Carmel Marathon - Race Reviews

If you are looking for a nice flat race to qualify for Boston with a small town feel and a reasonable price, this is the place. The expo was small and at the local high school. It had what you needed, a couple of sales on running clothes/nutrition, and some other races advertising future races. I was in and out in less than 30 minutes. Race day was well organized. I stayed at a hotel that offered free busing to the start line. The first bus sent to our hotel broke down but a new one was at the hotel within 10 minutes so no issues. The race was close to the hotel anyways. We were dropped off 1/4 mile from the start and walked down to the start line. I dropped off my bag with no issues and got in line for the bathrooms. They had a decent amount of bathrooms. While waiting, the snow starting coming down. It was like we were in a snow globe. It wasn't the kind of snow that would stick but I was worried about footing. The race started and on the first corner, a guy completely slipped and fell hard. I made sure to take it easy on any turns for the next couple of miles. As the race progressed, the weather wasn't fantastic. Lots of wind and some periodic sleet. By mile 9-10, that stopped and was fine the rest of the way. Overall, the course itself was very unremarkable. We ran on roads, we ran on trails, we ran through industrial parks. I wish they had used the cute city of Carmel more honestly. The crowd support was completely lacking which probably wasn't helped by the weather. The course itself was mostly flat but the wind from about mile 18-22 was not great. The finish line food was good-chocolate milk, donut holes, bags of chips, and homemade pancakes on the grill with a to go bag and syrup. It was a nice perk. They also had massages too. Overall, there were good and bad parts, but I was able to PR by 7 seconds on a rough weather day. If you like small cheap races and don't care if you see more than 100 people on the race, this is the race for you.

It was snowing at the start line. WOW. I still loved this run. Camel is a very cool town. Route is super and very well supported. Real good expo. Number 212 for me and I highly recommend it.

I've done over 400 races of various distances and this ranks right up there at the top. I ran the half this year. In the 30s, sunny start. Had a friend pickup my bib so didn't attend the expo. Race was well organized, free parking in parking garage near the start\finish, plenty of fluid on course, nice after race layout, plenty of drinks and snacks with pancakes. Course is mostly flat with some grades. Really only one short hill at about mile 11-12. It was a bit congested for the first mile or two but then thinned out. My only complaint was with some of my fellow runners, who couldn't be bothered to wear a mask in the corrals despite being asked to do so. I would guess about 90% complied. Unsure why the other 10% could not show the race organization, the City of Carmel, and their fellow runners who complied some courtesy by wearing a mask in the start corrals. I really appreciate the race director, his organization and the City of Carmel for having an in-person event, they did a fantastic job pulling this off.

A pleasant marathon with great support.

