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Marathon Details - Marine Corps Marathon

North America Marathons > USA > DC > Washington > Marine Corps Marathon

Marine Corps Marathon

Marine Corps Marathon & 50K, 10K

Washington, DC USA

October 27, 2024

http://www.marinemarathon.com

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Address:	Marine Corps Marathon PO Box 188 Quantico, VA 22134
Phone Number:	1-800-RUN USMC
Fax Number:	703-784-2265
Email:	Email the organizers

Runner Reviews (937)

Course 4.5

Organization 3.9

Spectators 4.6

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Number of comments: 937 [displaying comments 1 to 11]

More Comments: [ < 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 .. 94 > ]

G. H. from Paris, France (11/7/2023) "Great sightseeing course in DC" (about: 2023) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Marine Corps Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 Despite some minor drawbacks, this course is not far from being an essential marathon for runners in the United States. The marathon offers a great course throughout Washington DC (and surrounding areas) passing by several notable monuments. The boisterous spectators were sprinkled throughout the course and the marine volunteers were always available nearby as support. There were also plenty of water stops, bathrooms and energy snacks during the race. After crossing the (uphill!) finish line, the runners were offered all sorts of refreshments including beer and watermelon! The drawbacks? The first was the expo where it took us at least 30 minutes waiting in line to get to the expo room at the convention center (adding to the time in traffic just to arrive there). Then the race gear on offer there was quite inferior with mostly polyester shirts (and not enough sizes available). On race day, I was also surprised by the long walk from the nearest metro to the starting line (about 30-40 minutes). The start wasn't well organized either because everyone more or less started at the same time (compared to other marathons where people start in waves), so there wasn't much space to run during the first 30 minutes. After that, everything went smoothly except for the fact that the weather was unseasonably warm, so the race organizers were forced to modify the course slightly due to medical reasons.
C. V. from Boston, MA (10/30/2022) "A Unique Run with the Marines" (about: 2022) 11-50 previous marathons \| 2 Marine Corps Marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 4 This was my second time returning to DC to run after 22 years. Overall the course was relatively the same with minor changes. My comments run through my experience as I approached and completed the event. I was originally registered for the 2020 race that was deferred twice. The communication was frequent and informative leading up to race day. Hotel stay was booked through the sites travel group. Overall the double tree and embassy suites are good spots (no frills) but close to the start and subway stations. The expo was held at the armory and was very poorly organized. There were only 2 lines for security check resulting in a line that was at least an hour long. If you don't care about the expo I suggest having your bib mailed to you. I was so nervous the next morning that I left 2 hours before the start and check in was a breeze.. plenty of marines available to assist with security check. Porta potties galore.. very minimal wait times. One items to consider is the walk to the start is roughly 40 minutes but a good warm up and way to stay warm in the 30-40 degree weather. Overall the course is beautiful except the last 4 miles.. they are a bit dull, slightly hilly and on highways. DC can still be warm in late October and if you are over a 4 hour marathoner ensure to hydrate and take fuel. I noted enhancements to the course at Haines point. It also seemed like there were a lot more marines on the course than the first time. They were awesome cheering on the runners and it's the best when you get a medal from them and a salute! It's a unique experience and I highly recommend running for that experience. Crowd support seemed lighter than what I remembered but still present throughout many spots in the course. The after race festival seemed different than I recall & it was spread out in different parts of Arlington cemetery and the streets of Rosslyn. It was also confusing to find my family as there were 2 locations and not enough signage to direct people.
Wayne Wright from Palmdale, California USA (12/4/2019) "OORAH!" (about: 2019) 50+ previous marathons \| 1 Marine Corps Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 INTRODUCTION: I am a race-walker with a median marathon completion time of 5:22:43. The Marine Corps Marathon was my fifty-seventh 26.2-miler accomplished. COURSE: It was a soggy and steamy day for a marathon: 68 degrees, wind from the south at 15 mph, light rain with 96% relative humidity. Starting on Jefferson Davis Highway just outside of Arlington National Cemetery, our first two and a half miles were the most difficult of the race: approximately 170 foot increase in elevation as we wound through Rosslyn. We descended the same amount by mile 4 as we traversed on tree-lined Spout Run and George Washington Parkways before crossing the Key Bridge into Georgetown for the next mile. At mile 6, we began our three mile out-and-back on the forested Rock Creek Parkway&an ever gentle incline northbound which was given back as we returned to civilization at mile 9, where we passed by the JFK Center for Performing Arts. At mile 10, we entered