Savin Rock Marathon - Race Reviews

This was my 50th marathon. In my experience, race directors are usually salt of the earth, incredible people who do way too much work for way too little praise. This is not the case for the this race. The race director was a huge tool. Every aspect of the course was evidence of poor planning. No restrooms on the course, bad mile markers, no garbage cans at water stations, few water stops, lots of un-patrolled intersections, and I probably could go on. He was also sarcastic, unhelpful, and petty when registering.

A pretty good marathon. I threw my back out at work about a week before the race so was just happy to finish. Easy packet pickup morning of race, easy parking near start Chilly at start of race. Starting point by the water was pretty Course had many rolling hills, not the most difficult course I've done, but certainly not an easy one Some do not like 2 loop courses, but I don't mind them I liked the medal Not too much crowd support, not much fanfare at finish.food at finish line not spectacular Being from Ohio, I enjoyed driving around and checking out the Yale campus after the race.

This is a challenging course. 8 steep and 1 moderate hill between 4 and 9 miles. Flat or rolling otherwise. Repeat twice. Not impossible. My only course complaint was that they probably could have chosen an out and back in the 5th mile that didn't involve going up and down a steep hill. The RD should consider delaying the start for 30 minutes. This would allow NYC residents to reach the race on the first train w/o needing a hotel. This was the 6th running of the half marathon. The RD should know where to place the mile markers by now. They were consistently off and were useless for pacing. Even the 26M marker was closer to 550 yards from the finish line than 385 yards. This was my biggest complaint. Still, I'll probably do it again.

This race was a fantastic experience. I did this race last year too in the snow. The organizers care about every detail from the 20 police on the course to the hundreds of volunteers at the aid stations with GU, Gatorade and water. Portolets every 6 miles. The course has hills in the middle but a smart runner can handle it. Awesome shirts, awards, medals. Food and a nice indoor spot was a nice adder. See you next year!

I was surprised on how little the organizer did for this race. the marathon is a 2 lap course and there wasn't a single port-a-potty on the course. I think the race director thought it would be funny to hit every hill he could find in the town. Would have be much better if we would have run out on the coast line and back other than weaving up and down the hills with no breaks after mile 4. The police left there intersections after the first lap and the marking for the course were hard to see at some points. The finish line was nothing great as I didn't see any medical staff on hand as runners were crossing the line and just falling in the grass with no one attending them. I did like the medals that they gave away and awards.

This was the inaugural year for the Savin Rock Marathon. Previously, it was strictly a half marathon. This year they decided to add a full marathon. The afternoon before the race, I wasn't convinced there would even be a race as there was snowstorm that dumped about 4 inches of snow which started around 1 p.m. and lasted until early evening. Then when the race began, it started snowing again! The course for the half and full are the same. 1 loop for the half and 2 loops for the full so the start/finish is the same. The expo is also at the Savin Rock Conference Center so logistics are super easy. When the race started, despite the small field, the first half mile or so is pretty congested since it's on a pretty narrow road. Once the race got onto the roads, it was smooth sailing. I was grateful that at least 90% of the snow that had fallen just the night before was cleared. The first 4 miles or so as well as the last 4 miles or so of each 13.1 mile loop is relatively gently rolling. The middle miles have much steeper as well as longer hills. Each hill you do, you have to do twice - it's a 2 loop course for the marathon. It's definitely not an easy course. You also have to be very aware while running as you are almost always running on the shoulder of the road with traffic and nothing coming between the cars and the runners. Much of the course is residential and a bit nondescript. Water/aid stations were well run by enthusiastic volunteers. Traffic control as well as course signage could have used a bit of improvement as there were some intersections where there was no one to halt car traffic and there were some spots where you weren't too sure which direction the race was going. With the first loop going with the half marathoners, you just follow the crowd. On the second loop, there are a lot fewer runners since there were only 180 marathon finishers so you really have to pay attention at all times to traffic and where you are going. Savin Rock isn't for runners that demand a lot of spectators or hoopla. It's the only other road marathon in CT besides Hartford so it's a nice alternative if you enjoy a hassle-free and more intimate experience. Oh and eating pizza at Frank Pepe's after the race is a must for foodies!

This was the first year they had a marathon. 2 loop course, along the Long Island sound for part of it. Great parking at start/finish. Warm place to wait till start and to go into when done. Fun shark medal. Good choice for a Conn. race.

