Delaware Marathon

Delaware Marathon

Delaware Marathon

( 19 reviews )
94% of reviewers recommend this race
  • Wilmington,
    Delaware,
    United States
  • May
  • 13.1 miles/Half Marathon, 26.2 miles/Marathon, Relay, Virtual Race
  • Road Race
  • Event Website

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Experience a scenic race course that takes you throughout historic downtown Wilmington. The race travels across beautiful Brandywine Park on the Brandywine River, along prestigious parkways, through historic neighborhoods of Wilmington and past downtown’s Rodney Square.
Choose from a full marathon, half-marathon, 4-person marathon relay, 5k or kids fun run on Sunday. After you cross the finish line, celebrate your accomplishment at Tubman Garrett Riverfront Park for a great party with live music, vendors, and activities for the whole family.

Kimberly Greene

Stamford, Connecticut, United States
16 29
2019
"DELAWARE MARATHON RUNNING FESTIVAL (HALF MARATHON) RACE RECAP"
Overall
T-Shirts/SWAG
Aid Stations
Course Scenery
Expo Quality
Elevation Difficulty
Parking/Access
Race Management
Kimberly Greene's thoughts:

This race series offers a 5K, Highmark Kid’s Fun Run, Half Marathon, Marathon and 4-Person Marathon Relay – basically something for everyone! If I do this race again next year I’d love to do the 4-person relay with friends.

My mom and I arrived in Wilmington around 1:00 pm. We had a very uneventful Amtrak ride (just how I like it) and we were able to check into our room right away. After dropping off our suitcases, we headed back downstairs to the lobby to go to the Expo. While small, it was very well organized and we were able to get our bibs and shirts within minutes.

On race day morning, we left the hotel around 6:20am. We had a nice easy walk down to the race start (it was about a 10-15 minute walk). The weather was great (55 degrees) and NO RAIN! We took a few photos and then we were off to start the race!

The race started and ended at Tubman Garrett Riverfront Park.

Although I liked the course overall, I thought the first three miles were a little bit weird. We spent some time running through a shopping center and also a few parking lots. Because of those areas, some sections on this part of the course were very narrow. This is the only time when the race course felt crowded. On the flip side, we did get to run on the Riverwalk Path during this part of the race – it was beautiful!

At mile 4, we crossed the bridge over the river at King Street. This section of the race took part through Brandywine Park and past the Brandywine Zoo. While pretty, I could have done without the zoo smells at this point, lol. Once we hit mile 6, I knew this was where the first real hills started. It was pretty much a gradual uphill from mile 6-7. There was a good amount of run/walk intervals at this point. I didn’t want to push too hard since this was only the mid-way point of the race and I knew I would need energy around mile 10 (that’s when I tend to need a boost)!

Around mile 7 we headed toward Bancroft Parkway. At mile 7.5 we were greeted with an aid station AND Dunkin Donuts munchkins! I was looking forward to this stop for the entire race. I didn’t want to risk any stomach issues so I just took one munchkin donut – it was delicious! We then did a loop through some neighborhoods (with beautiful homes!) and headed toward 9th street. This was another out and back section and then we proceeded back over the Parkway.

Miles 10-12 were nice because it was back to flat areas with a few downhills mixed in. Then at the start of mile 12 we ran on King Street, and hit another hill (yikes). I tried my best to do a quick powerwalk. After a few minutes we finally hit the downhill and then it was smooth sailing to the finish line! While we did run in some industrial areas, the majority of the course was very pretty (especially running in the park) and we did get to see some areas of downtown Wilmington.

With any race, there are always pros and cons.

Pros

There were MANY pros to this race!

Pre-Race Communication

I was SUPER impressed with all of the pre-race communication. Not only did I get numerous emails, but the race was very active and posted tons of information/updates on their Twitter, Instagram and Facebook pages. In addition to updates, they also provided a Runner Handbook via email a week before the race. The handbook basically outlines everything you would need to know for the race – race start times, race course, expo details, start/end location, parking, deadlines (registration and distance switch) and how to sig up for free race photos and runner tracking.

Race Aid Stations

There were 7 aid stations on the half marathon course. Each aid station had water and Gatorade and two of those aid stations also had GU, bananas and Utz salty snacks. There were also Dunkin Donut munchkins available at mile 7.5. I definitely took advantage of these options considering I forgot to bring running fuel! Luckily I didn’t need to use any of these items, but some of the aid stations also had self-aid boxes with band-aids, Vaseline, and feminine hygiene products.

Location

Wilmington is an easy city to get to via car or train. Also you can fly into Philadelphia and then either take a shuttle bus or drive to Wilmington. There’s also plenty of parking available for anyone that drives to the race. The hotel was conveniently located a half a mile away from the race start/finish which was the perfect distance for a pre and post race walk. It was so easy to get around, which is just what you want/need when traveling to another state to race!

Field Size

I guess this would be considered a mid-size race? The race was capped at 3,000 runners for all of the events. I felt it was a nice size because the course didn’t feel overly crowded but I was never alone on the course.

Runner Tracking

I asked my mom how she liked the runner tracking and she gave it two thumbs up. She said it was very accurate and that the predicted finish time they gave me was right on target.

Post-Race Food

After crossing the finish line, there were tables with cups of Gatorade and bottles of water. I grabbed one of each as I sweated like crazy during the race (which was odd because it wasn’t super humid or hot). At the next table they had various fruits – bananas, oranges and apples, in addition to granola bars and UTZ snacks (I grabbed a banana, granola bar and a bag of the UTZ party mix). After entering the festival area I found the beer tent and picked up a can of the Dogfish Slighty Mighty beer (I liked it but my mom wasn’t a fan) and also grabbed a small slice of pizza before heading back to the hotel. I was satisfied with all of the options.

FREE Race Photos

Need I say more about this awesome perk?!?! It’s pretty nice not to pay an arm and a leg for race photos.

There were also a few cons to the race as well..

Expo

Luckily the Expo was in the same hotel that we were staying at, but it was rather small. It was well organized but unfortunately there weren’t many vendors 🙁 Because I forgot my running fuel I was hoping to buy a Honey Stinger gel, or any kind of gel, at the expo.

Pacers

There were no pacers for the race. This didn’t bother me as I wasn’t running with a particular time in mind but it might matter to others, especially if you’re aiming for a PR.

Overall, I would definitely recommend this race, especially if you’re looking to do a race in Delaware. Hope you enjoyed this race recap!

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