West Potomac Park, passing by the Lincoln Memorial, and East Potomac Park, continuing alongside the river until reaching the end of the peninsula at the race halfway point, where we continued alongside Washington Channel with views of the harbor and Washington skyline. After our mile and a half out-and-back on Independence Avenue, we completed our D.C. Gauntlet run at mile 17 with the Washington Monument towering over us on the left, thus beginning our roughly three mile excursion in The Mall, running alongside the museums of the Smithsonian Institution, including its iconic castle, and the United States Capitol. We Beat the Bridge just before mile 20, immediately before crossing the Potomac River into Virginia on Interstate 395 with the Jefferson Memorial on the right. We ran the Crystal City Gauntlet at mile 22, beginning a mile and a half out-and-back on Crystal Drive before proceeding around The Pentagon before returning to our Jefferson Davis Highway start line with only 0.7 miles separating us from our completion adjacent to the USMC Iwo Jima Memorial. Weather at the finish was 78 degrees, wind from the northwest at 8 mph, mostly cloudy with 71% relative humidity. The race organizers later informed us that most of us endured 1.4 inches of rain during the race; in addition, they told us it was one of the warmest, fitting for a marine. ORGANIZATION: Well organized with military precision with plenty of marines on hand to support the race. For Four Star participants, well done reception, dine in, transportation to the start, and pre-race facilities, keeping participants dry during the on again and off again rain before the race. Given the congestion during the entire race (two lanes for 20,000 runners for almost the entire course), perhaps the organizers should consider time separation between corrals; while we had either red, gold, or green colors on our bib, no distinction was made at the start. Also, at miles 18 and 19, half of The Mall portolets were padlocked, creating longer than necessary lines for the runners, not to mention some angst among those who were wondering if they were to Beat the Bridge in time. SPECTATORS: Surprising turnout given the inclement weather. Some were a bit too enthusiastic around the Lincoln Memorial on the eleventh mile and Crystal City on the twenty-third mile: on both occasions they took a lane away from the course (narrowing it down to one lane on the Crystal City out-and-back), thus exacerbating the congestion. CONCLUSION: Great organization, an extremely well laid out course with about 13 miles in parkland adorned with our most famous landmarks. The People's Marathon is a race where any marathoner should consider adding to his portfolio, in recognition of those who serve and have served our country. Well done.
C. G. from Boston (10/31/2019) "Brilliant" (about: 2019) 2 previous marathons \| 2 Marine Corps Marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 First marathon. 2006. Ran my goal to run one marathon with my brother. Thank you Les 2nd marathon run with my niece. Thank you to my running group!
Linda Miller from Wellington, Fl (10/29/2019) "Best Marathon" (about: 2019) 11-50 previous marathons \| 3 Marine Corps Marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 22nd marathon and first 50k on road. The weather was a challenge but made it actually fun. The course is BEAUTIFUL. Well supported water/Gatorade every two miles and food throughout. Lots of Marine presence made you feel taken care of. They were young and having fun too, lots of encouraging. Emotional Blue mile and very somber, everyone respected it. There were wounded warriors on the course participating and any time I felt an ache or pain I would really be mad at myself. So much grit on this course. Plus you get to see DC minus the crowds. Such an amazing course. The goodies are great. Having a Marine put medal on your neck and salute you in so powerful.
M. M. from Ohio (3/6/2019) "Great City, Great Course, Organization So So" (about: 2018) 11-50 previous marathons \| 2 Marine Corps Marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 4 I've done MCM twice and I love the course and the support along the course. The water stops were well positioned and had plenty of people to assist you. The finish area, the medal and even the ugly shirt were great! The race prides itself on precise organization. That may be true once the race begins and at the finish - I have no complaints. My issue is with the shuttle staging areas pre-race, specifically in Crystal City. My group arrived very early to get in line and start loading the buses. The staff was loading 1 bus at a time at an incredibly slow pace. The lines grew and grew and there were no changes made to adjust for the demand. As we got to under an hour before the start the line was massive and chaos ensued. Folks from the back of the line started line jumping as they were closer to the buses. The staffers essentially gave up and let the mob overtake the buses. We arrived to start area with about 15 minutes to the gun and over a mile to walk / jog to get there. Our driver dropped us off at the wrong spot. Not the way I wanted to start the day. MCM you can do better than this. I doubt I'll come back.