Good things come in small packages. As a veteran of 168 marathons I was very pleasantly surprised by this new marathon. Despite the snow I found the course to be beautiful. If the weather were better there would have been more spectators. It was very well organized with a personal touch. I spoke to Jennifer the directors wife who was very pleasant, friendly and engaging and seemed to have played a large part in the race organization. The water stops were plentiful with no paucity of water, Gu and Gatorade, not to mention friendly and welcoming volunteers. It was nice to park so close to the start and finish. Oh, ya, free massage before the race added a spark and was appreciated!! No need for big expo, they are a waste of money anyway. In short I will think about returning to Savin Rock next year, when hopefully spring will come on time.

Pro's: Easy packet pickup at low-profile. Pre-race parking was smooth/easy with plenty of parking available. Was nice having an indoor facility prior to race start; it snowed this year. Aid stations approx. every 2.5 mile point with plenty of blue ice Gatorade/water and vanilla bean or choc. Gu's. Thank you. Con's: No port-a-potties along course; perhaps due to snow/banks. A lot of pot-hole's in roads and snow/slush made it harder to navigate. Open traffic except for major intersections patrolled by City Police; although some officer's were not paying attention to runner's coming through and cars were still moving ahead. A lonely course for the marathoners after finishing the first loop. Post race food Pasta; Uggh! How about protein post-race snacks-yogurts, banana's, bagels, choc. milk, pretzels and more water? This is a hilly course, some long (roller's). I think the Race Director does pretty good, but think it needs improvement. I'd recommend a point-point course for marathoner's.

Since this was the first time they had a full marathon, there was not history as far as average finish times, so I really did not know what to expect. It snowed on me the first 20 miles, I was worried about the weather, and to be fair, this was not normal, but even though it was a wet snow, the weather was not too bad. The course is a double loop, first 4 miles were flat as a pancake, then the hills came. From 5-9 there were some pretty steep hills, there were also some down hills but the up hills surely outnumbered them. You have to use mental toughness as you know you will see them again, but at miles 18-22! Could have used some volunteers/cops at certain areas of traffic congestion. Wonderful food at the end (pasta), there were not a lot of spectators, hey it was mushy snow the first 3 hours. Got to stay warm in the convention center at the start and go back in at the end, a definite plus. Nice people, with a little better weather would have been really good, but not too warm, those hills would have ended me if it were 60's +

Okay it snowed for the first 3 hours. The parking was right outside the building, there was long back up to get into the lots and then they filled up, better volunteer placement would help. It was great to be inside before the race, the start was really just out the door. The course was hiller than I expected, not very scenic, and often there was traffic nearby. But it was well coned and marked so it was safe just not enjoyable. Good aid stations every two miles, with friendly helpful volunteers. The 26mile marker seemed far from the finish so I'm glad I was not going for time. Some pasta at the end, a good metal, and a low quality shirt. Awards done quickly. A well run race, I give them and the town credit for going for it even with the snow. It would be nice to do it again on a warm spring day.

I came across the Savin Rock Marathon as I looked for an early spring marathon to get ready for Boston in a few weeks. I didn't know what to expect but the event on the calendar worked. DO THIS MARATHON! What a fun way to spend a Saturday morning. Snow, wind and then sun! Easy parking. I picked up my number 10 mins before race start. Very nice local runner crowd. Speedy half marathon for the first loop kept the race moving along. Quiet solo run for us second loop marathoners. But that was ok. It beats a long run by yourself any day. The course was unique with the first 4 miles being flat, the next 5 miles being hilly and the last 4 miles being flat. I didn't notice the hills much the first loop but I did feel them the second time around. The volunteers were very friendly and enthusiastic. The water stations were 2.5 miles apart which was perfect. GU at each station if needed. Plenty of police protection but we did run alongside busy roads with cars. The finish line food was picked off by the half marathoners so maybe bring out a second wave of food for the marathoners...a common problem with these double half and full finish lines. Thumbs up for a runner friendly event.

The marathon is two loops. The first half was good but the second half was horrible. The amount of runners doing the marathon is in the low hundreds. The streets were open to cars during the second half so you had to dodge cars (not fun on a snowy day). Less support during the second half. I had to watch the runners ahead to make sure I didn't miss a turn. It felt more like a training run as oppose to a marathon. There were a lot of manageable hills miles 4 to 9 (repeated). Fan support was not there but that may be because it was snowing.