Carlsbad Marathon - Race Reviews

I trained like crazy for this marathon. It was my first and I wanted to make sure I could complete the race in a relatively good time. The course is beautiful! I love Carlsbad and this was some of the best of Carlsbad in a run. As someone who has only run Rock N Roll San Diego half and Phoenix Rock N Roll half, I expected more hills. I don't know why. All of the other reviews say this was hilly, and yes, there were hills, but some of the half's I've done were much worse. I loved the spectators and the aid station volunteers all cheered my name when I ran through. I finished with a respectable 04.02.12 and this course definitely made me want to do another to break that time. My biggest issue with the course was doubling back. I got a bit discouraged after the first loop. I like new scenery. The only other issue I had was that the 4 hr pacer was ahead of pace and I could never catch up. I never even saw him except passing on the loop even though I was under pace the first half. I will def be back!

Living in the Chicago makes this an ideal marathon. Sun, ocean views on Highway 101, shorts and a tee shirt in January. Who could ever complain. Yes, the hills are not easy on a runner used to flat courses, but we all made it through. I was blessed to run with the coach for the West Cost Road Runners, who got me through 3 rough miles. The shirt and jacket are a definite bonus. Going back next year.

The views of the Pacific make this marathon amazing. While I typically don't enjoy out-and-back courses, this one wasn't annoying, and it was fun to see plenty of other runners throughout the race. I recommend highly, but the hills do make this course more challenging than many standard marathon courses.

This was a perfect marathon. Every aspect of it exceeded my expectations: super organized, great swag, easy to get to everything including parking, a beautiful course, not super big (almost 1,000 marathon runners), perfect weather, and friendly and encouraging course support through the entire race. All of these elements came together to yield my (by far) best marathon PR time of WELL under the 4 hour barrier. I cannot recommend this marathon enough. What a wonderful experience! For a full detailed writeup of my review, you can visit https://runningriddles.com/races/the-2019-carlsbad-marathon-in-carlsbad-california/.

If you enjoy running by the beach, then the Carlsbad marathon is one you'll want to run. Probably 20-21 of the miles you'll have views of the Pacific ocean. Race was well organized. Expo not very big, but this isn't a massive race. I think they get around 1k for the full marathon, and 8-9k for the half. Course support was pretty good. Not a fan of the choice for fluids they provided (Ultima), but I know everyone has their own preferences. This is definitely a race I plan to run again.

It was a very hard marathon for me since I am from flat Chicago! I am thinking of running it again next year. It comes at the right time for training and the weather was perfect. The crowds were so supportive and we had plenty of water stops and that always adds to the spectator count. The runners were all friendly and supportive of each other.

I decided to run the marathon about an hour before it started. I've never run a marathon, or even a half-marathon before. Actually, I've never run in any organized race that wasn't run by the Army, so I don't know how valuable my words will be for others to compare with. That being said, I do know this area very well and run a couple of miles through this part of Carlsbad a couple of times per week. So firstly, I know that this doesn't count as training for a marathon, so I did not train. Despite this, I finished in 5 hours, 41 minutes. I live along the route by the beach, so I'm very familiar with the route, and I would say that the organizers chose very well. The route itself is reflective of Carlsbad geography in general, and you just can't beat that ocean view amirite? The organization of this race is really excellent. At no point did I feel like I needed something that wasn't provided by the event. There could have been a couple more porta-potties located towards the far end of the route (by the camping area and far south beach), but otherwise the support stations were well-placed and not too far apart. Despite having run around the area for years and along this particular road for years, I found the short elevation changes (mostly by the lagoons) to be somewhat difficult, especially during the most excruciating part of the race for me (around mile 20-24). Having done most of my running either by myself or in the Army, I am a 'serious business' kind of runner and can get irritable, and so the live music, and the spectators... They got in my head. Especially the frickin' cowbells and the wooing. That of course is 100% on me and actually I could clearly see the spectators (including some of my neighbors) having an obvious positive impact on others in the race, so taking away a single star for the spectators is a reflection of my own failing in the way of the stoics lol (the spectators and support staff were actually great). Next time, I will be sure to bring headphones and music of some kind, even if it's just loud white noise. One exception is this group of high school kids that were murdering 'Eye of the Tiger' towards the end of the race. They filled my soul with determination. Anyway, I did not know that the route changed from year-to-year and I'm glad I ran it this year because I'm so familiar with the route they chose. I am a big fan of C-bad Village and so it was really nice to run through there a total of four times with the turnarounds. Lots of barbeque smells. The start/end spot was a really smart location. That mall area gets a *ton* of traffic and they managed to close off only a small corner of the parking lot and only a small part of a back street which was the actual route. So they minimized the disruption to Sunday shoppers while also maximizing traffic throughput for race participants and spectators to/from the race itself. Very smart. The registration process (I did day-of registration) was completely painless and the organizers thankfully had a ton of food, water, and cold drinks (chocolate milk) at the end of the race. I have heard that people really enjoy the Carlsbad Marathon, and that people find the route challenging, and I have to agree with both of those statements even though I don't really have anything to compare it to. All told, I finished the marathon, and I did not die, and I am 100% sure I am going to do more marathons (next time with a little more preparation). So thanks for giving me the bug, C-bad!