LINDA MILLER from Wellington, FL (11/15/2018) "OORAH!" (about: 2018) 11-50 previous marathons \| 2 Marine Corps Marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 Exactly what I expect from Marines. First Class! For those that did not pay attention to the Marathon Booklet you were provided way before the marathon shame on you for blaming organization for not using a FREE shuttle and taking uber to expo. Which was in an amazing venue on the National Harbor. Everything was planned out spectacularly. This was my second MCM. 19th marathon. I have never been treated to so much organization in any other marathon. No excuse. The course is difficult. The Blue Mile incredibly difficult. I chocked up and could not look at the beautiful faces along the mile. Young brave service members that gave all. The biggest treat of this marathon is having a Marine place the medal around my neck. What an honor.
L. S. from Florida (11/2/2018) "The Shirts" (about: 2018) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Marine Corps Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 The good: Nice crowd support. Good transportation after the race to get to the hotels. Enjoyable course that went through urban areas, the mall, bridges, etc. The bad: The expo was in the middle of nowhere (unless you stay at the Gaylord). $25 Uber and hoards of people in a small convention room. Not a good time. I wanted to get out as soon as possible. By Saturday afternoon, most of the attractive clothes had sold out of the sizes people want. The course was good, but not utilizing a better corral system was bad. Way too much congestion for the first half. The ugly: The race shirt. Without question, the ugliest race shirt I have ever seen. I won't even wash my bike with this thing. All in all, it was a fun weekend, but I didn't leave with any desire do it again like I did with Chicago, NY, or Grandmas. Check the box kind of race.
J. v. from Curacao (10/31/2018) "Impressive marathon" (about: 2018) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Marine Corps Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 I just finished the Marine Corps Sunday and it was a great experience. The start was well organized, no complaints there. Plenty of toilets, plenty of room and the walking from the Metro (Pentagon) to the start area and the start itself was limited and never crowded. The start itself is impressive with the canon and next to Arlington Cemetery however the highway makes it a bit less interesting but plenty of space to run. I did run at an easy pace of 12km an hour and from the start there was plenty of space. I saw that it got very crowded further back in the marathon. There are lots of areas with less spectators so therefore 4 stars. It's not like London, Tokyo or New York for example but still a big crowd at certain parts of the course. The last bridge heading back into Crystal City was pretty hard or the hardest part with just a few spectators. Nice crowd in Crystal City and some Marines along the way to bridge to the finish area. The uphill finish was full with spectators and with the adrenaline rush it is not that difficult, even if you are quite dead like me because of lack of training due to injuries. I loved the finish! The weather was fine this year, some sun in the end, a cold breeze along the Potomac and a bit warm at certain parts of the course with no wind. I took an Uber to the Expo from Alexandria, USD 10 one way. The Expo was well organized but I did not spent much time there. Got my stuff, bought some things I needed so I was inside for less than 20 minutes. I took the metro to the start and from the finish and that worked fine. You have to pay for the metro, no free rides for marathon runners (like London for example). The Blue Mile is very impressive, all the Marines are a great support and deserves your gratitude. The Course is interesting enough, some great parts, some less interesting parts but they do a good job and no bottlenecks at all. I am sure it gets crowded for runners that are not in the top 15% of the field but I wasn't there and can't judge it. The only improvement point I can come up with is the start of the Wheelchair and Hand Cycle Star. Because of the hilly start a lot of them came between the runners and when they go downhill and during the rest of the race, they have a hard time passing all runners. They should start earlier so that more of them have a chance to stay ahead of the runners, especially in the first 5 to 10k with the fast downhills.
Chris Moran from Delaware (10/31/2018) "Fantastic from the start!" (about: 2018) 2 previous marathons \| 1 Marine Corps Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 We stayed at the Gaylord National. The expo was there and it was very convenient to be on site. There were shuttles that took runners from the Gaylord National directly to Runners Village (just a short walk from drop off) as long as we were on the shuttle on time. I arrived at Runners Village at 6ish with no lines for the bathrooms. In fact at any point my wait for the bathroom was never more than 3-4 deep. There were plenty. Even at the start there were more bathrooms staggered along the start. I was just in front of the 4:30 pace group and it only took me 3 minutes to cross the mat. Not bad! Water stops and bathrooms were plentyful along the course. The Marines were AMAZING! Their support was incredible especially at the end! The Blue Mile was emotional. I loved the motivational signs along the course as well. 'Beat the Bridge' -- the bridge was long and by that point you are tired. There are no water stops, however there were water containers where you could fill up your water bottle. After crossing the bridge, the crowd support was incredible again! The finsish was hard because of the incline. Had it been a 10K, 15K, or even 30K -- no problem...but after 26 miles...it was @#$%! Receiving the medal from a Marine Lieutenant will forever be remembered! What a wonderful experience! I cant wait to do it again next year!

