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May 20, 2024

Cincinnati Flying Pig Marathon Runner Comments

Back to Cincinnati Flying Pig Marathon Information & Reviews

Course 4.5

Organization 4.6

Spectators 4.6

Number of comments: 518 [displaying comments 81 to 91]

More Comments: [ < 1 .. 7 8 9 10 11 .. 52 > ]

N. O. from Seward, Alaska (5/10/2011) "FanTAStic support and spectators" (about: 2011) 1 previous marathon \| 1 Cincinnati Flying Pig Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 I was so impressed with this race: the wonderful cheering spectators along every bit of the way, the frequent water and GU and Gatorade stations... EVERY thing was really grand. Thanks so very much.
B. H. from OH (5/8/2011) "One of the Best!" (about: 2011) 11-50 previous marathons \| 6+ Cincinnati Flying Pig Marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 The Pig is one of the best-organized marathons that you will ever do. The Pig was a great race that continues to get better every year! With over 20,000 runners in the half, full and relays, it still has that small-race feel. This race has 29 water stops with plenty of encouraging volunteers. This year they added "pig pens" at the start, which helped with the congestion in the first few miles. The "finish swine" has plenty of space, food and fun. Even though it rained for the second year in a row, the spectators, volunteers and entertainment were great. You receive a nice tech shirt, a backpack and a great medal for an early registration rate of $70. The course can be challenging but it is worth the effort to the top of Eden Park to hear the barbershop group. That group has been on the course for all 13 years. We love this race and will keep running it as long as we can.
A. N. from Menomonie, Wisconsin (5/7/2011) "Nice Marathon with a rolling hills" (about: 2011) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Cincinnati Flying Pig Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 It was raining, so the weather wasn't perfect; but the temperature was nice considering that it was a wet one. The start of the race was a joke, the corral system wasn't followed, and it was total chaos at the start line. The course was wide enough, so this wasn't too big of a flaw. There were a lot of half marathons running the race, so there were plenty of folks around for the frist 9 miles or so. The water stops were great and my only recommendation would be to have individuals handing water out on both sides of the course, especially at the beginning of the race due to the congestion. The last 5 to 6 miles were sort of lonely as you ran along the highway coming back into downtown. The finish line was sort of plain and they had a good selection of food and drinks. It was a well run marathon and another state off of the list. I would recommend this race for those who dare to run 26.2 miles.
C. S. from Miami, Florida (5/7/2011) "Best spectators!" (about: 2011) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Cincinnati Flying Pig Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 Loved this race. The spectators are the best I have seen and they are constantly cheering for you. Even when the weather was not cooperating they came out and made us feel welcome. Race goodies were great - nice, ASICS, technical shirt; backpack; and poster. The medal is great and of high quality.
J. L. from Columbus, OH (5/6/2011) "It was fun once" (about: 2011) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Cincinnati Flying Pig Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 Not surprisingly my three PR streak ended in the hills of Cincinnati&. The Expo was really quite large for the size of the event (~5,000 for the full & ~12,000 for the half) but they also had a 10k/5k and some kid events on Saturday. It was family friendly; nice swag too; backpack, poster, engraved medal and race shirt. The race begins at 6:30a on Sunday near the football stadium which was open pre-race for rest rooms but it was also good because of the rain. The route was hilly, especially from mile 6 to 8 or so, very pretty views of the river and downtown (the course crosses into Kentucky at the beginning). There was more downhill than up in the second half but even that was draining (and hard to train for if you live someplace flat). Good crowd support but it was intermittent. I thought it was a good value for the price; the volunteers and event staff were knowledgeable and friendly. The race finishes near the coliseum and the immediate post race is under cover. The after race is in a nearby riverfront park. It was huge and managed to be at the same time both family friendly (numerous kid activities in the middle) but also fun for the runners (beer, bands and food around the perimeter). If was fun once but I'm not sure I'd want to try that course again.
G. B. from Cincinnati, OH (5/4/2011) "Great race just got better!" (about: 2011) 6-10 previous marathons \| 6+ Cincinnati Flying Pig Marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This year they finally added corrals at the start and it was awesome! No more tripping over all of the walkers. Lots of crowd support along the way. The expo is great - although I am tired of getting FP bags. The finisher medals are excellent. Course is hilly and challenging, but scenic. It's a fun race and very well organized. Don't miss it!
Chuck in Cincinnati from Milford, OH (5/4/2011) "Still a favorite !" (about: 2011) 11-50 previous marathons \| 2 Cincinnati Flying Pig Marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 I'm from the Cincinnati area, and I'm not trying to be bias, but this race does almost everything right ! It amazes me, how the organizers and volunteers do such a wonderful job. The spectators are awesome, the water stops endless and flawless, port-o-lets are everywhere, and the course is very fair. This was my 21st marathon and second Pig. Time wise, this course is my 3rd and 4th fastest of 21 with a 10 year separation gap. That says a lot about the course considering the hills. If you've ever thought about running the Pig ? Don't hesitate, it truly is a great experience. They even started the corral system this year. This is the area that still needs some work. I was in 'C' and there were still a lot of walkers in front of me. But that happens sometimes. I highly recommend this race from marathon virgins to seasoned veterans. Great job Cincy. You just keep getting better and better.
T. C. from San Diego, California (5/4/2011) "Way to go, Cincinnati" (about: 2011) 11-50 previous marathons \| 4-5 Cincinnati Flying Pig Marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 This is a wonderful race in a beautiful course of the City of Cincinnati. This is my 24th marathon and my 4th Cincy. As you can see, the increase in the number of participants each year why it is this race is highly recommended. Thank you to everyone for supporting us runners. We really appreciated it and will be back 2012.
S. P. from Covington, Ky. (5/3/2011) "The fun marathon. Do the Pig." (about: 2011) 4-5 previous marathons \| 3 Cincinnati Flying Pig Marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 A must-do race. Light rain and good temps made this a great race. The course is challenging, but the race and fan support are exceptional. This is a fun race for all levels of experience. Everyone must do the Pig.
T. R. from Central Ohio (5/2/2011) "A race too big for itself" (about: 2011) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Cincinnati Flying Pig Marathon COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 I've run all over the world and each of the 200 races I've done have great attributes. The Pig is no different. While crowded, the expo was easy to navigate and there seemed to be ample lodging nearby. Volunteers were great and frequent to help. Plenty of aid stations on the course as well. Here are the cons for this race: -While the corral start was a good idea, the execution was less than stellar. 6 corrals with 2 entry points for each made the staging nearly impossible. Trying to put 5,000 people in each corral 2-4 at a time won't really work. Kudos for the thought but make it easy for people to get to their corral. -Because it was so difficult to get into the corral, many people started in the wrong place. I started in 'C' (for the 4-4:30 full and 2-2:14 half groups). I was dodging walkers for the first 1 1/2 miles. -The course was also too congested. I felt like there was no real way to get a rhythm during the entire race because you were either running around people or people were cutting directly in front of me. This was race #200 for me (70 half and 22 full plus many others) and it seemed every bit as bad as I've ever seen it in an event. -Post race finisher's chute was also very crowded. This is a problem at pretty much every large event I've done and I've still never understood it. It was downright uncomfortable trying to get out of there and I probably spent 20-25 minutes navigating through all the stuff. I just wanted to get back to the hotel! All in all, because of what it is, I'd say if you like a huge race or never experienced one, I'd recommend it. If you're looking for a BQ or a PR, I'd find something else to do. It's just too crowded.

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