Mostly very happy with this race. GREAT logistics (bag check well thought out, tons of volunteers, seemed like 26 water stops!) Course markings were excellent, traffic was well managed, and start/stop at the same place helped. The course has lots of pretty ocean views, and a surprisingly high amount of enthusiastic crowd support. 2017 had 927 marathoners and 5800 half marathoners. They share the course for maybe 5? miles, at two different times. The two groups were pretty well segmented, except miles 25-26 (no pylons, no signage). By the end of the race, the half participants were all walking and it took a bit of weaving to get around them. It's minor quibble, and arguably an ego benefit, as I passed a few hundred people in the last mile and no one passed me!

There are a lot of good things I can say about this marathon, but all of these are overshadowed by a very poorly managed merge with half-marathoners for the last few miles. A runner on a 9:00 minute mile pace suddenly has to fight their way through a sea of half-marathoner walkers. If they keep this course, they REALLY need to separate start times by at least another half hour.

The organization, location and ease of getting in and out of this marathon is very good. As a frequent racer, I am especially fond of having the start and finish in the same location, and I enjoy the wide variety of post race restaurants and bars. The course itself is very challenging. The first two miles are a slight decline, and it's easy to go out too fast. The climb from mile 5-10 is NO JOKE, especially from about 7-10. I trained on many hills, and would highly recommend adding steady 3-4 mile uphill grinds to your routine to be prepared. The mostly downhills south on the coast (10-18) seem to go in a flash, and then you will climb again when you turn around heading north along the coast around mile 18. If you push the early hills, you might be one of the walking dead at this point. Miles 18 to 23 seemed mostly uphill to me and I barely noticed the occasional downhills. Merging with a slew of halfers was also disturbing at mile 20, as I lost sight of the few marathoners I'd been hanging with. It's a tough, strategic course, but possible to run it fastif you are prepared and have a solid race plan.

Being from the East Coast, I imagined the miles along the beach would be flat, but it is rolling terrain all the way. Weather was great for doing a January marathon. If anything, it got a bit warm towards the end. The only complaint I had was that while there were water stops every mile, there were not electrolyte replacement drinks nearly that often. Ultima is definitely a better tasting substance than Gatorade and no upset. But the 'deal' to buy it with a discount, still means paying about 70 cents for 12 ounces - way too much for a mix.

Well-organized; good expo; plenty of aid (but not enough porta-potties along Polomar Road!); nice jacket and shirt; bands, spectators, lots of volunteers. Hampton Inn had shuttle (across from airport), but shuttle ran out of room. about 1/3 along ocean; lots of 'gradual' hills. Someone else can pick up your packet with copy of ID.

all good, but parking lot terrible. 1 hour trying to get out of the parking lot.