More Comments: [ < 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 .. 94 > ]



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G. H. from Paris, France (11/7/2023) "Great sightseeing course in DC" (about: 2023) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Marine Corps Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 Despite some minor drawbacks, this course is not far from being an essential marathon for runners in the United States. The marathon offers a great course throughout Washington DC (and surrounding areas) passing by several notable monuments. The boisterous spectators were sprinkled throughout the course and the marine volunteers were always available nearby as support. There were also plenty of water stops, bathrooms and energy snacks during the race. After crossing the (uphill!) finish line, the runners were offered all sorts of refreshments including beer and watermelon! The drawbacks? The first was the expo where it took us at least 30 minutes waiting in line to get to the expo room at the convention center (adding to the time in traffic just to arrive there). Then the race gear on offer there was quite inferior with mostly polyester shirts (and not enough sizes available). On race day, I was also surprised by the long walk from the nearest metro to the starting line (about 30-40 minutes). The start wasn't well organized either because everyone more or less started at the same time (compared to other marathons where people start in waves), so there wasn't much space to run during the first 30 minutes. After that, everything went smoothly except for the fact that the weather was unseasonably warm, so the race organizers were forced to modify the course slightly due to medical reasons.
C. V. from Boston, MA (10/30/2022) "A Unique Run with the Marines" (about: 2022) 11-50 previous marathons \| 2 Marine Corps Marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 4 This was my second time returning to DC to run after 22 years. Overall the course was relatively the same with minor changes. My comments run through my experience as I approached and completed the event. I was originally registered for the 2020 race that was deferred twice. The communication was frequent and informative leading up to race day. Hotel stay was booked through the sites travel group. Overall the double tree and embassy suites are good spots (no frills) but close to the start and subway stations. The expo was held at the armory and was very poorly organized. There were only 2 lines for security check resulting in a line that was at least an hour long. If you don't care about the expo I suggest having your bib mailed to you. I was so nervous the next morning that I left 2 hours before the start and check in was a breeze.. plenty of marines available to assist with security check. Porta potties galore.. very minimal wait times. One items to consider is the walk to the start is roughly 40 minutes but a good warm up and way to stay warm in the 30-40 degree weather. Overall the course is beautiful except the last 4 miles.. they are a bit dull, slightly hilly and on highways. DC can still be warm in late October and if you are over a 4 hour marathoner ensure to hydrate and take fuel. I noted enhancements to the course at Haines point. It also seemed like there were a lot more marines on the course than the first time. They were awesome cheering on the runners and it's the best when you get a medal from them and a salute! It's a unique experience and I highly recommend running for that experience. Crowd support seemed lighter than what I remembered but still present throughout many spots in the course. The after race festival seemed different than I recall & it was spread out in different parts of Arlington cemetery and the streets of Rosslyn. It was also confusing to find my family as there were 2 locations and not enough signage to direct people.
Wayne Wright from Palmdale, California USA (12/4/2019) "OORAH!" (about: 2019) 50+ previous marathons \| 1 Marine Corps Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 INTRODUCTION: I am a race-walker with a median marathon completion time of 5:22:43. The Marine Corps Marathon was my fifty-seventh 26.2-miler accomplished. COURSE: It was a soggy and steamy day for a marathon: 68 degrees, wind from the south at 15 mph, light rain with 96% relative humidity. Starting on Jefferson Davis Highway just outside of Arlington National Cemetery, our first two and a half miles were the most difficult of the race: approximately 170 foot increase in elevation as we wound through Rosslyn. We descended the same amount by mile 4 as we traversed on tree-lined Spout Run and George Washington Parkways before crossing the Key Bridge into Georgetown for the next mile. At mile 6, we began our three mile out-and-back on the forested Rock Creek Parkway&an ever gentle incline northbound which was given back as we returned to civilization at mile 9, where we passed by the JFK Center for Performing Arts. At mile 10, we entered West Potomac Park, passing by the Lincoln Memorial, and East Potomac Park, continuing alongside the river until reaching the end of the peninsula at the race halfway point, where we continued alongside Washington Channel with views of the harbor and Washington skyline. After our mile and a half out-and-back on Independence Avenue, we completed our D.C. Gauntlet run at mile 17 with the Washington Monument towering over us on the left, thus