This is a beautiful little city tucked in the northern suburbs of Indianapolis. I came into town through Indianapolis to drop my dog off at her sitter's house, and I felt like I never left the city, driving north. There was a parkway - like an expressway - going north, and then cross- street bridges every mile or so. It looks like they had just under 1,100 marathon runners, but it seemed a lot bigger than that to me. The Expo was all outside, and lasted well into the evening. I did my business there and then left. But there was still a pretty large array of stuff that was out for the runners to see & buy. There were multiple parking garages nearby, and parking was free during the race. It was forecast to start out cold (near freezing) - and was to warm to about 60 during the day. That is pretty much how it worked. We had to wear a mask until crossing the start-line, then they provided masks again at the finish line (it is tough to eat and drink afterwards while wearing a mask). Anyway, the typical runner just dropper their mask on the ground across the start line, and it almost looked like blue paving stones. No worries, they got it all cleaned up - thanks to the volunteers. The course was two big loops - each one 13.1 miles long, with each loop ending at the finish line -loops with square corners. The first loop was to the east of town, and went counter-clockwise. We ran on some pretty major arterial roads that had been closed. About mile post 8 we entered and ran through some neighborhoods. The last 1-1/2 miles or so was on a paved foot & bike path. Marathon runners then exited the area and continued on the same foot and bike path for several miles to the south. Just past mile post 16, we exited the bike path and returned to running on roads again - now on the west side of town. The course now meandered north. Eventually, around mile post 23 we rejoined the same foot and bike path - now back on the north side of town. The last couple of miles were the same for both loops - the foot & bike path - with one common water station there. The course was pretty flat - with one or two short hills going up. So it was a pretty fast course. The sun was out all day, but it never got hot; pleasant weather for running, but not hot. The course crossed a lot of intersections. Some roads were closed. Some roads had one lane open and the other lane closed for the runners, and many cross-streets were open. And the course went into several neighboring communities. But law enforcement was out in number controlling traffic and keeping the runners safe. More-so early on there were several traffic back-ups where traffic was just stopped to accommodate the runners. During the first loop, I was with other runners almost constantly. After the half marathoners finished and exited the course, I was alone much of the second half. Though at some point I met up with Mike Swanson - a board member of the 50 States Marathon Club, and ran with Mike briefly. Just past mile post 22, the 5:45 pacer past me (by then he was running alone). I stayed with him briefly, but was about three minutes behind him before finishing. There was a good variety of snacks and fluids available afterwards. And the medal was one of the larger ones that I have in my collection: It is 4-1/2 inches in diameter and is pretty heavy duty brass - with a "Carmel Marathon" banner across the front, with runners above the banner, and city hall below. Very nice. I want to say a word of appreciation for Todd Oliver and for his staff and volunteers, for bringing this race to fruition this year. Many of us registered to run last year and the race was cancelled because of the China Virus. Those opting to were deferred to this year, and there is still a lot of fear out there for race directors and race boards about hosting their event in 2021. These folks all did a great job, and the runner (some that I talked to anyway) were thrilled to be running on a course again with other runners.

Carmel puts on a fine event and is a good choice for those wanting to run an Indiana marathon. Packet pickup was well run, expo average, course security very good. Could be more porta potties on the first half of the course IMO.

Basically this is a good marathon if you want to post a fast time, because the weather is likely to be cool (it was around 40 at start this year) and the course is fairly flat--not pancake flat, just a few rollers and quite a few false flats. The first half of the course is residential and reasonably scenic. Miles 17-23 go through a large stretch of office parks and the like and is kind of desolate. And not well-shielded from the wind. This year (2018) wind was from the south, but a north wind would make that course very difficult because of that 17-23 stretch. Volunteers were friendly and helpful. Community support was basically nil--almost no spectators. Swag was pretty minimal, and yes the shirt is pretty, um, aesthetically challenged. Basically I ran this course to hit a BQ-5 (having missed entry into 2017 BM by 19 seconds) and accomplished that. So nothing else really mattered much to me, and I suspect that's true for a fairly decent fraction of the field. Done 4 standalone marathons plus 1 IM.

The course is great, not a lot of races this time of year so to say its the second largest is because where else are you going to run? I did really like the race BUT they need to have nutrition on the course. Ugly shirt but cool medal Flat fast course No spectators or entertainment for as large of a race it is (if you care about that kind of thing) Good race to run to fine tune for your spring race

This is a well organized & well run event. The course is touted as flat, but I'd say it's more of rolling hills. The worst thing was after finishing the first loop of the marathon, we had to run under the finisher's arch.....that was kind of a bummer.

Weather was almost ideal. Needed more porta pots. Organization was very good. Never running alone, even on the marathon. I averaged a 7:36/mile. The route was flat and slightly rolling hills. Carmel is a richie area. The after party was the biggest disappointment. Parking was free and close. I have run 2 marathons, and probably 25 halfs.

Disappointing spectator involvement. No excitement, few bands, no nutrition along the course, just hydration. Desolate. Community not significantly involved.

Pre-race organization: Website has all of the standard good info. I got a reasonable number of pre-races emails which were helpful and worth reading: Start: The start was not too hectic. About 500 folks in them marathon and the new wave start seemed to work well. There seemed to be ample bathrooms. Course: Course goes through some very pretty and well-off neighborhoods. Volunteers and water stops were plentiful. My only complaint about the course was that we keep leaving and rejoining courses with the half-marathoners so it could be hard to track who you were racing. I gave the spectators two starts because there was at best groups of 3 - 4 folks along the course and these were pretty sparse. Even at the end there were not that many folks. Overall this was a well run race and I would do it again.

