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☰
St. George Marathon Runner Comments
Back to St. George Marathon Information & Reviews
Course 4.8 
Organization 4.8 
Spectators 4.3
Number of comments: 216 [displaying comments 141 to 151]
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R. B. from Soldotna, Alaska, formerly from St. George
(9/29/2006)
"My 1st marathon and it was AWSOME!!" (about: 2005)
First Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 As a resident of Saint George, of course I ran here as my first marathon. The experience was awesome. Although I didn't finish as well as I hoped (4:14:51), the overall experience is one I will never forget. One piece of advice if you are to run here: run on hills, then on some hills, and when you are done, finish up by running on some more hills. | |
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P. R. from Fresno, CA
(5/10/2006)
"Stunning run - absolutely beautiful!" (about: 2005)
11-50 previous marathons
| 2 St. George Marathons
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 Wonderful event! The folks in St. George are super friendly. The course is just as advertised - it is definitely a PR course if you train for the hills, and negative splits are common in this race. The scenery is spectactular - sunrise over the desert is awesome! Will definitely run this event again. | |
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K. R. from San Diego CA
(1/17/2006)
"Small-Town Race, Big-City Marketing" (about: 2005)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 St. George Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 Although I ran a PR and a BQ, I left St. George with a bad taste in my mouth. There were three issues that really bothered me and and still do months later. 1. The lottery: The St. George Marathon (SGM) organizers urge potential participants to enter a lottery รก la Marine Corps Marathon, NYC Marathon, etc. They state that only 6700+ entries will be RANDOMLY selected. There were only 4613 finishers in 2005. In fact, in the past 4 years the SGM has only grown by 358 finishers. One can only surmise that there really isn't a lottery. It is merely a shameless effort to get the entries and money in before the final weeks of the event. That just doesn't seem to be consistent with the good natured and clean living image St. George wants to portray. After figuring this out I felt like someone P.T. Barnum had spoken about. 2. Accommodations: Four months before the race, the websites for St. George hotels showed zero vacancies. The SGM website gives you a toll-free number to a local travel agency. Connie at the agency informed me that there were no rooms in St. George or the immediate area. However, she also told me that for $20 I could get on a list that would give me priority should there be a cancellation. I was informed that her colleague had a fancy computer program that assessed the availability issue on a daily basis. I passed on the offer. When in St. George the Friday before the race, I saw more than just a couple small-scale, mom-and-pop motels that still had vacancies. 3. The course: The course was beautiful and the surface was excellent. But as others have posted before, the elevation chart is not accurate. This has been brought to the attention of race organizers yet the same erroneous chart is still being used. Although there is a serious negative elevation from start to finish, the course is not all downhill as they would like to have you think. The people in the town St. George could not have been more friendly, helpful and welcoming. The organization was very good indeed. The weather was perfect. The post-race amenities were more than adequate and better than most marathons. | |
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J. C. from Riverside, CA
(12/29/2005)
"awesome scenic marathon" (about: 2005)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 St. George Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 Even though it's mostly downhill, it's still 26.2 miles and a tough course. It does have some significant uphill stretches. I did a PR by 9 minutes, but I think most of it was due to training, not so much the course. The first 14 miles are best described as rolling hills, not consistently downhill. Run this course for the pure scenery. The quietness is stunning. Since the road is closed, there are no vehicles and very, very few spectators. At the start, our footsteps sounded like the gentle waves of the ocean as 4000+ of us plodded along with no other sounds around. Absolutely stunning sound that you'll hear nowhere else. The wide open countryside is gorgeous. Run this race and you'll never want to run a big-city marathon again. Awesome race support before the start all the way through the finish. Very, very well organized. This has to be one of my most cherished marathon experiences. | |
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Duane O'Reilly from Boise, Idaho
(11/7/2005)
"Fantastic first-time marathon course." (about: 2005)
6-10 previous marathons
| 1 St. George Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 This was my seventh marathon, and by far my most enjoyable. The bonfires in the morning were a great way to stay warm and meet new people. The scenery was awesome, and the run into town fantastic. Great organization before and after the race. Plenty of aid stations and lots of friendly people make this a must-do marathon. | |
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David Hoffman from Milwaukee, Wi
(10/20/2005)
"26 miles of killer hills" (about: 2005)
50+ previous marathons
| 1 St. George Marathon
COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 3 It's a myth that this is a fast course! Durango, a week later, has no killer hills. The bonfires at the start and the stone plaque, ten deep per age group, are special. I recommend the Painted Pony for fine dining. | |
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B. B. from Ft. Collins, Colorado
(10/20/2005)
"Beautiful course, relatively easy." (about: 2005)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 St. George Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 This was a PR for me by over 4 minutes, and my first BQ. If you include hills in your training you won't have any problem. The scenery is spectacular and the fan support is amazing for a small town. When you come into St. George it feels like the whole town is there to cheer you on. This is definitely one I would like to do again. | |
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H. S. from Sandy, UT
(10/15/2005)
"Fast and Beautiful, Qualify for Boston here..." (General Comments)
4-5 previous marathons
| 2 St. George Marathons
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 5 St. George is the fastest marathon in Utah. It's hard, though all marathons are hard, and it's mostly downhill. Running downhill can hurt too; you are definately feeling it when you hit Bluff St. There is one significant climb at Veyo. It's great watching the sun rise over the course as you head downhill. If you have a shot at qualifying for Boston, St. George is a good place to take it. Visit Snow Canyon & Zion while you are there. | |
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K. C. from Denver, CO
(10/14/2005)
"THIS IS NOT A PR COURSE, NOR IS IT THE FASTEST" (about: 2005)
11-50 previous marathons
| 1 St. George Marathon
COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 2 This course is not a PR Course, nor is it the fastest. In fact, Chicago and Twin Cities regularly post faster times (both of which I've run nearly ten minutes faster!). The course is very scenic, but that doesn't compensate for the fact there are many hills and the only true flat and downhill is in the last four miles. If you've run Boston, it's quite similar with rolling hills that punish your legs. Don't buy into the hype about this race. I've run fifteen marathons and it is not even the best small town marathon. | |
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R. D. from Las Vegas, Nevada
(10/12/2005)
"Great Marathon, Lived up to the Hype!!!" (about: 2005)
2 previous marathons
| 1 St. George Marathon
COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 Pros: A net downhill course can definitely run a negative split if you run it right. Did about 2-3 minutes less on the the second half. Course is beautiful, and the crowds are really supportive, especially when you finally start reaching town at mile 23-26. They provided a great mix of Gatorade/water gel packs and even ice cream and more at the finish. Cons: If you plan on running this race, book a room now! Even when I got in the lottery, when I called around everything was booked. Had to stay in Mesquite which is 45 minutes away and an hour behind. However I will say I live in Las Vegas so I only planned on using the room for one night. |
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