beginning our roughly three mile excursion in The Mall, running alongside the museums of the Smithsonian Institution, including its iconic castle, and the United States Capitol. We Beat the Bridge just before mile 20, immediately before crossing the Potomac River into Virginia on Interstate 395 with the Jefferson Memorial on the right. We ran the Crystal City Gauntlet at mile 22, beginning a mile and a half out-and-back on Crystal Drive before proceeding around The Pentagon before returning to our Jefferson Davis Highway start line with only 0.7 miles separating us from our completion adjacent to the USMC Iwo Jima Memorial. Weather at the finish was 78 degrees, wind from the northwest at 8 mph, mostly cloudy with 71% relative humidity. The race organizers later informed us that most of us endured 1.4 inches of rain during the race; in addition, they told us it was one of the warmest, fitting for a marine. ORGANIZATION: Well organized with military precision with plenty of marines on hand to support the race. For Four Star participants, well done reception, dine in, transportation to the start, and pre-race facilities, keeping participants dry during the on again and off again rain before the race. Given the congestion during the entire race (two lanes for 20,000 runners for almost the entire course), perhaps the organizers should consider time separation between corrals; while we had either red, gold, or green colors on our bib, no distinction was made at the start. Also, at miles 18 and 19, half of The Mall portolets were padlocked, creating longer than necessary lines for the runners, not to mention some angst among those who were wondering if they were to Beat the Bridge in time. SPECTATORS: Surprising turnout given the inclement weather. Some were a bit too enthusiastic around the Lincoln Memorial on the eleventh mile and Crystal City on the twenty-third mile: on both occasions they took a lane away from the course (narrowing it down to one lane on the Crystal City out-and-back), thus exacerbating the congestion. CONCLUSION: Great organization, an extremely well laid out course with about 13 miles in parkland adorned with our most famous landmarks. The People's Marathon is a race where any marathoner should consider adding to his portfolio, in recognition of those who serve and have served our country. Well done.
C. G. from Boston (10/31/2019) "Brilliant" (about: 2019) 2 previous marathons \| 2 Marine Corps Marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 First marathon. 2006. Ran my goal to run one marathon with my brother. Thank you Les 2nd marathon run with my niece. Thank you to my running group!
Linda Miller from Wellington, Fl (10/29/2019) "Best Marathon" (about: 2019) 11-50 previous marathons \| 3 Marine Corps Marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 22nd marathon and first 50k on road. The weather was a challenge but made it actually fun. The course is BEAUTIFUL. Well supported water/Gatorade every two miles and food throughout. Lots of Marine presence made you feel taken care of. They were young and having fun too, lots of encouraging. Emotional Blue mile and very somber, everyone respected it. There were wounded warriors on the course participating and any time I felt an ache or pain I would really be mad at myself. So much grit on this course. Plus you get to see DC minus the crowds. Such an amazing course. The goodies are great. Having a Marine put medal on your neck and salute you in so powerful.
M. M. from Ohio (3/6/2019) "Great City, Great Course, Organization So So" (about: 2018) 11-50 previous marathons \| 2 Marine Corps Marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 4 I've done MCM twice and I love the course and the support along the course. The water stops were well positioned and had plenty of people to assist you. The finish area, the medal and even the ugly shirt were great! The race prides itself on precise organization. That may be true once the race begins and at the finish - I have no complaints. My issue is with the shuttle staging areas pre-race, specifically in Crystal City. My group arrived very early to get in line and start loading the buses. The staff was loading 1 bus at a time at an incredibly slow pace. The lines grew and grew and there were no changes made to adjust for the demand. As we got to under an hour before the start the line was massive and chaos ensued. Folks from the back of the line started line jumping as they were closer to the buses. The staffers essentially gave up and let the mob overtake the buses. We arrived to start area with about 15 minutes to the gun and over a mile to walk / jog to get there. Our driver dropped us off at the wrong spot. Not the way I wanted to start the day. MCM you can do better than this. I doubt I'll come back.
LINDA MILLER from Wellington, FL (11/15/2018) "OORAH!" (about: 2018) 11-50 previous marathons \| 2 Marine Corps Marathons COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 Exactly what I expect from Marines. First Class! For those that did not pay attention to the Marathon Booklet you were provided way before the marathon shame on you for blaming organization for not using a FREE shuttle and taking uber to expo. Which was in an amazing venue on the National Harbor. Everything was planned out spectacularly. This was my second MCM. 19th marathon. I have never been treated to so much organization in any other marathon. No excuse. The course is difficult. The Blue Mile incredibly difficult. I chocked up and could not look at the beautiful faces along the mile. Young brave service members that gave all. The biggest treat of this marathon is having a Marine place the medal around my neck. What an honor.
