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☰
Charlotte Marathon (formerly Charlotte's Thunder Road Marathon) Runner Comments
Back to Charlotte Marathon (formerly Charlotte's Thunder Road Marathon) Information & Reviews
Course 4.1 
Organization 4.3 
Spectators 3.4
Number of comments: 181 [displaying comments 21 to 31]
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A. T. from Matthews, NC
(11/18/2012)
"Needs More Fan Support" (about: 2012)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Charlotte Marathon (formerly Charlotte's Thunder Road Marathon)
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 2 I signed up at the expo for the full, but they only had 1/2 bibs and 5K shirts. If it weren't for the fact that you pay a 2/3 premium to sign-up at the last minute, it wouldn't bother me as much about getting the leftovers. They do offer a one-year deferral, which is definitely a plus, as this is not very prevalent. As for the uncontrollable factor, it was great marathon weather. A bit chilly at the start, but there were a couple of buildings with plenty of space where you could stay warm and prepare until just prior to the gun. Parking isn't free, but reasonable and plentiful on an early Saturday morning. Charlotte has a really nice downtown, actually called uptown, where the course started and finished. In between, the course meanders through a variety of tree lined neighborhoods and business sections. It's not a large marathon, yet I couldn't hear the starting announcements from a short distance back in the pack. I think the fanfare of the start could be improved. There are a lot of low, rolling hills, but nothing overly difficult. While there are sections that do a great job, like NoDa, fan support for a city this size is weak. Maybe 12-15 bands were supporting the runners. Water stops were plentiful, with a few neighborhood sponsored, which are always greatly appreciated. Only one sponsored energy stop along the way, and no beer at the finish, but this seems to have become more the norm since the Great Recession. A streamlined, barricaded exit for the runners with chips, fruit, liquids, and energy bars made for a smooth transition to vendor booths and a band stage. Overall, this is a reasonably well-organized race in a nice setting. Amping up the starting and finish lines, and getting the community more involved would move it up a notch. The former is an easy upgrade. The latter could take some work. | |
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C. W. from Atlanta, GA
(1/2/2012)
"I would do this one again...but I don't need NC" (about: 2011)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 Charlotte Marathon (formerly Charlotte's Thunder Road Marathon)
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 I have to say, I loved this marathon. There are some that I would love to repeat, in spite of trying to get 50 states. This ain't one of them, but if you need NC, it's a truly wonderful race. I think the town was beautiful and the race was incredibly organized. No big surprises and we had a LOT OF FUN during this one. It was a great race, great support, safe clean streets, and I truly enjoyed it. | |
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L. E. from Hopkinton, MA
(11/16/2011)
"Loved the race! Lacked promised indoor facilities" (about: 2011)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Charlotte Marathon (formerly Charlotte's Thunder Road Marathon)
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 I loved this race. Very gentle rolling hills throughout, much easier than some comments would lead you to believe (but I come from a town where the HS team name is 'Hillers' so maybe you can't go by me). My only complaint is that the website brags about access to warm indoor waiting area with bathrooms before the race. In fact we were all shivering outside and waiting in too-long porta potty lines. If you're not providing the indoor facilities you need to update your website and you need to have more outdoor porta potties. | |
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D. Q. from CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA
(11/15/2011)
"challening but great course with lots of variety" (about: 2011)
4-5 previous marathons
| 1 Charlotte Marathon (formerly Charlotte's Thunder Road Marathon)
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 5 Enjoyed this difficult challenge. I wish the last mile did not have a hill because i would've finished stronger. Also wished we had more food for us runners after the race. I also think it would be great if on the medal it had the engraving of FINISHER.I am glad that they gave out SHOT bLOCK GUMMIES INSTEAD OF GU BUT PLEASE AGAIN PROVIDE FOOD FOR THE RUNNERS BESIDES BREAD AND GATORADE . WE NEED SOMETHING MORE AFTER 26 LONG HILLY MILES! | |
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B. B. from Pittsburgh, Pa
(11/15/2011)
"Solid Race" (about: 2011)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Charlotte Marathon (formerly Charlotte's Thunder Road Marathon)