I can't say enough good things about this marathon... Congrats to the race director and all the volunteers, you all did an amazing job, and the race was so 'well equipped'. More porta pottys, water stations, and Clif Shot stations than I've seen on any other race, 'big' marathons included. Parking at the mall was so convenient, and free!!! Good decision starting the halfers an hour and a half later than the marathoners, it made for so much less congestion and easier parking at the start. Small field for the full marathon, I think it was only a little over 1000 people. made for an easy start, the pack spread out very quickly, probably within a quarter of a mile. Hilly course, so not fast, but scenic... lots of miles along the coast, got to see a great sunrise over the ocean. My only complaint is that the full marathoners joined up with the halfers for the last 10 miles or so, which made it a little more congested. Plus, halfers are often newbies, and don't quite have their etiquette together... I saw a lot of non-registered people jumping on the course to run a few miles with their friends, and often clogging up the course by running side-by-side so that they could talk. Hard to police this though, I know. But altogether, a very well put together race, would definitely run it again.

When I saw the elevation map, I thought I'd hate this run. Not so. It was fantastic. Even going up the 325' wasn't a big deal. Pluses: the early start! great course. great medal. loved the shirt and the jacket (full marathon only ... that's fair) loved that they completely do different medals and shirts for the FULL. NICE! Merging with the 1/2 at mile 15 was no big deal. We were with them for a mile and there was enough room to run my own race. Merging back with them again at mile 20 was a challenge. It was too easy to walk with the folks doing the 1/2. Time for some mental mojo to get you past the 'wall'. I've done 89 marathons. I strongly recommend this one. Oh, and lots of inexpensive hotels to stay at!

INTRODUCTION: I am a race-walker with a median marathon completion time of 5:15:19. The Carlsbad Marathon was my twenty-eighth 26.2-miler accomplished. COURSE: It was a great day for a marathon: a cool 48 degrees, 37 percent relative humidity with a 9 mph wind from the ENE at the pre-dawn start. It was a well-mannered start as we left the Westfield Plaza Camino Real on our way west, initially alongside Buena Vista Lagoon and crossing I-5, completing our first of many nominal ascents, in our first mile. Our second mile afforded us our first approach onto the historic US-101, now better known as Carlsbad Boulevard, which was to be our companion for 12 of the 26.2 miles. Initially, we headed north, crossing Buena Vista Lagoon until reaching the Oceanside city limit, where we turned around and headed south beginning our climb toward Carlsbad Village, the touristy heart of the city filled with shops, cafes, and lodging accommodations before having our first glimpse of the Pacific Ocean. Dawn approached as we completed mile 3 alongside Carlsbad State Beach, continuing south as we were given further opportunity to see the sea for the next two miles. At mile 5, we departed Carlsbad Boulevard to commence the most difficult part of the marathon: the ascent toward Palomar Airport. For the next four miles, we climbed 275 feet, heading east on Palomar Airport Road. Miles 6 and 7 were not too terribly difficult, only going up 41 feet in elevation. Things started to get interesting in the eighth mile, where turning onto Palomar Oaks Way, we encountered a steeper grade, which increased to 4 percent upon returning to Palomar Airport Road by way of Camino Vida Roble. We reached the crest at mile 9, crossing the Yarrow Road entrance to Palomar Airport. We turned around at mile 9.4, soon before beginning our descent on Palomar Airport Road. Just after crossing I-5 and before returning to Carlsbad Boulevard, we took a north-south out-and-back detour on Avenida Encinas. Interestingly, the halfway point of the race was located at In-n-Out Burger, a treasured establishment in the mind of most Southern Californians. The temptation to stop for a Double-Double and fries was easy to refuse considering the restaurant was a couple of hours away from opening. Returning to Carlsbad Boulevard at mile 15, we headed toward the south, enduring inclines and declines of not too significant substance and sharing the road with some half marathoners for a little over a mile while enjoying occasional vistas of the South Carlsbad State Beach. After crossing Batiquitos Lagoon, we reached the southernmost point intersecting La Costa Avenue at the Encinitas city limit at mile 18, where we turned around and headed north. From here on out, we retraced our steps back to the start line. When we caught up with the slower half-marathoners just short of mile 20, there was a band that separated us, forcing us to stay on the far right, where the cant of the road was at its steepest. We resumed sharing the road with the 13.1-milers somewhere between mile 22 and 23 all the way back to the finish line. Weather conditions at the finish: a warmer-than-average 67 degrees, 28 percent relative humidity with a 4 mph wind from the WSW. ORGANIZATION: Average sized expo for a marathon of this size with a little less than average selection of marathon-logoed merchandise. (There appeared to be a greater focus toward the Triple Crown series of half marathon races, of which the Carlsbad Half Marathon was part of.) The event itself was well-organized: the start went off well, the properly placed mile markers were easy to spot, and there were no issues regarding traffic control. FANS: Average for an event of this size. There were various bands performing with more or less enthusiasm along the way. My favorite was the band playing surf music near mile 7-appropriate for this sort of venue. CONCLUSION: Five of the twenty largest US marathons are located within the Golden State, so it is easy for the non-Californian to overlook Carlsbad. Given the consistently terrific weather, attractive course and excellent organization, it is a race well worth considering. Well done.