L. S. from Florida (11/2/2018) "The Shirts" (about: 2018) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Marine Corps Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 4 The good: Nice crowd support. Good transportation after the race to get to the hotels. Enjoyable course that went through urban areas, the mall, bridges, etc. The bad: The expo was in the middle of nowhere (unless you stay at the Gaylord). $25 Uber and hoards of people in a small convention room. Not a good time. I wanted to get out as soon as possible. By Saturday afternoon, most of the attractive clothes had sold out of the sizes people want. The course was good, but not utilizing a better corral system was bad. Way too much congestion for the first half. The ugly: The race shirt. Without question, the ugliest race shirt I have ever seen. I won't even wash my bike with this thing. All in all, it was a fun weekend, but I didn't leave with any desire do it again like I did with Chicago, NY, or Grandmas. Check the box kind of race.
J. v. from Curacao (10/31/2018) "Impressive marathon" (about: 2018) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Marine Corps Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 4 I just finished the Marine Corps Sunday and it was a great experience. The start was well organized, no complaints there. Plenty of toilets, plenty of room and the walking from the Metro (Pentagon) to the start area and the start itself was limited and never crowded. The start itself is impressive with the canon and next to Arlington Cemetery however the highway makes it a bit less interesting but plenty of space to run. I did run at an easy pace of 12km an hour and from the start there was plenty of space. I saw that it got very crowded further back in the marathon. There are lots of areas with less spectators so therefore 4 stars. It's not like London, Tokyo or New York for example but still a big crowd at certain parts of the course. The last bridge heading back into Crystal City was pretty hard or the hardest part with just a few spectators. Nice crowd in Crystal City and some Marines along the way to bridge to the finish area. The uphill finish was full with spectators and with the adrenaline rush it is not that difficult, even if you are quite dead like me because of lack of training due to injuries. I loved the finish! The weather was fine this year, some sun in the end, a cold breeze along the Potomac and a bit warm at certain parts of the course with no wind. I took an Uber to the Expo from Alexandria, USD 10 one way. The Expo was well organized but I did not spent much time there. Got my stuff, bought some things I needed so I was inside for less than 20 minutes. I took the metro to the start and from the finish and that worked fine. You have to pay for the metro, no free rides for marathon runners (like London for example). The Blue Mile is very impressive, all the Marines are a great support and deserves your gratitude. The Course is interesting enough, some great parts, some less interesting parts but they do a good job and no bottlenecks at all. I am sure it gets crowded for runners that are not in the top 15% of the field but I wasn't there and can't judge it. The only improvement point I can come up with is the start of the Wheelchair and Hand Cycle Star. Because of the hilly start a lot of them came between the runners and when they go downhill and during the rest of the race, they have a hard time passing all runners. They should start earlier so that more of them have a chance to stay ahead of the runners, especially in the first 5 to 10k with the fast downhills.
Chris Moran from Delaware (10/31/2018) "Fantastic from the start!" (about: 2018) 2 previous marathons \| 1 Marine Corps Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 5 We stayed at the Gaylord National. The expo was there and it was very convenient to be on site. There were shuttles that took runners from the Gaylord National directly to Runners Village (just a short walk from drop off) as long as we were on the shuttle on time. I arrived at Runners Village at 6ish with no lines for the bathrooms. In fact at any point my wait for the bathroom was never more than 3-4 deep. There were plenty. Even at the start there were more bathrooms staggered along the start. I was just in front of the 4:30 pace group and it only took me 3 minutes to cross the mat. Not bad! Water stops and bathrooms were plentyful along the course. The Marines were AMAZING! Their support was incredible especially at the end! The Blue Mile was emotional. I loved the motivational signs along the course as well. 'Beat the Bridge' -- the bridge was long and by that point you are tired. There are no water stops, however there were water containers where you could fill up your water bottle. After crossing the bridge, the crowd support was incredible again! The finsish was hard because of the incline. Had it been a 10K, 15K, or even 30K -- no problem...but after 26 miles...it was @#$%! Receiving the medal from a Marine Lieutenant will forever be remembered! What a wonderful experience! I cant wait to do it again next year!

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Marathon Details - Marine Corps Marathon