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 A very good race with a lot going for it. Orderly start and with wide streets so you can get into your pace early. Hilly course, but the ups were not bad and the downs were pretty sweet. The hill at the end was tough though. The first half was more scenic than the second but the support in the community was good throughout. Lots of food at the end. I would have liked a little more food on the course and please open the Clif Blocks next year, I really struggled with the package. The medal and shirt are solid. Park at the NASCAR Hall of Fame if you are doing this race. Only $5 and 2 blocks from the finish. I was on the interstate 10 minutes after my finish. Charlotte is a beautiful city and this is a great time of year to experience N. Carolina. | |
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C. S. from Springfield, Illinois USA
(11/15/2011)
"Awesome Event" (about: 2011)
50+ previous marathons
| 1 Charlotte Marathon (formerly Charlotte's Thunder Road Marathon)
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 Nothing about this race 'needs' to be improved. Everything during the race was top shelf, even the 'beer stop'. I don't even know if this is feasible from a logistical or financial standpoint, but it might be really cool to run a lap inside the football stadium we ran by at about mile 16... | |
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M. M. from North Carolina
(11/14/2011)
"Nice variety in course but poorly executed race" (about: 2011)
1 previous marathon
| 1 Charlotte Marathon (formerly Charlotte's Thunder Road Marathon)
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 3 Nice hilly course with some fantastic spectator support in pockets. Poorly organized with promised warmth of the inside of the convention center not fulfilled. Too few restrooms along course. Organizers failed to deliver a high quality experience for runners. | |
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Letty M. from Virginia
(12/23/2010)
"Hilly but fun" (about: 2010)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Charlotte Marathon (formerly Charlotte's Thunder Road Marathon)
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 First time running this marathon. Coming from a flat lander area I would call this a very hilly course but one that's still doable. The couse support was awesome. The Charlotte Police and Fire Departments were fantastic at directing traffic AND cheering us on at the same time. My only complaint was that packet pickup needs to be available on race day morning since it is a Saturday race and I cut it pretty close due to having to work on Friday. So I totally missed the expo to purchase GU. Charlotte is a very friendly town with so much entertainment available. Very family-friendly. | |
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J. O. from South Carolina
(12/19/2010)
"loved this race" (about: 2010)
2 previous marathons
| 1 Charlotte Marathon (formerly Charlotte's Thunder Road Marathon)
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 This was my second full marathon and I loved it. I live close by so I decided to go for it even though the hills intimidated me. I really thought the hills were NO BIG DEAL at all - continuous hills, yes, but all very gentle and gradual. I loved it and beat my San Diego time by over 22 minutes. The support was very good for a mid-size race, and running through the enormous constructed "wall" at mile 21 was very cool. I would definitely do this one again; I just wish they would keep the December date - I like the chill to the air and the festive atmosphere! | |
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R. M. from New Jersey
(12/16/2010)
"Not a bad race" (about: 2010)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 Charlotte Marathon (formerly Charlotte's Thunder Road Marathon)
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 The marathon in Charlotte was my 17th marathon in my pursuit of the 50-state goal. I'm not a NASCAR fan, so NASCAR had no special draw for me. I needed to run in North Carolina and this weekend worked well in my schedule. I think this might have been the coldest start-time temps I have experienced in a marathon (temps in the low 30s). But it wasn't too bad. It wasn't windy or rainy, so it was easy to dress accordingly. The first half of the marathon (most of it shared with the half marathon) was very aesthetic, a run through attractive residential neighborhoods. But after the half marathoners split off, the course got significantly uglier. Much of the last half was run through industrial zones or busy roads lined with strip malls, etc. It wasn't terrible; it's just not as nice as the first half. The course was somewhat hilly. Nothing was too steep or too long, but the hills just kept coming and coming. I wasn't going for a PR anyway, but I doubt I could've gotten one had I been trying. Crowd support was very good in the residential areas, but a little more sparse later on. Some of the roads were still open to vehicle traffic with orange traffic cones separating the runners' lanes from the automobile traffic. I didn't feel threatened by oncoming traffic, and there were plenty of police officers keeping vehicular traffic from interfering with the runners. But still, I would prefer that the runners have the roads to themselves during a race. Overall, I give the Charlotte Thunder Road Marathon a thumbs up. It wasn't my favorite race, but it was enjoyable. And I would recommend it to someone who wants to run a December race or someone who wants to check North Carolina off their list. |
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