Carlsbad was a last second race choice for me coming from Michigan, and I was genuinely surprised in the scope and overal organization. The 1500 marathoners started well ahead of the 7000 1/2ers but merged with them later in the race. The first merge segment was a little congested but the blvd was closed to traffic and it wasn't too bad rolling along the beachside. There were a couple small and one long non-descript out-and-back portions that clearly are just to pad distance for the marathon (although they did try to add a band or two to spice it up). Race seemed pretty friendly for even the slower or gimping runners and I didn't hear of them running out of any frills or aid station supplies. A simple improvement suggestion would be to add a start/finish area map to the website to help guide us 'out-of-towners' to the expo/ race event.

I signed up the event a few days before the race. I enjoyed the scenic route, cheerful volunteers in this well organized event. The total of full marathoners were less than 2000. It is a nice smaller crowd than many big marathon events. The street were wide at the beginning of the race. Starting from mile 1, you don't need to fight with others to find your own pace. There are plenty pace keepers, water stations, and many energy gel stations. There are many spectators and creative cheering signs along the route in the last 6 miles. I saw one tequila stand, and one beer stand along the way. Although I can not drink alcohol when I run, they warmed my heart. The organizers are very responsive to the questions/requests even after the event were over. It is a good idea to divide the full marathon and half marathon at the first two miles after those two streams join together. However, the tilt road surface close to the curbside made that two miles very hard to run.

Scenic course along the ocean; I thought the inland part was fine, too; there will hills, but very manageable. Spectators in only a few parts of the course (which is what I prefer). Great expo - lots of vendors. Nice shirt (and different from half marathoners) and not unisex (but women's ran large). LOTS of porta-potties at start. Aid every mile for a long time. Need WAY more porta-potties in second half (especially once we joined the Half); (I had to use the bushes a couple times!). I'm a 5:30 so joining with the Half wasn't bad, but I can imagine it was a lot worse for people faster than me. GREAT, ENTHUSIASTIC, WONDERFUL volunteers at all the aid stations. Chocolate milk at end was nice. Great 'Marathon Show' announcer guy welcoming us to the Finish - even for the people at the end. Lots of Bands - that was nice. My kind of race - scenic, not crowded but always running with people; minimal spectators, well supported; and the plus was the great expo.

This race was a beautiful race when I was able to run along the ocean. The other parts of the race were not very scenic and there were WAY too many hills. There were quite a few spectators at this race. I absolutely HATED running with the half marathoners because this made it extremely congested, especially towards the end. It was hard to find the expo because I thought it was in the mall but it was really outside of it. Although I loved the weather and the ocean, I would not do this marathon again. It was really tough!