Just ran Carmel marathon for the first time and can say it's a gem for such a young race, 7th year of it I believe they said at the start. Beautiful course and yes flat. Water stops very well run, great volunteers. Not a lot of entertainment but felt it wasn't missed! Enjoyed the entire event and again such wonderful volunteers.

Extremely well-organized and well-supported. (Water/Gatorade/potties). Variety subdivisions, busy roads, nature trails, through trees and along river. Huge parking garage right at start/finish, can transfer bibs legally. Free pasta night before at Whole Foods. OK to stay at hotel along 465; extremely easy to drive to race. Pizza, chocolate milk, etc. at finish.

Great communication ahead of time; stayed at a race hotel and the bus service to the race start was very convenient. Great course support, friendly people and a flat course as advertised. Reasonable amount of food at the end and 'free' massage! It was unseasonably hot and some parts of the course are a little more open than I like, but all-in-all a great experience.

Carmel is a PR course, though this year's heat hurt - low 60s at the start, rising to near 80 by noon. Pros: All volunteers and staff friendly. Flat course with a few gentle hills No urban blight; mostly suburbs and bike trails with some shade Great hotel (Comfort Inn) Well-policed; good traffic control Well-marked course Cons: Relatively few fans for such a health-oriented city Could use a water stop at each mile after mile 20, especially on such a warm day Well done, Carmel!

When I signed up for this race I wasn't really sure what to expect. However, I was overly satisfied with almost every aspect of this race. Somehow, someone even managed to produce the most wonderful race weather possible. Kudos to the race directing team for that. I LOVED, LOVED, LOVED this race. The course was friendly with the most strategically placed spectators I can remember in a race. My goal was to PR and sure enough, I PR'd with a time more than 3 minutes faster than my existing PR. If you're looking for a mostly flat course with a limited number of barely rolling hills in the Midwest, this one is a great option. Great Medal! Great Shirt! Great Organization! Great Race!

The organization continues to improve since last year. I like the shuttle to and from the race. Lot's of turns on the course but fairly flat and a bit sencic through the parks.

I really enjoyed this race. Larger events should be so well organized! Water stops were plentiful and well spaced. The course was a nice mix of city streets, parks and beautiful suburban neighborhoods. I do agree, however, that the hand-cycle racers posed a definite danger. On a narrow bike path, I saw an advance cyclist push a runner to the side to avoid being struck by the hand cyclist who followed. An earlier start for that division would make more sense. Lots of fun things to see and do in the Carmel area. I'm glad I chose this event for my Indy run.

What an excellent event! From the e-mails pre-race all the way through the finish, they left nothing untouched. The Carmel team thought of everything! I've done 50 marathons from very small to Boston, Chicago & New York. Carmel had the ammenities found at the large marathons with the personal feel of the smaller ones. Way to put those together! The course itself winds through several neighborhoods & parks. There's not a ton of crowd support, but those that were out were loud & friendly. The course description reads 'flat'. It's not as flat as Chicago, but not hilly either. I would call it gently rolling. It's definitely a fast course. Portions of the course were gorgeous and there was always something to look at. Aid stations were plentiful and staffed with a good number of volunteers. Police at the intersections were top-notch & friendly. The one item even close to a 'con' that I would have would be that the hand-cycle division started after the marathon. That led to them passing the marathoners in a park where we were on a 3-wide bike path. The hand-cycles each had bike support that would clear the left side of the path for them. This was great except for the two times we were trying to pass a group of slower runners on the path & had to hold off until a hand-cycle passed. Very minor & not really an issue but perhaps the hand-cycles could start a few minutes before the marathon next year? All-in-all a VERY well done event! I would return in a heartbeat! Thanks to the Carmel team!

