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☰
Pocatello Marathon Runner Comments
Back to Pocatello Marathon Information & Reviews
Course 4.5 
Organization 4.8 
Spectators 3.7
Number of comments: 113 [displaying comments 11 to 21]
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S. S. from Canada
(9/7/2015)
"To Run Again Or Not to Run?...That Is The Question" (about: 2015)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Pocatello Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 Last year I ran the St. George marathon and ran for a while with a fellow who highly praised and recommended the Pocatello marathon. The many positive comments on Marathonguide's website swayed me even more to give it a try. I loved it - well at least the first half of the course. The 6:15 am start was ideal and I appreciated getting off the bus ride to the light of the moon. The pacers I met were enthusiastic and very good. The first half felt effortless and was fast and beautiful. The second half was less inspiring and I had to dig deep to get through the strong headwind and lackluster industrial sights. The finish area and the volunteers were awesome. I have never run a marathon more than once but I am considering running Pocatello twice. In some ways it sort of felt like St. George's little brother. Recommend a post-run soak for sore muscles at the Lava Hot Springs 35 minutes from Pocatello. I would consider driving 12 hours from Canada again to run Pocatello's little gem of a marathon. | |
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Gale Dingwell from New York
(9/7/2015)
"Well Organized, volunteers are the best!" (about: 2015)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Pocatello Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 Great, small marathon. From packet pick-up to post-race food, everything was top-notch. Don't confuse downhill with 'easy' though. | |
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C. B. from Detroit, MIchigan
(9/6/2015)
"Impeccable Organization, Beautiful Course!" (about: 2015)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Pocatello Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 2 I am a 50-stater, and this was #28. Can't imagine a better choice for my Idaho marathon! Pros: 1) super convenient packet pickup (along with a very cool, pre-tagged backpack to be used as gear check bag on race day) 2) nice pasta dinner 3) great race shirt (long-sleeved and Day-Glo yellow for safety) 4) really nice medal 5) aid stations zero complaints, plentiful and well-stocked 6) the course - holy smokes - blazing fast downhill for the first half and tolerable flat second half, gorgeous mountain views throughout; elevation never a problem even though I am a flatlander 7) post-race food the best I've ever had! Steak, rice, gourmet popcorn in addition to all the standard fare, and plenty of it 8) early race start time (could be a con to some, I guess, but for those of us who like to get some of it done before the sun comes up, or have to make a same-day flight afterwards, totally a pro) Cons: none really. I guess if you need large crowds you wouldn't be happy here as spectators are very sparse, but this race has enough natural beauty for almost anyone. I got my second B.Q. out of 35 marathons here yesterday, and it was a surprise! This was the fastest I've run since 2010. Even the many miles of headwind on the second half didn't slow me down. Thank you, Pocatello Marathon, for a great race experience! | |
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B. S. from Chicago
(9/29/2014)
"Outstanding small race." (about: 2014)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Pocatello Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 2 This was my 32nd state and Pocatello didn't disappoint. The whole event was well run with many runner friendly perks. Loved the beautiful views as the sun rose and the course wandered down through curving hillsides that offered different scenery with every bend. Kudos to the RD who made the trip out to Idaho worthwhile. I definitely recommend this race. | |
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m. s. from mansfield, tx
(8/31/2014)
"Fast downhill thru first 14 miles" (about: 2014)
50+ previous marathons
| 1 Pocatello Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 2 Nice small point to point race in scenic Idaho. Great organization, efficient bus rides to the start. Expo was minimal but the gear bag with the name tag attached for the UPS truck was a nice touch. Great volunteers and the spectators, while few, were awesome. Nice finishers medal. Well done finish line and finish 'party' with complimentary beer. :) | |
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lawrence diggs from new jersey
(9/6/2013)
"It was well organized ,and a great race." (about: 2013)
50+ previous marathons
| 1 Pocatello Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 Great small marathon. You can tell right away a marathoner organized it, every detail from the airport to awards ceremony was great I had a good time and met a few new friends!! | |
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B. R. from Aspen, Colorado
(9/3/2013)