I had a generally pleasant experience at this race. It's not in an exciting tourist destination and doesn't have any mind-blowing views, but the organizers do a good job at putting on a quality event. It's probably not a race I'd tell people to travel for, but if you live in Southern CA, it's definitely worth adding to your running resume. Comments: 1) Parking was great, both for the expo and race. I arrived over an hour early for the race, expecting traffic on the 78 East, and found both the drive and parking to be a breeze. 2) Organization was good. The website had all the info you need, which is more than I can say for a lot of races (I'm looking at you, Nike Women's Marathon). Lots of people directing traffic and parking. Signs were mostly well placed - except finish line signs didn't match: signs on the cones said halfers finish on the left and full on the right; the banner above the finish line said full finish on the left and half on the right. No big deal though. 3) Course was pretty, though not quite as flat as advertised. The hills aren't too big, but there are a decent number of rolling hills. Most of the half course runs along the ocean, so it's scenic although there can be some challenging headwinds at times. 4) I ran the half, not the full, so I don't know how bad it was for marathoners to merge with half runners the last few miles, but it didn't seem clogged where I was (I was in the first wave of half marathon runners though - waves farther back probably had more congestion) 5) Bring your own GPS watch and sports drinks. They don't have clocks on the course, just mile markers. And they only serve Ultima, which has to be the foulest-tasting drink out there. 6) Excellent job on the wave start for half marathon. I've been to races where the 'waves' are just suggestions and really everyone gets herded into crowded corrals with few access points so you end up getting stuck behind people who put themselves in wave 1 even though they are walking. This one gave plenty of access in and out of corrals and seemed far less chaotic than usual. 7) Nice long-sleeved technical t-shirt. I think the full finishers got a jacket, which is a great touch. 8) Water, coconut water, chocolate milk, bananas, pretzels, and protein bars at the finish made for much appreciated recovery food. 9) Pretty good spectator support. If you need thousands of spectators cheering you on, this isn't your race, but there were lots of people out there with great enthusiasm. Thanks :) Overall, nice solid race experience. I'll probably run again next year.

This marathon is one that I would recommend if you want to run a scenic marathon, but is not a particularly good PR course. There is a decent size hill that is a 3-4% incline about a third of the way through, and rolling hills for most of the rest of the course. About half of the course runs along the Pacific Coast Highway, making it one of the most beautiful marathons you can run. There were plenty of water stations, which included gels at many of them. There were also pace groups for multiple time goals. If you want to run a small and scenic marathon, this one is a great choice.

Carlsbad offers the classic California course with ocean front running, hills and a little traffic congestion. The best way to enjoy this marathon is to arrive early to get the best parking and be patient when leaving if you need to get to the freeway. I think passing the slower half marathoners during the last six miles is a 'good' motivator to keep running steady as long as they stay to the left of the cones as instructed. The spectators along Carlsbad Blvd to the finish are great when only a couple of small hills are left. This was my 10th finish on this course which was called the San Diego Marathon prior to 2005. The inclusion of a quality white Carlsbad Marathon running hat along with the tech shirt is a very nice feature. Please continue this in the future. Come to Carlsbad to run in the 'beautiful' January winter weather.

This was my first marathon after running several half marathons. I picked this race because it was close to my house and because it ran along the ocean. PROS: 1. Beautiful scenery. Because one of the turnbacks is on the coast, I didn't mind them. There are quite a few though. 2. Perfect weather- high 60's with partial clouds 3. Nice long sleeve technical shirt. I also liked that there was a difference between the half and full marathon shirts. I mean it is double as long. 4. Plenty of parking and port a potties on race day. The start is in a mall parking lot so there is ample parking. 5. Plenty of water/aid stations. The Ultima isn't my favorite tasting drink, but there were enough aid stations and they were spaced out well. CONS: 1. I know there is not much they can do about it, but it was pitch black to start the race. I saw a couple people trip on the raised dots in the road it was so dark. Maybe a little later than 6 am start time? 2. No timers. I brought my Garmin so I was fine, but I would have expected a clock somewhere on the course besides the finish line. 3. Bad staffing at split off. Like the other posters here, I got confused when we were supposed to split with the half. My partner and I were talking and following the crowd when I spied one person running straight while we were turning. I looked around and saw only one sign, which was simply a laminated piece of printer paper on a traffic cone which told us to go straight. No staffers there either. Luckily we only took about ten steps in the wrong direction. 4. It might have been a littering thing, but I found it so annoying when the staffers at the aid station took the top off the GU for me. Both times when I picked it up, my fingers were covered in GU! Later in the race, a few staffers were yelling 'Unopened GU!' So I think they knew it was annoying. 5. The pacers. I was trying to run a 10:30 pace so I got behind a pace person. He consistently ran 9:45 pace. This was confirmed with my and several people's Garmins. When someone asked him about it, he said he was going a little fast because the race got tougher up ahead. What?! 6. The finish area. After finishing, I kept getting yelled at to go forward and keep moving. After getting my medal, they mistakenly gave me a half medal, so I had to go to the info desk to get it exchanged. There was a little crappy bag with a small banana and a few terrible tasting bars. The area was PACKED with family members to where you could barely move. There wasn't really anything going on at the finish either. Just a 20 minute line if you checked a bag. I was hoping for some good food or a blanket or something. Overall I liked this marathon and had a good experience.