If you want to high-five Mickey Mouse, dance with Cinderella, hear cow bells and strangers calling you awesome do not run this race! If you are looking for a superbly organized, fast, friendly race, this is your race. Shuttle rides from the block of host hotels were frequent and brought us right to the start/finish line. Volunteers were great. Beware, if you like to grab a few bites to eat during the race, I found but one, bread from a local bakery around mile 19. No fruit or GU to be had! It was cold....30 wind chill. NO HILLS and I PR'ed 3:56! Highly recommended!!

There were some aspects of organization details not usually seen in a marathon this size (<750 runners); informative website, course condition flags, split times/clocks, lure of out-of-staters...and advantages to still being relatively small including easy access to Expo and free parking at start/ finish. Yeah, the course was pretty quiet & tame but I have to admire that they were willing to commit all the resources to allow us a pt-to-pt course around practically every nook & cranny of Carmel (no mindless out-and-backs). Previous year's concern regarding post-race food were corrected so organization looks to improve. My biggest complaint is regarding post-race in general which was pretty much over and being dismantled (including beer garden!) at the 4:15 hr mark on account of the other races had already finished.

This is the second year I've run this marathon. There was a somber tone to the start, as the 2013 race was just 5 days after the tragedy at the Boston Marathon. It was fully appropriate. The course itself is very friendly and very runnable. I've run on hills...this is not hilly!! Ha...there are hardly ANY hills in the north half of Indiana!!! It's clearly worth running and running again. I've already registered for 2014.

As a 50 stater, it was either this one or Monumental, and the timing worked better here and I wanted to meet an online friend. Glad I ran it and can highly recommend it to others. Good: 1. Web site, including accurate elevation chart. Good info for us. 2. Small, especially for the marathon, and the half thinned out soon enough, then split off after about M4 and the 8K had a different course. 3. Not far from major airport. 4. Nice, attractive city. 5. I went to a nice party sponsored by a woman in the Marathon Maniacs, but there were plenty of good places to cargo load, and eat after the race. 6. Good choice of reasonably priced hotels near the start. I highly recommend the Marriott Residence Inn, which is one big room with a kitchenette so you can cook your oatmeal or breakfast, sofa, etc., and free breakfast for family and WiFi, late checkout, very nice staff, and only 1/4 mile walk to the Renaissance shuttle stop. 7. Shuttles to the start/finish 8. Oh, did I say the start = finish? (I dislike point to points.) 9. Nice, small expo in city's attractive community rec center. 10. Good set up for the start area. Really appreciated the gear check tent, as it was cold (22 wind chill). 11. Course was mostly flat with some small rollers. Mostly went through residential areas so you had something to look at. No concrete. 12. Well laid out finish area. Plenty of food and beverages. 13. Free massages at end by some very nice people. 14. Good water stops. Volunteers were super. 15. Excellent traffic control. No cars on the course. 16. More pacers than I'd ever seen. Every 5 minutes, wow. Minor flaws: 1. Not a visually inspired course. But I've run on a lot worse. 2. Some uneven pavement, but that happens, and they had just gotten a lot of rain. 3. Lots of turns, but it spread out the wind. 4. Thin crowds, but common in small races. So all in all, very good. Thank you Carmel!

3rd year running this race 1st year doing the full. expo was small but got my stuff real fast just wish thay would have race day packet pick up..as a lot of other small and mid size marthons do. race day was cold bout 30 race went well for me plenty water stops plus plenty of food left over for the back of pack runners and i even got 2 medals one for marathon and one for running race all 3 years.

This is the second year I've run either the half or full at this event, so I feel obliged to comment since I didn't review it after last year. Pros- -Easy for spectators/family to get around the course and view runners at multiple points -Nice medals, this year was better than last -Better food choices offered this year over last year. Pizza, Powerade, cookies, chocolate milk, etc. -Good communication leading up to the race -Small expo, but easy to get in and out -Easy to park at the race. Shuttles also provided from host hotel Cons- -Small race, especially for the marathoners, parts of the race can get lonely -I would definitely not call this race flat. There are some hills, but much of the race is at a slight incline. So, for the majority of the race, it feels as though you are climbing. -Running through suburban neighborhoods with little to no fan fare. I believe the only spectator I saw was a man in his robe getting his newspaper -Unisex shirts, way too big for women -Water (and Powerade) was out of the fire hydrant. Had a strange metallic taste -Course not interesting with several sharp turns -No post race party as advertised. Everyone seemed very somber after the event- both full and half. I feel that there are several other marathon options in the area. If you like a festive race with fan fare, this is not the race for you. If you like a smaller, low key event with little to no fan fare, this would be an option for you.

