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The San Francisco Marathon Runner Comments
Back to The San Francisco Marathon Information & Reviews
Course 4.3 
Organization 3.6 
Spectators 2.6
Number of comments: 503 [displaying comments 81 to 91]
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M. R. from Brooklyn, NY
(8/3/2011)
 "Beautiful and challenging run through a great City" (about: 2011)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 The San Francisco Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 2 This is hands down one of the best organized and beautiful big city marathons that I have done. Race directors and companies like 'Rock n Roll' should take a page from SF...they put on (2) half marathons and a marathon without it feeling congested, all while respecting the unique spirit of each distance - even down to the size of finisher marathons (yes, a half marathon is very different from a full marathon and should be treated differently). The only word to describe the course (esp. the first half) is stunning. Some other words would be hard and hilly - but you almost forget about that. Definitely train for hills and don't forget, what comes up must come down because the down hill was at times worse than the up. Before the race the organizers did a good job of keeping people excited and informed through emails and Facebook. The one sad thing is that due to timing (it starts at 5:30 am, something I imagine has to do with getting runners off the Golden Gate Bridge quickly), there are hardly any fans watching/cheering the racers. There were cheering stations with great energy but very few people just standing along the course - and who can blame them, I don't want to be up at 6am on a Sunday either....unless I have a long run. All in all...one of my favorites. Good job SF Marathon! | |
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L. H. from Chicago
(8/2/2011)
"Great Race" (about: 2011)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 The San Francisco Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 2 This is a beautiful course. I particularly like the early start and would prefer other marathons start earlier. My only complaint is the voluntary assignments to start waves is not working. Many 6+ hour marathoners put themselves in the 2nd or 3rd wave. For example, four of the 6 slowest official finishers (all over 7 hours) have less than a 3 minute difference between their gun times and their net times. They must all have been in the 2nd wave, right behind the elite runners. As a <4 hour runner I was in the fourth wave and I had a difficult time passing walkers particularly on the GG bridge. They should follow the example of the Chicago marathon and require some proof of ability to get into any of the <4 hour waves. Otherwise it is a very well organized race. The hills are not as bad as others have commented. I was only 8 minutes off my best Chicago time. | |
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c. t. from Canada
(8/1/2011)
 "scenic course with good balance of hills and flat" (about: 2011)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 The San Francisco Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 I loved the course. I had heard about the hills but they were short and nothing to worry about. I like a hilly course so this was perfect for me. The Golden Gate Bridge was great, flatter than I thought. If you live in a flat area and are worried about the hills, just do a a few hill workouts on the treadmill and you'll be fine. Only drawback was the convergence of the full and half marathon courses. If you are in the full be aware there are several merge points (there are two half marathons) and you will be merging and diverging many times over the full marathon course and will end up behind slower half marathoners (many many more half marathoners than full). This got a bit crowded at times (and somewhat confusing) - having to move around the half marathoners added a half mile my total distance run (as per my Garmin). After 26.7 (yes that's right!) miles I was sooo glad to see the finish! However I'm still giving the course 5 stars 'cause I loved it. GG Park, the bridge, the neighborhoods and the SF people at the end were very cool. Unlike comments about previous years I thought the post-race refreshments were plentiful and good. It has a 5:30 am start so not alot of spectators but the ones there were great. Temp is perfect that time of day too! Oh, and the medal is a coaster! I would definitely run this race again! | |
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R. S. from NC, USA
(8/1/2011)
"Awesome Views!!!" (about: 2011)
11-50 previous marathons
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 Loved this race. The course was just FABULOUS and the views were Awesome!!! The hills were killers and I took it nice and easy and surprisingly (!) got my personal best and a Boston qualifier. Yay!!! enjoyed it so much that I want to definitely do this marathon the next year. | |
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M. H. from Sacramento, CA
(8/1/2011)
"Awesome Course, where are the spectators?" (about: 2011)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 The San Francisco Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 This was my first San Francisco marathon. The course is outstanding, running over the Golden Gate Bridge is worth all the training and pain of the hills. Weather - The weather was perfect! High clouds, very slight breeze. Sun came out for the celebration after. Course - The course was very scenic, and running over the Golden Gate bridge is singularly the coolest thing I have ever done running. The course does have some hills, so unless this is your first marathon, let go of the PB and just have fun. Organization - The organization was great. The volunteers were where you needed them and the aid stations were well stocked. Spectators - Where are the spectators? There were some at the start and finish area and around Golden Gate Park, but very lackluster compared to other races, a big disappointment! Though, thanks to those w/ the keg at mile 15. One word of caution, and I hope the planners change this for next year, the PASTA DINNER WAS HORRIBLE!!!!! The food tasted okay but it was a VERY SMALL portion. FYI, marathon runners want massive portions of pasta the night before, not a gourmet meal. FIX THIS FOR 2012!!! | |
