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Jul 4, 2024

GO! St. Louis Marathon Runner Comments

Back to GO! St. Louis Marathon Information & Reviews

Course 3.9

Organization 3.9

Spectators 3.5

Number of comments: 357 [displaying comments 121 to 131]

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B. A. from Macomb, Illinois (4/9/2008) "A MUST-run marathon" (about: 2008) 2 previous marathons \| 1 GO! St. Louis Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 Contrary to my title, if you are looking for a flat course, this isn't a must-run. If you are looking for a great experience, then this is a great marathon. Despite the hills, I still knocked 48 minutes off my Chicago time. I enjoyed it so much more than Chicago's marathon. There are a good number of runners to keep you company, but not so many that you are fighting for elbow room. The spectators are super friendly. You run through downtown St. Louis, Forest Park (which is very peaceful), and residential Clayton. I really enjoyed the course. It was very hilly, especially miles 16-18. Also, the last 4 miles feature rolling hills, which are pretty brutal if you aren't prepared. They also had plenty of water. There were water stations every two miles - and every mile after 20. Also, I believe this race always has perfect running weather. Unless you are seriously looking to run the fastest race you possibly can, I would HIGHLY recommend this to anyone. I loved this race and will be back next year.
A. W. from IL (4/9/2008) "Not a bad race." (about: 2008) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 GO! St. Louis Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 2 Will not repeat only because I'm on a 50-state goal. I chose this race for convenience (near the Chicago area). Easy city to navigate. Airport to Historic Hyatt Union Station - $2 on a fast train. The Hyatt was beautiful, friendly and clean, located inside a large mall. Beware: no drugstore chains to be found, bring everything you need. Expo was okay; it was easy to switch to a small shirt, which is usually not the case at other runs. The pasta party was too expensive, at $20. The pasta was super salty and oily. Kristen Armstrong gave a nice, short talk. Would recommend if you are looking to meet other runners; our table was very friendly and informative. Race start was fine - not crowded compared to Chicago and Miami. Few spectators, but I don't rely on that. Very little music - a couple of high school groups and a boombox or two made it a little tougher without and iPod, but I noticed lots of runners brought theirs even though the race said they were prohibited. Hills were as described, course not scenic expect for park. Half turned off around mile 10 and other runners were very spread out, though I am slower, so that can account for the spread. Clean porta-potties, and very little course support besides water and Gatorade and GU. Out of oranges; would have liked some banana halves. Out of caps at the finish, as well as most of the food. I finished under 5:30, but there were still lots of runners out on the course. Tech shirt and medal were nice. Try the MO micro-brews; they are outstanding.
K. S. from Edwardsville, IL (4/8/2008) "Impressed!" (about: 2008) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 GO! St. Louis Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 I thought the marathon was extremely well organized and was impressed. I really appreciated that there was a separation between half-marathoner technical shirts and full-marathoner shirts (as well as finishing hats and medals!). There was more than ample fluid and water throughout the course, as well as food at the end. The only thing I didn't like was that at the beginning of the race, you go from 4 lanes down to 2 lanes in the 2nd mile. With 10,000+ runners and being mid-pack, it slowed the field down fairly significantly. I would recommend using a wave start next year as this would resolve the problem of having so many people starting at once with the lanes narrowing so early on. I personally didn't think the course was that hilly. However, St. Louis isn't exactly completely flat either. I think the race organizers did a wonderful job! Great job on putting together such a wonderful race!
B. C. from New Jersey (4/8/2008) "Great, Clean City" (about: 2008) 50+ previous marathons \| 1 GO! St. Louis Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 I am a 50 State Club member and this was my 25th state and 61st marathon. The city was very clean and had plenty to offer; I was able to ride the Metro from the airport to the stadium next to my hotel. The expo, start and finish were convenient, relative to the Hilton, and there were plenty of restaurants within walking distance. The course was hilly but manageable for a flatlander from N.J. I thought the scenery was great and loved Forest Park. The course was well marked and there were plenty of well managed water stops. The shirts, medals and post-race refreshments were terrific. There was even a beer truck with samples. The finisher's hats were a bonus. Overall, a great marathon. I strongly suggest other runners try this one as an enjoyable destination race. If you are a baseball fan, the Cardinals were in town, both days posting a win!
K. M. from Chicago, IL (4/8/2008) "HILLS, HILLS, HILLS" (about: 2008) 6-10 previous marathons COURSE: 2 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 Weather was great, and the race was well organized. I ran the half and I do not know where people say this is a flat course!!!! HILLS, HILLS, HILLS!