"Well worth the trip!" (about: 2013)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 Pocatello Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 This was my tenth marathon and I have found that these smaller events always seem to get more things right than wrong. I was very pleased with our overall experience in Pocatello and with the marathon. The organization and volunteers were great as well as the after race food and awards. | |
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S. W. from Idaho Falls, ID
(9/2/2013)
"Nothing Short of Outstanding" (about: 2013)
11-50 previous marathons
| 3 Pocatello Marathons
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 This is the third year in a row that I have run this marathon. It was excellent the first time I ran it and has only improved from there. I gave spectators only 3 stars because of quantity, not quality. If I could have given the organization 5+ stars I would have done so. Pros: Very reasonable entry fee. I got in for $40 during the first few hours that registration was open. Excellent course. First half is downhill and is very scenic. Second half is relatively flat with one short hill around mile 21. If you are a smart runner you can run a great time. During the first half, bank the energy, don't bank the time. Best aid stations I have ever seen. Each aid station was well stocked and had lots of volunteers who were friendly and helpful. Of 15 aid stations, 12 offered either gel, fruit, hard candy or some combination of these. And aid stations were every mile starting at mile 18. You don't see that very often. Outstanding post race spread. I finished short of 5 1/2 hours and had the following to choose from: pulled pork sandwiches, baked potatoes with toppings, bagels, breads, chocolate milk, water and more. Very nice finishers medal, one of my favorites. The area has plenty to offer before and after the race. Go to visitpocatello.com. Also the Eastern Idaho State Fair, located in Blackfoot which is 1/2 hour north, is in full swing during race weekend. Cons: The prerace announcements at the start were given over a bullhorn - those of us lined up in the back could not hear those. I've e-mailed the race director about this and given my previous experience dealing with this race director, it will likely be fixed next year. | |
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Sharon Gough from Salt Lake City, UT
(6/14/2013)
"AWESOME marathon in every aspect!!!" (about: 2013)
50+ previous marathons
| 4-5 Pocatello Marathons
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 First of all - every race is only as good as the Race Director. This one has the best ever!!! It is my fourth time to Poky. I grew up in Preston and Poky was never my choice of places to visit - it is now!!! I go there every Labor Day Weekend for this glorious marathon. I live in Salt Lake and have done over 120 marathons. I am taking over a dozen friends with me this year to enjoy this fabulous marathon - amazing, beautiful race course, best swag bag ever, beautiful race medal and ribbon, shirt - lunch is delicious - the whole experience is well worth the 40.00 we paid last year!!! It is a tradition and I love Pocatello for these reasons. It is now a favorite place of mine to visit. Thank you, Poky!!! | |
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J. R. from Alexandria, VA
(9/7/2012)
"Great First Half, Dull Second" (about: 2012)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Pocatello Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 I really wanted to like Pocatello more than I did. Part of that was my fault for going out way too fast only to fade early. What I liked: 1. The first half of the course was so beautiful, starting up in the hills on a cool morning, just before sunrise. 2. Very well-organized bus ride from the race hotel- not too cool to wait outside. 3. Nice rural scenery, with changing views as the road wound down the mountain, from the start to about mile 12. 4. Decent post-race feast, though I was really too nauseous to enjoy a pulled pork sandwich. What I didn't like: 1. The altitude kicked my butt. Make no mistake: this race starts at 6000' above sea level, then drops quickly. I burned down those hills (instead of pacing properly- I know better, but couldn't resist the crowd. I paid for this folly.) 2. I hit mile 13.1 EXACTLY at the same place and time the half marathon started. So while the full marathon crowd had thinned, I found myself suddenly struggling through a throng of walkers. Not fun if your 13.1 time is between 1:45-1:50. 3. Mile 14 to the end are basically long, rolling hills on painfully straight rural roads parallel to I-15. I just hate running bleak straightaways into the horizon. The temperature really started to climb here too, and with no shade in the high desert, I slowed down a lot. All in all, not a great finish time for me, BUT I did enjoy the company of quite a few runners. Organization was well done and efficient, and the race hotel was great (and inexpensive). I wouldn't run this one again, but I traveled from DC to check off Idaho. And that said, I made a great vacation of it over a week with side trips to Yellowstone and Moab. I know others enjoyed the race more than I did, and I think if I'd paced myself better in the beginning (RESPECT THE DOWNHILL!) I wouldn't have slogged through the second half so much. If you do this one, practice your pacing on long downhill runs. |
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