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Jun 30, 2024

Atlanta Marathon Runner Comments

Back to Atlanta Marathon Information & Reviews

Course 4.0

Organization 4.1

Spectators 3.2

Number of comments: 130 [displaying comments 71 to 81]

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J. T. from Atlanta, GA (11/26/2006) "Great day to run a marathon" (about: 2006) 4-5 previous marathons \| 2 Atlanta Marathons COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 2 The weather was great. I was feeling good, and I was ready to run. Set a PR and qualified for Boston. As usual, the food at the end was less than desirable (I gave mine to a homeless person.) But the organization and volunteer support were great. Don't expect a lot of spectators on the course. The course is challenging and you should do some training on hills, but even with a five-hour time limit, most people should be able to finish. Great way to earn your turkey. Also, to those running the half - at 6:45 you should not be arriving at the train station downtown. You will not get to the start in time.
K. H. from Stockbridge, Georgia (11/24/2006) "Good organization" (about: 2006) 3 previous marathons \| 2 Atlanta Marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 2 Nobody could have asked for better weather at the 2006 ATL Marathon. The food packets at the end of the race were nothing exciting. I appreciated the ice bags though! The organization is great! Thank you to all the volunteers and, of course, the fans who came out. Walking back to the MARTA station after the race ain't fun. To anybody who has never run this race, please know that the half-marathon begins in Chamblee, NOT the stadium! I can't believe the number of runners that asked about the starting place of the 1/2 marathon near the state capitol with fewer than 25 minutes to race time!
Stuart Jackson from CHAMPAIGN, IL (4/26/2006) "Glad I Went" (about: 2005) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Atlanta Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 I learned that I could in fact run through the first 19-20 miles (I lost track at where I hit the wall)... with my standard 10 min/mile speed with only walking the water stops. Even at the FLYING PIG, I walked some of the hills. As I said about ZURICH most recently, but you cannot pick your weather. At ATLANTA '05, I remember it being warm. I love the fact that the organizers are able to get together enough people for a THANKSGIVING Day race! Thanks to the volunteers who came out, as well as the spectators! The only negative I found, and I think this has to do with both the heat that day and my general inexperience and lack of training, was that the water stops are approximately 2.5 miles apart... an odd timing (depending upon how fast you go)! But I think that my wall occurence also had to do with lack of water stops near the end of the course and the heat that day.... LIVE AND LEARN! Oh, and for those that can LIVE AND LEARN from me - if you are generally inexperienced and not training well to begin with... do not expect to do even half as well in a 50K two weeks after your marathon... not without more experience and proper training!!! Thankfully, we had better weather in '05, than we did when I volunteered in '04! I remember '04 with cold temps that did not ever really warm up and high winds through the downtown section where I was at a water stop, approximately mile 22-23....
B. G. from OKC, OK (4/11/2006) "You too can run an Olympic Marthon Course!!! :" (about: 2005) 6-10 previous marathons \| 1 Atlanta Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 I had the opportunity of a life time when I attended the 1996 Olympic Marathon. Little did I know 9 years later I would be running almost the same course. (FYI: In 1996 Fatuma Roba won the womens marathon by a then record margin of 2 minutes in 2:26:05 and Josiah Thugwane won the mens by three seconds, in 2:12:36). Therefore, this marathon had an extra special meaning for me. Overall this is a good, but somewhat challenging marathon. There was plenty of parking at the start and no problems getting there on time. Since only the marathon runners are at the Start/Finish line, (the half marathoners start at the marathon halfway point), there were lots of clean PORTA-JONs for the marathoners - never a line. The course is rolling for the first 8 miles and up hill the last 6. This year (2005) the wind was pretty strong heading towards the finish, mostly sunny and 60s. Though I was warned ahead of time, I was Very disappointed in the post race food. No bottled drinks, only small cups. The food was in a zip-lock bag. Mostly candy (junk food). I had a pack of M&Ms, Snickers and animal crackers. Again, I read the reviews, but the post-race food was worse than expected. The expo is okay considering this is a small race. (Nothing extraordinary.) On course amenities were nice. Water stations were well stocked and manned. The mile markers were very clear. In my quest to qualify for Boston, I used this as a training run in preparation for the Freescale Austin, TX marathon. Even though this course is tough, I still ran faster than my goal of 3:30. By-the-way, I did qualify at the Freescale Marathon& now I am on my way to Boston!! :) The special commemorative medal for running under 3:30 was a nice touch. However, the T-shirt was disappointing brown, with a flaming seraphim. I was surprised at the number of spectators. This was Thanksgiving Day! Most had something better to do, yet they still showed up to cheer. A big Thank You to the Atlanta Track Club and all the VOLUNTEERS; without yall this race would not be possible!!