The beginning of the race was good- plenty of porta potties=no waiting. Starting in the dark with the stars was nice. Sunrise running along the coast was good. I didn't really like the out and back on the same stretches. Most of it was ok, except for the merge with the half marathon which was horrible. After the merge, the marathon route turn off was not well marked at all. There were many people that missed it and ruined thier marathon!! Since I live in the area, I kind of knew that it was too early to turn around, so made the correct decision to go straight. There should have been a HUGE sign there to make it clear. On the last merge, it was really annoying to be mixed in with the slower half marathoners- we were very tired, mile 20 to 26.2, and had to weave in and out of slow running and walking half marathoners. To top everyting off, when we went to the gear pick up, we had to wait over an hour because they were completely disorganized and could find people's bags very quickly. I was somewhat dissapointed with the whole thing, especially after hearing so many good things about it. If I were to do it again, it would only be because it is only 15 minutes from where I live. This race is very much about the half marathon and 'triple crown'- The marathon is just a little side show.

To me, this race was really geared to the half-marathon. The Half runners outnumbered the 26.2 runners by a margin of more than 6 to 1. This was fine while the routes were seperate, but when they merged the two, it really cost me a lot of time and enjoyment. Weaving through the much slower half-marathoners was bad enough, but it wasn't clear to me for about a mile whether I was still on the marathon route or had missed a turn. After the race, the bag pick-up line took about 40 minutes and then it took another 40 minutes just to drive the 1/4 mile to get out of the mall parking lot. The course was great. The t-shirt and medal were great. But I wouldn't run this again unless they increased the ratio of marathon runners and/or did a better job of seperating the courses.

The course is varied with one hill early enough to not be too much trouble. Several sections along the ocean are just incredibly beautiful. Not a lot of spectators, and not very enthusiastic (like most CA marathons). The one great benefit of having thousands more half marathoners starting later is the hundreds of port-a-potties available. The last six miles are merged with the 1/2 marathoners, but there the bike lane was coned off until the last 2 miles. Weaving throuogh slower half marathoners for the last miles is a bit of a pain.