W. I. from Philadelphia (4/7/2008) "Great job, St. Louis" (about: 2008) 2 previous marathons \| 1 GO! St. Louis Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 I am a St. Louis ex-pat now living in Philly, and I came back to run my hometown marathon. I had an amazing time and think that the organizers put on a first-rate event. As an initial matter, St. Louis dialed up a picture-perfect day for the event - 65 and sunny. The course, which includes a view of home plate at Busch, the brewery, Forest Park, and Clayton, was very pretty and well conceived, though I could have lived without the series of hills at the end (have to play the hand you're dealt, I know). The organization was also great - very few lines anywhere, including short porta-potty waits, a true rarity. The organizers got both the big and little things right: corrals at the start (as an upper-middle-of-the-packer, I didn't have to adjust my pace), abundant water stations, and participant names on the bibs, plus great schwag (a technical t-shirt and vented hat). In addition, I couldn't say more about the spectators. They were plentiful and enthusiastic. I have a particular appreciation for the impromptu percussion band playing one of the parkway overpasses - what a lift. I'd also like to thank the guy handing out orange slices in a parched section of Delmar around mile 19. After I missed my grab the first time and we couldn't connect on his pass, he sprinted after me to deliver one. You're awesome. A few suggestions for next year: -route the first mile or two along the river; there has to be a way to incorporate the soul of the city into the race -bands: get some -if there's any way to route the half-marathon walkers away from the marathoners in the last few miles, it would remove a psychological hurdle -hire an announcer who doesn't refer to everything as "my" ("my wheeler-chair competitors are off," "my elites need to get into the front," "my top three finishers are...," etc.); the race belongs to the participants and spectators, not to the guy with the mic. All told, great job. I strongly recommend this up-and-coming race.
M. S. from Keokuk, IA (4/7/2008) "Another fine job" (about: 2008) 6-10 previous marathons \| 2 GO! St. Louis Marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 This is my second year of participating in the St. Louis Marathon (now Go! St. Louis, previously Spirit of St. Louis), and I have cheered on other participants in another year. This year I participated in the half rather than the full due to an otherwise full running schedule. St. Louis always does a good job. The course is a good one; it has rolling hills, but nothing too difficult. You see some interesting parts of St. Louis. I miss running through the Budweiser brewery; that was a unique feature that no other marathon could match. And it is uniquely St. Louis. Anything that can be done to restore that part of the course would be appreciated. Water/nutrition stops are adequately staffed and spaced. I missed a few of the mile markers, so they might want to rethink their locations. For instance, the mile 3 marker was on the opposite side of which you are running; I saw it as a I came back. Crowd support and volunteers are always good. The t-shirt is a technical shirt, so that's a big plus. All in all, St. Louis is a nice race that is well done. If you are looking for a Midwest race in April, St. Louis is well worth checking out.
D. P. from St. Louis (4/7/2008) "Could use a bit of tweaking" (about: 2008) 3 previous marathons \| 1 GO! St. Louis Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 First time running this hometown race. Very hilly for a town that I always thought was flat. (I have lived here all my life;, when did we get hills?!?) I know the Arch is a national monument, but what about making the course loop around it? Loved the shirt and the medal. On-course support was great too! As you "snake" your way out of the finisher's corral, the exit was virtually blocked by family members looking for their runner. Standing in place for five minutes, my legs were not impressed. Perfect weather! Overall, a good event with GREAT potential! Let's see what '09 will bring!
A. T. from Chicago (4/7/2008) "Friendly, well-organized race" (about: 2008) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 GO! St. Louis Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 2 Other than not getting the promised hat at the finish, I enjoyed this race. Best race shirt. Very well-organized. People paced themselves well at the start (unlike many races). Very friendly (and plentiful) volunteers; plenty of fluid. Need bananas along course. Very spread out once 1/2 marathoners left. Lots of hills in the second half. Scenic for the most part. Watch the "oily" pasta at the pasta dinner - don't know if that was the reason for major stomach issues during the race. Hyatt Regency (Union Station) is a great hotel - great location, friendly staff. Extremely easy to get from airport to downtown (commuter train).
E. R. from Detroit, MI (4/7/2008) "Challenging course; too many half marathoners" (about: 2008) 3 previous marathons \| 1 GO! St. Louis Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 Beware, the elevation of this course is not an exaggeration. This was the most challenging course I'd ever run on, and I logged lots of hills during my training runs. The weather was hot (65 degrees) when I was used to running in 0-20-degree weather, and our pacer was one minute ahead of schedule at the two mile-mark, so I'm sure these were factors - and the hills were just killer (one after another). There were many entrance and exit ramps, which were not only frustrating, but ugly to look at. The volunteers were A+, but the spectators and entertainment were sparse. There was little food at the finish line, as the half marathoners outnumbered the marathoners by more than five fold.

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