brooklyn you will be greeted with cheers and encouragement.The crowd support is tremendous for the entire lenght of the course. Things get quiet on the 59th St Bridge, but just wait until you hit First Ave. It really does feel like the entire city comes out to support the Marathoners. Yes, it is big. Really big and crowded. Don't expect to come to New York to run a fast time. Yes, it can be a chore to get to the start and finding you way out of the park after you finish. But this is a small price to pay to take part in one of the world's great sporting events.
H. N. from New York, NY (11/9/2011) "Awesome race awful orginization" (about: 2011) 1 previous marathon \| 1 New York City Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 So this was my first marathon. I got in because the 3 strikes and your out rule. First the Pro's - from the moment i stepped into the staten island ferry to the village it was all super organized. Even the death march was an organized. The course was fun and the crowds were for the most part into (except the beginning of 1st ave and hasidic will'burg) Cons: this race is not meant for Americans, and especially not meant for NY's. There were more announcements in French and Spanish than in English. there were more KM markings than mile markings. Getting into this race is a nightmare if you're from the NYC area. Best to tell them your from Europe and you will have guaranteed entry. It seems than NYRR lost its touch to keep it a NY race and want the big bucks from rich Europeans. In short I love the marathon, I hate NYRR.
J. Y. from Minneapolis, Minnesota, US (11/9/2011) "Uninspired route followed by a long wait" (about: 2011) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 New York City Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 5 First, the positives. The organization of the race for picking up the race number and getting to the start line was impressive. The other positive was that the crowd support was excellent and the bands dotting the course had talent - oh, and I didn't hear Eye of the Tiger once, which is worth something. And now, what I mainly remember: the negatives. The course was boring and straight and often not much to look at. I looked forward to the bridges to break up the monotony. I'm originally from NYC, and don't feel this race does it justice. It could have been any large city for most of the race. Then came the exit from the park after the race. The volunteers did their best, they were consistently excellent throughout, but it took close to an hour to shuffle slowly out of the park. The baggage claim trucks were crammed onto a small path with all of the runners, so you were basically waiting in a huge line while people got their bags at the trucks and then found family and friends at the exit. One small exit, for a race with 47000 runners, with no separate, large area for people to meet up, or separate area for baggage pickup. Central Park is big and has many exits, they need to use it better. On the very slow, long exit people's legs were cramping, and folks ended up needing medical assistance who likely would have been fine if they could have kept moving. I always wanted to run this race because it was once my home city, now I wish I hadn't bothered, it's a waste of a day in an otherwise fantastic place to visit.
A. V. from California (11/8/2011) "Incredible and exciting" (about: 2011) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 New York City Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 The NYC marathon had a lot to offer. The organization was amazing. The city was awesome, and very welcoming. As this is the largest marathon in the world, I was pleasantly surprised at the organization of this huge logistical event. Yes, I would do it again in a heartbeat !
J. W. from USA (11/8/2011) "Overrated - Can't Organize a Bunch of Cattle" (about: 2011) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 New York City Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 4 I've run some mid-sized marathons and Boston the last two years. NYC course is definitely worthy of a 5 star rating, the fans do not compare to Boston (think Wellesly and Boston College areas, THEN, Hereford and Boylston... those areas are LOUD and NUTS!!!)For the number out there, I was surprised how somber and tame the crowds were. Don't get me wrong there were some great people out there, but I really think people overrate this race. Organization at the start is a complete joke. People sitting in corrals an hour and a half before the start, left little room for almost a 900 runners to fit, yet these folks refuse to stand up to make room. Attribute that to the lack of experienced runners and the international folks. Runners submit their race finish times is a joke...for something this size, it was insane how many people had no business being in the top 5 corrals at the start. Once the ropes were let down and we started to the bridge for the starting line, people in the green wave at corral 17,000 hustled up past folks in the 3000 - 6000 corrals... really??? These folks had no clue what they were doing and were in the way at the beginning... BIG TIME. IDIOT people leaving gatorade bottles, warm up suits, etc in the start area on the course with no regard for the 15000 other runners behind than would trip, step on and fall on these items left on the course. You couldn't see it because as you ran there were so many folks around you. You just stepped on it... completely STUPID people!! This race sucks because of the runners who fail to acknowledge those around them and the safety involved. You will NEVER see something like this at a Boston, because you have experienced runners who have sacrified so much, that they know what others are feeling and there is much more of a conscience effort to ensure ALL have a good experience. Otherwise, the organizers and volunteers are the tops and they do a good job in all other areas. Just need better control of some idiots out there. Keep those cattle in their corrals and monitored until the gun goes off to make sure it's safe for all.