The 3rd annual Carmel Marathon & Half Marathon was a great race, and I will definitely be back. Highly recommended to anyone looking for a mid-sized, fast race in the spring that doesn't break the bank. Pros: 1) Excellent communication from the race organizers. Lots of updates via email and facebook, and questions were answered promptly. 2) Race organizers took runner feedback from last year to heart (i.e. lack of finish line food, poor tasting water, etc.) This year the water & powerade were great and the finish line food was awesome! Chocolate milk, pizza, cookies, bananas, etc. 3) Scenic, fast course. There are small rollers throughout, but no big climbs to slow you down. 4) Convenient, free parking for expo and on race morning. 5) Nice 'perks' like a high quality tech shirt, big medal, mylar blankets at the end, results available onsite, etc. The ribbons to honor Boston were a great added touch too. Some stretches of the course were closed due to bad flooding in the area. The night before the race, the race organizers worked to re-route and re-certify the course. It did result in some mile markers being off again this year, but this was not a big deal given the race organizers scrambled to ensure an accurate, certified, and safe course for us runners. Thank you!

Extermly well orgainzed with bus shuttle to and from the hotel. OK expo for a small race. T-shirt and medal were OK but not that big a deal to me. Some parts of the course had too many turns. A few negatives, keep the bikes off the course! Some of the relay runners had bike pacers and were yelling at the runners to make way for the relay runners,'bad form'. Maybe could add a few fuel stops, no gels on the course and don't mix the power aid with 'hose water' or fill the water cups with hose water. Volunteers were fantastic as well as all the race officials.

This was to be my 16th marathon. I had to transfer to the half because of being ill for the month prior to race. But I stayed to enjoy watching some fast marathon finishers and heard many achieved prs. (My comments are intended to show that comments made by others from earlier races have been addressed by the race director in an impressive way).Transfers can be done at the expo in 30 seconds for any of the three races. The race director answered my two emails within 1 to 24 hours. He also rapidly arranged respectful and comforting ways to honor the Boston victims with less than one week to do so, communicating this to the registered runners within just a few days from the bombings (I believe he had just returned from running Boston himself). He deserves a great deal of credit. Runners wore ribbons and bracelets-all available at the expo and some wore personalized shirts. The post race food was plentiful, generous, and of great variety, including chocolate milk and pizza. The volunteers were excellent and cheerful, despite standing in 32 degree temperatures for hours. Obviously this race is designed by runners who understand runners. There are not massive crowds. But runners who are serious about obtaining a PR in a running friendly environment should try this race. Some of us missed some mileage signs. Not sure if that is my fault or there could be improvement there. Another positive is that hotels are close by, and at this point, there appears to be no price-padding happening. Also, for running couples and families, there are a variety of distances, including the 8k, half, and a kids mile. So the atmosphere is one that celebrates running well. Great job by a race director for only the third year of the race!

I hope the race officials re-route the start line. The potholes in the first half mile are treacherous. I fell, unable to see one through the crowd of runners. A man fell off to my left about fifty yards later, then another woman went down shortly after that. The 4:10 pacer nearly went down on an orange cone. I finished, but slowly, my right knee bleeding and swelling for the remaining 26 miles. Otherwise a gorgeous course.