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L. S. from Katy, Texas
(8/1/2011)
 "Exlt course, Org&City pub need improvement" (about: 2011)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 The San Francisco Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 1 Why don't you add bib number to the fields to locate results? Very difficult finding results.... No advertisment to solicate spectators....No signs posting the SF marathon......I have run Chevron Houston 5 times. So much more advertisement, so many more spectators, (makes a big difference, especially here with such more challenge running your hills). Do not think it is fair adding 2nd half marathon runner with full marathon runners that have already run the roughest 1st half, so that the 2nd half runner can be added for a faster time....so not fair.... | |
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Jeff Wang from Humble, Texas
(7/31/2011)
"a cool summer race" (about: 2011)
11-50 previous marathons
| 6+ The San Francisco Marathons
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 Having finished this marathon for the ninth time, I must have a love affair with this extraordinarily challenging race. I do. And I look forward for number 10 SFM next year. As always, the weather is gorgeous for the race. At mid 50's and overcastted, it felt good to run, even when your legs are hurting from the hills. There is no fog this year, giving you a beautiful view of Golden Gate Bridge and downtown San Fran. Aside from not being as windy as I liked, there is no better running weather in my 28 marathons career. As for registration and expo, it is still the same. Still not sure why the expos is at a convenience center far from everything else, but after complaining for 4 years, I don't think they will change anytime soon. Otherwise registration and expos are smoothly run. As for complaints, it is my same usual. Mile markers are still a big problem. I counted 5 mile marker for first 13 miles. Since I started using my Nike GPS App (which I absolutely loved, for those of you with an iPhone), I know where the miles are. However, as a 10+ year marathon veteran, I had depended on mile marker to pace myself. SFM will not be at top of best marathon without correcting such easily fixable issue. Also, mile markers that are present are 0.1 miles longer than my GPS, which recorded a 26.3 miles that I ran today. This race is getting bigger, and the eave system works well. There were lots of portapotty and 3 Goo stations, but we could use a few more water stations. Post race food was a handout bag of bakery and banana, but you can get more if you like. At least they are not stingy with water this year. Metal was nice and big, doubles as a coaster. All in all, I love this race, no matter how hilly it is. I wish the organizers would actually read some comments, but for their sake, they really need to fix the mile marker issue. On the other hand, if that is all I can complains about this race, it must be pretty darn good. Well, it is truly a beautiful experience. | |
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R. H. from Fairfax, Virgiinia United States
(6/27/2011)
"Be prepared for hills but beautiful scenery!" (about: 2009)
2 previous marathons
| 1 The San Francisco Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 This was my first marathon and I loved it! I grew up in the bay area and so had to go back for my first marathon. Warning: if you do not regularly run on hills, do not do this as your first marathon. I live in a fairly hilly area, so it was tough but doable. If you live somewhere flat, don't do this. This hills start at 2.5 miles and continue til 23. The scenery more than made up for the hills though. I loved the inspirational sayings on sign posts along the way (especially those halfway up the hills). All in all a great experience but not good for those unprepared for hills | |
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P. C. from Chicago
(6/21/2011)
"Fantastic race and a PR" (about: 2010)
4-5 previous marathons
| 1 The San Francisco Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 Like many other runners, I had major concerns about the hills on this course and wondered if i would end up regretting signing up for it on whim. After running the full marathon in 2010 I can say it was one of the best impulsive decisions I've made. The weather was perfect, the scenery was unmatched, the aid stations were plentiful and well placed, and the pace group (3:50) was great. I live in Chicago, so I was nervous that my lack of hill training would be a problem. It wasn't. I stuck with my pacers during the big hills before and after the golden gate bridge and I was fine. I would highly recommend this race to all that are considering it. | |
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A. M. from Torrance, California
(2/25/2011)
 "The race had a lot of nice hills." (about: 2008)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 The San Francisco Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 The race had a lot of hills and challenges. It also had nice scenery. The race had a lot of spectators too. |
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