The Positive. First of all, this was probably the prettiest of the three marathons I've run. The volunteers, spectators, bands and cheer groups all did an amazing job. It was especially great to see so many younger musicians volunteering for an event like this. I like that the tech shirts are sex-specific, fit well, and come from a conscientious company. Water stations were plentiful and there were enough porta-potties at the start line meaning that (at least for the marathoners who start earlier) there was little to no wait time to use one before the race. This seems to be a rarity for marathons(availability of porta-potties throughout the course was comparable to other races. There was usually a wait of 1 to 3 people for the toilets along the course. Wait time would also probably be longer for the more numerous half-marathoners at the start.) I was happy with the post-race food bag and the medals are nice as well. I had high expectations of this marathon after reading all the favorable reviews and traveled 2,000 miles to participate. However. The Negative. This was also the smallest scale and least well-organized of the marathons I've run, especially for a non-local. I didn't know that 'West Plaza' was a mall, or that the expo was behind the mall, so it was a little tricky to find on GPS directions to the address which lead you right to the JC Penney's on the front side of the mall. By afternoon of the Saturday expo, they had run out of almost all of the sizes of the marathon shirts for men and women. I wear women's extra small and the smallest size available was a men's large. Since we requested shirt sizes during registration, I thought the right size would be available. I ended up with a half marathon shirt that fit since I knew I wouldn't wear the giant marathon shirt. There are NO clocks on this course. None. Not even at 13.1. And no volunteers shouting out times with bullhorns like in other smaller scale races. I didn't wear a watch because usually marathons seem to have time clock overload, but I had no idea what time it was or how fast I was going for the entire race, aside from seeing the pace groups. The first clock I saw was at the finish line. It was a little disorienting, especially after the merge with the halfers (see below). The sports drink for this marathon is Ultima. It's not very good and the stations for it are(mostly) separate from the water stations. It seemed like there weren't that many Ultima stations along the course. There are two GU stations as well, but if you relied just on sports drinks and gels from the course, it probably wouldn't be enough. I ended up being glad I had brought along plenty of my own sports gels. If you do this race, I would definitely do the research ahead of time to know where the sports drink stations are. I noticed a lot of people wearing fuel belts with sports drinks during this race as well. Must've been race veterans. The marathon merge with the slower and exponentially more numerous half marathoners halfway through the race was *immensely* annoying. Miles 20 to 26.2 are also joined with the halfers. There is an 'express lane' for awhile which helps a little, but they still come back together. Some of the road surfaces along this course are banked as well. This was a concern for me since I've had IT band issues in the past and try to avoid banked roads. Course maps aren't to scale. Half/Full course integration was poorly marked for those unfamiliar with the course. The first junction had one small paper sign and one volunteer. Then a few miles after the half marathon merge, the half marathoners u-turn while the marathoners go straight. This intersection was poorly marked and I didn't see anyone going straight or any signs through the herd of half-marathoners. Usually there are numerous volunteers and obvious electronic signs at junctions like these, but there were just smaller paper signs and no volunteers. I missed the offshoot for the marathon course and didn't realize the mistake until it was too late, which effectively ruined this marathon as a legitimate race for me. This was my first marathon after I spent most of 2011 recovering and rehabing from a ski accident, so I was very disappointed. Also, although the course was pretty, it had much more double backing and repeat sections than I prefer. There is one intersection you run past three times. Great for family spectators, but not as much fun for runners. The finish line area is also overly congested with families. This is difficult when you just come off the course and need to keep moving but get stuck in a crowd of people and can't fight through. I like marathons which have a runner recovery area separated from the family festivities area. The gear check was also a nightmare and runners were forced to stand in long lines. I already received an apology email from the race about this, so it sounds like they intend to change it next year. Finally, the spectator guide was helpful, but more information on driving detours for race day would have been appreciated. Summary: pretty race and wonderful people. If it wasn't for the half marathon merge and course integration, I might be tempted to do this again next year. Word of caution to out of town runners and first time racers: research the course ahead of time and bring your own sports drink or gels, get to the expo as early as you can, and wear a Garmin or a watch so that you can track your pace.

This was my 31st marathon. I liked the course and the volunteers and local folks were nice. There were parts of the course with some spectacular scenery, but the first 40 min was in the dark and much of the course was in pretty ordinary urban streets. There were a few annoying things that could have been fixed. 1) There was nothing but water to drink for the last 3-4 stops (no Gatorade type drink) and they ran out of cups at one stop. 2) The post-race food was a real letdown. The bag they handed out was heavy on candy bars and a banana. 3) The worst think about the race for me was after merging the mob of half marathoners with the marathoners they had a tricky turnaround for the 1/2 guys and the marathoners were supposed to go straight. I was not the only guy to make the false turn and have to retrace my steps. There should have been someone there directing traffic with a big sign. 4) While there is not much the organizers could do about this, trying to get out of the parking lot was very congested. It was not at all clear which way was the fastest and easiest route to your destination.

A smaller scale marathon, with fun crowds and easy going runners. The full M. runners get sent off first, so the crowd is smaller at the start, which is so much nicer than in the bigger races. Running along the ocean, as the sun rises is a beautiful experience. I loved this run.

Decent course; the parts along the beach were epic. The hills added character. Much more spectator support than I expected, especially really early before sunrise! The only complaint I have is that the marathoners merged with slower half-marathoners, which is just annoying.

This is one of my favorite marathons - the scenery, the fans, and the organization are tops! I always PR at this course - it does have a few hills, but nothing too steep. The expo was one of the best, the medals are awesome, and the shirts are some of the best out there. If you have not run this, it is a must!

I've made the trip to Carlsbad four years in a row now, having run the half three times and the full once (I ran the full last year). The full course is challenging due to a large long hill in the first half of the race and a few rollers after that. This was my favorite of the four marathons I've run, but only because the course along the ocean made it so wonderful. This year, back to the half marathon to make it more of a vacation. This was the first time that I felt impinged by the many many people who run here. The corral start is good, but I still had great difficulty getting into a rhythm. I pretty much had to shift my pace the whole time. Next year I will run again, but will run it purely as a training run rather than go for a fast time. The vibe is great, people are friendly, and the volunteers are great. One change I would love to see is a much longer finishing chute (like in Fresno - that one is great), and more efforts to keep family and friends out of the recovery areas (e.g. where the food is). I could barely stand up as I was so tired but had to fight through the crowds to get out of the chute. Not good.