Pros: - nice city & easy to get around - helpful & supportive volunteers Cons: - course not straight-forward - shirt (unisex) not fitted for women - no real crowd support - emails to race director go unanswered

I usually like to just talk about the pros and cons so here goes.. Pros ~ Hotels close to the start and the shuttle service to and from the start line made it easy ~ Flat and fast course ~ Well organized ~ Well staffed aide stations Cons ~ No GU on the course ~ Finisher medal was OK but the ribbon was kind of plain (being picky) ~ Not much food options at the finish line Overall i would recommend this race to friends, did a great job for the 2nd year and with a few improvements it will be top notch ~

I was looking to run a spring marathon and chose Carmel based on the weekend I had available and not being too far of a drive. This was my 5th marathon and my first in Carmel. First off, The town of Carmel is very nice. My wife and I came into town on Friday afternoon to pick up packet and stayed until Sunday. The hotel location was very convenient to the expo and the race start/finish. The expo is small, but I don't usually spend much time at them other than to pick up my race packet. On Saturday morning I took the bus from the hotel to the start, which was very convenient. Race day was overcast and cool, which is ideal conditions for me. The course is a nice mix of neighborhoods, parks and open roads. The course has a few rolling hills, but mostly flat and fast. The aid stations were well staffed with volunteers over the course. Some of the mile markers may have been off slightly, but didn't bother me since I was going by my garmin. The spectators were kind of sparse on the course, but I think the cooler weather played a factor. The traffic control on the course was outstanding. The post race food was a little weak. I have attended local 5/10K's with better food than that. You don't usually see a bag of chips for post race snack. However, I ended up running my fastest marathon yet and achieved my 3rd BQ. We went out on the town to have a few to celebrate. Great pizza and service at Bazbeaux's. We had very good Sunday breakfast at Brunchie's. Overall we enjoyed our race weekend in Carmel. Keep improving/growing the race!

Overall I had a good experience and would recommend to others. Pros:1)course was gently rolling hills through nice neighborhoods and paved park trails and none of it was concrete. I was pleasantly surprised at how nice this course was. 2)Packet pick-up was a breeze. 3)There was a shuttle but I drove from one of the recommended hotels and it was extremely easy to get in and out with my car. 4)lots of aid stations 5)post race massage/stretching/active release with short wait times Cons: 1)The shirts were unisex and HUGE.My small fits like an XLarge. 2)the powerade was so diluted I could only taste the hose water.Not sure how many electrolytes I got from it. 3)no warming blankets at the finish.It was cold in 2012! 4)poor selection of post race food-banana,chips and peanut butter crackers.I wanted something a litte more substantial after runnning 26 miles

I picked this marathon because it was earlier in the year and it was supposed to be flat. Being from Wisconsin, I found this course to be very flat. Other runners might've noticed a few hills, but to me - it was very flat and FAST. I wanted to get a PR and go for a BQ and I got it! It was my fastest marathon by over 16 minutes, and I've done 8 in the past. The course was very nice, it had quite a few turns, if you're running it - try to run the tangents/inside corners. I wasn't super keen on the half marathon linking back up with the full later. It was fine, but some of the half marathoners were walking and were a tad in the way. It would be nice if you're walking to stay to the side. The powerade at a few of the stations was terrible! That was a disappointment because I planned to use that type of drink to refuel my glycogen stores. So better mixing next year, one time it was a grey color instead of blue. The volunteers should maybe try drinking it to see if it tastes right. Other than that, it was a GREAT race! The people of Carmel were awesome! The fans were great and a HUGE thank you to all the volunteers that made it possible. I especially appreciated the traffic control. I didn't have to stop once for a car, and that was a huge help, since I didn't have a lot of time to spare in getting my goal time. Thanks for the great race, Carmel!

This was my 7th marathon, and my first one that was under 4000 runners. This is a great event. Packet pickup was a breeze, getting to race via shuttle from the hotel was easy. Course layout was great. Numerous water stops along the course with great volunteers. Few minor complaints/cons - Powerade - just my personal opinion but I can't stand it. Road closures made it difficult to get around for spectators. My wife struggled to get to various spots along the course due to all the closures. Could just be because we aren't from the area and don't know the lay of the land. Shirt color - Again, just being picky, but prefer non white shirts. All in all a great marathon and would definitely consider running it again and highly recommend.

Great course! follows bike paths with many turns and great scenery. Almost zero spectators/bands. Few 'goodies' provided at the finish. If you run a race for the cheers and chocolate milk, this one may not be for you. If you run for the love of a jaunt through beautiful scenery and the joy of running with good people, this one is for you.