E. M. from Toronto ON Canada (11/30/2005) "Come prepared and you'll have a great time" (about: 2005) 50+ previous marathons \| 1 Atlanta Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 2 I came to the Atlanta Marathon with low expectations due to the race reviews I read on MarathonGuide.com. Happily for me I had a great time (though my finishing time was off) but I expected that because of the hills and major sightseeing I did the day before. Hey, all the PowerAde I could drink when visiting Coca-Cola World in downtown Atlanta. Memo to self; do not do the 1.5-mile walk up Stone Mountain the day before a marathon. Thanks to ATC, the police and all the volunteers for coming out on a holiday when just about everyone else was sleeping in (also meaning there weren't too many spectators). The emphasis at this event is the half marathon with about 8,000 runners as opposed to 700 for the marathon. Still it was a decently organized race for its size. ATC members at race kit pick-up were friendly and welcoming. In a rarity there were plenty of porta-potties at the start. Could have been more frequent water stops, every 2.5 miles, but again I'm sure it's tough to get volunteers out on a holiday. Yes, as advertised, there were hills, especially the last 6 miles, but I actually looked forward to them as it gave my sore hamstrings a break. Finishing under the Olympic rings was great. As already mentioned, there wasn't a whole lot of post-race food, but most people are going to pig out on turkey later the day anyway. Everything you need to know and expect is on the marathon website and posted on MarathonGuide.com, so if you come unprepared, it's your fault.
S. L. from Atlanta, GA (11/30/2005) "Not for the RnR set.... Thank God!" (about: 2005) 6-10 previous marathons \| 2 Atlanta Marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 If you are looking for the typical short-attention span marathon with all the bells and whistles and flashing lights, bands, and cheerleaders (i.e., Rock 'n Roll Marathons), then this is NOT your race - and I'm happy for it! While I do have some issues with the race, I think that it is a solid course and offers a great trip into and through downtown. Things to improve: - Post-race grub. (Bottled water would be great - Coke is a sponsor, so get some Dasani out there! Actual healthy food instead of candy bars and crackers would also be nice.) - Timing. (I hope it is true that the 'chip' time will show up accurately on the postcards mailed out.) - MARTA (living in ATL and having traveled the world, I know that Marta is the biggest joke of a mass transit system in the world.... Can't the ATC get them to keep the regular train schedule for just the morning of the race?) - T-shirt. (This race further substantiates that RD's are not graphic designers.... You have the coolest image ever to work with in a phoenix, can't you make a cool t-shirt?) Having said all that, I love this race and the above are really small things overall. The course is challenging and fairly scenic, and the volunteers are great. I personally like the scaled down approach to races - it's not a concert, it's a race!
E. K. from Fort Worth, Tx. (11/30/2005) "Running Turkeys" (about: 2005) 11-50 previous marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 2 THANK YOU to the volunteers who spent their Thanksgiving morning assisting with the race. They were very friendly and supporting. The large number of volunteers shows the large support to running and well organized ATC. The course is challenging and that's without the stiff headwind coming back. But the website prepared you for this (except the wind factor). Organization was very good. Even a warm tent prior the start. Everyone from the start to finish areas was very friendly and helpful. Cheering fans were slim, but this is to be expected on Thanksgiving morning. Then volunteers more than made up for the lack of spectators. I do believe I ran more hills than the elevation chart showed. But finishing under the Olympic rings allowed me to charge the end on dead legs. Overall, a great marathon.
E. H. from Valparaiso, IN (11/28/2005) "Unthankful I ran this race" (about: 2005) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Atlanta Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 1 I would first like to thank the volunteers that came out for the day and helped make the event possible. My advice to anyone wanting to run this race: Stay at home and enjoy your holiday. My complaints focus on the organization of this event. Words cannot describe how awfully put together this race is. The organizers give little information as to who to get to the race start; the instructions to take MARTA are ridiculous and should be ignored. I ended up running at least 28 miles b/c the suggestion to take MARTA resulted in having to run over a mile to the start and then walk that same distance after the race. Additionally, the directions to take MARTA resulted in me being late to the start, despite assurances that MARTA was quick and efficient to use (I arrived at MARTA an hour and a half before the race started). Since I got to the start late, the timing mats had been turned off, so I actually had an extra 2 and half minutes added to my time. The course itself was fine; I knew going in it would be hilly. It would have been nice if there had been water stops more frequently and if the mile markers had been better marked. Finally, the post-race refreshments were a joke - a candy bar and some PowerAde do not justify the price for entry. How hard is it to get some bagels?
P. M. from Birmingham (11/28/2005) "Good Thanksgiving Experience" (about: 2005) 11-50 previous marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 A challenging course, but the infomation on the website makes sure that you come in prepared. I was shocked at the number of volunteers and police that the ATC was able to gather to work the event. They were very friendly! I felt like the event was a good value for the money. There was not a huge crowd at any point, but the volunteers and pockets of spectators gave encouragement. Many have stated the transportation problems at the end, but the website helps you anticipate this so you can arrange rides, etc. Everyone involved with this event is helpful. Not many Olympic courses are places to set PRs, but finishing under the rings is a big high!
Doug Stofel from Atlanta, GA (11/28/2005) "Posted Times Incorrect for Half-Marathon!" (about: 2005) 2 previous marathons \| 2 Atlanta Marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 5 Great course for 1/2 marathon. However, all of the posted times are incorrect! The times posted were measured from when the starting gun sounded as opposed to from when the runners stepped on the starting mat. The starting chips apparently did not register when the runners stepped on the starting mat. This was true for the 10 or so runners I came with...so probably true for all. Very poor management! Also, volunteers were consistently shouting at about mile 8, "All downhill from here." The last five miles are uphill. Those comments were very counterproductive. Poor management of the volunteers!

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