Having run the half-marathon for the past three years in a row, I decided that it was finally time to run the full marathon. From the registration process through driving away from the finish area, my experience was all good. Registration Fee: Very reasonable compared to other marathons, especially the price-gouging Rock 'N Roll Series. Expo: A little crowded and difficult to access some aisles, but the vendor booths were diverse. There was a lot to choose from. T-Shirts: The marathon offered a separate t-shirt from the half-marathon. I just love it when marathoners are not lumped in with half-marathoners... after all, we are running twice the distance. Porta-Potties: Based on the size of the field, there were more porta-potties for this marathon than any other marathon that I have run. There was no waiting, even shortly before the start. Although I did not need any, there were plenty of porta-potties along the course as well. Starting Area: The marathon began at 6:00 a.m. and the half-marathon began at 7:30 a.m. These guys had the most important thing right from the beginning. Kudos to Carlsbad for starting the races separately. From my vantage point it looked as if runners lined up in the proper areas. The walkers and joggers were near the rear where they belong. The Course: Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful. How else can you describe running along the ocean for 13 miles and having ocean views for more than 15 miles? The smell of the Pacific was fantastic. The terrain can be described as minor rolling hills with a couple of challenging climbs. Course Support: Aid stations were reasonably spaced and adequately stocked with the usual water, sports drinks and occasional energy gels. Spectators: Very energetic throughout the entire marathon. Of course there were some areas without spectators, but when they were out, they were loud. The Finish Line: Although it was a shared finish line, the marathon finished on one side of the road and the half-marathon finished on the other side of the road. An announcer was yelling out the names of the runners as they approached the finish line. Recovery Area: More than adequate. There were plenty of goodies to snack on, plenty of water to drink, and a large enough area in which to recover. Finisher's Medal: The medal was very nice as compared to some of the others I have received. Overall Experience: I am glad that I finally ran the marathon. From beginning to end, Carlsbad is a model for other marathons to follow: Recommendations For The Organizers: Don't change a thing.

Carlsbad goes on the "hope to do again" list. Pre-race logistics were easy. The darkness in the first 2 miles was a little much for the initial density of the pack; a few well-placed lights or a slightly later start could help. The course is definitely prettier than most, with the 10 miles or so along the ocean a real plus. On course support was very good except for some stations running out of cups later in the run. Personnel were very friendly and helpful. The gels were perfect and made up for some of Ultima's limitations. Traffic control was very good. The stretch with a separate lane for marathoners was greatly appreciated, given the large number of half marathoners sharing the road. The finish area was OK. Shirts and medals were better than average. Traffic flow after the run is still the weakest link, although from our distant parking spot, we got a nice post run walk and an easy exit. Thank you to those who seem to be trying to make this run even better!

This was a great race, in a beautiful part of the world. Hats off to the organizors allowing bib numbers to be sold and transferred by early Jan. If you're from somewhere cooler and wet and need to get some sun and run a great race in the last minute as I did, there were lots for sale on Craigslist! Painless and very well done; why can't other marathons do this? They need to learn from these guys! Great course, but challenging. Scenic - loved running along the beach when the sun was coming up. Fans were awesome, volunteers were everywhere, and there was plenty of water, GU, oranges. I recommend host hotel (Hilton) as my family was able to walk 5 minutes and cheer. I saw them at three different spots during the race. Shuttle service got me to the start and back - all you can ask for. Great one to start season with; see you next year!

The course is relatively challenging, with a few whopper hills. But to see the ocean at your side through much of the way is beautiful. The organization seemed pretty good; it was easy to get to the start, and it was also a pretty simple finish area (although, for slower runners, there was not much post-race party happening). Spectators were really awesome; there were long lines of friendly faces at every station. At one point a volunteer ran with me for a few minutes, and at one aid station, some kids ran with me as a i passed through. Just a very friendly enjoyable day.