Autumn Mitchell from Louisa, Kentucky (11/8/2011) "My One and Only" (about: 2011) 1 previous marathon \| 1 New York City Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 I was never thought of as a long distance runner. I was a Division I softball player and our conditioning training was never more than two miles. Last year, I decided I wanted to do something challenging and I chose to run the NYC Marathon. My training went okay, considering I have a teaching job, a pitching instructor position, and a coaching job. The course was great and challenging with its hills, the organization was amazing considering they had over 47,000 runners in the race, and the fans were fabulous. I didn't like that people were already tearing down parts of the course as I was running by and the fans were dwindling down as I was finishing. That could be my fault since it took me 5:48:32 to finish. Anyhow, this was the best experience of my life and if I never run another marathon, I will be happy knowing that the one I completed was one of the best marathons in the world. I loved New York!!
Robin Grover from Alexandria, Virginia, USA (11/8/2011) "Privileged to be a volunteer." (about: 2011) 6-10 previous marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 I have run 10 Marathons and 11 Half Marathons but have never been 'on the other side'. I was privileged to be accepted as a 'finish line' volunteer for this past Sunday's New York Marathon. The enthusiasm, energy and willingness to pitch in and do any job of every volunteer I met (of all ages, genders and diverse backgrounds) were incredible and infectious; they inspired my late 50s frame to keep at it for eight or nine hours. In addition, the organization of the NY Marathon was remarkable; it was a real education in logistics to see 48,000 food and drink finisher sacks lined up in giant sealed cardboard containers, 500 unit rolls of finisher shawls that needed to be unrolled and shook out, rows of 48,000 finisher medals on metal racks next to the volunteers who hung them on the finishing runners, medical stations on both sides of the finisher chute. Each segment of the NY race has a 'captain' who ensures that all is and remains in order; many thanks to Captain Eddie Vasquez who kept the finisher chute organized despite tens of thousands of onrushing runners. Great to meet runners from all over the world; the finisher I met who traveled the farthest to run the Marathon was a gentleman from Hyderabad, India. A wonderful and an educational experience on a fine day in a beautiful part of New York's Central Park.
M. R. from Brooklyn, NY (11/8/2011) "A Great Course and Day" (about: 2011) 6-10 previous marathons \| 4-5 New York City Marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This was the fifth time in a row I've run this race, and I didn't do so great (boredom, probably), but I'd still recommend running NYC. It's a great course, the crowds are spectacular, and the organizers are trying to make the pre-start scrum and the post-finish death march to one's baggage less awful. As it happens, the pre-start period flew by, and I got my bag a little sooner than usual (although I still had to walk quite a way). Highly recommended.
J. P. from the midwest (11/7/2011) "It's New York City! The Best Marathon Ever!" (about: 2011) 11-50 previous marathons \| 2 New York City Marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This was my 48th marathon and my second NYC marathon. My first one was back in 2002. The NYC marathon has the best organization, volunteers, water stops, course, packet pick-up, police and fireman any marathoner could ever hope for! If you want to run a big time marathon, on a course that all the big time runners of all time run, then you come to run NYC!!
M. M. from Pennsylvania (11/7/2011) "Crowd Support Was Extraordinary" (about: 2011) 11-50 previous marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 My 13th overall race (doing all 50 states) so I've got quite a few to compare. The New York Marathon experience was surprisingly not as great as I had expected. I was very disappointed due to the following: OVERPRICED - $155 a little steep 1. SHIRT: Not great quality material considering NYC is supposed to be the fashion capital of the world. The color was so drab the graphic nondescript. 2. EXPO: Also not that great. Seemed to be more intended for the International runners who've never been to one before. If you have to drive in, parking even blocks away from Javits was $50.00, Giveaways? None. The amount of Gatorade poured in a cup? One sip. Asics merchandise was expensive (obviously not for Europeans who were buying up a storm) and not too interesting. 3. START: The start was horrendously crowded. It wasn't worth the 3-4 hours needing to be there prior to the start of the race. Staten Island Ferry left at 6 AM with start of 9:40. Sat around the camp for 2 1/2 hours before the corral closed, 45 minutes prior to the start of the race. Stood on a bridge for some 30 minutes in small corrals where I felt like cattle. 4. FINISH LINE: Absolutely no directions online or listed materials provided as to where you exit the park and where to meet people - big omission. Planned to meet my family right round 1/2 mile after finish but had no idea I would have to walk another 3/4 mile before being 'released' to the public. No room, and finally after about 45 minutes was able to pick up my bag of stuff and walk another 1/4 mile to the open street. THE NYRR Club can and should do better. It seems like this race is intended for foreign runners to come and enjoy the sites and sounds of NY. Wouldn't recommend this race for those wishing to do the 50/50, especially now that they're doing away with the 'Three Strikes and Your In' lottery.

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