Philadelphia Marathon

Philadelphia Marathon

Philadelphia Marathon

( 65 reviews )
98% of reviewers recommend this race
  • Philadelphia,
    Pennsylvania,
    United States
  • November
  • 5 miles/8K, 13.1 miles/Half Marathon, 26.2 miles/Marathon
  • Road Race
  • Event Website

Vanessa Junkin

Salisbury, Maryland, United States
54 91
2021
"A great return to big-city racing! "
Overall
T-Shirts/SWAG
Aid Stations
Course Scenery
Expo Quality
Elevation Difficulty
Parking/Access
Race Management
Vanessa Junkin's thoughts:

I ran the Philadelphia Marathon for the first time this year. I had originally signed up to run this event in 2020, but it was canceled because of the pandemic. So I was excited that it was on for 2021! Runners had to be vaccinated, which I supported.

The crowds for this race were amazing, and it's something I have truly missed during the pandemic. Because my name was on my bib, I got a lot of personalized cheers, and there were many fun signs to read.

I've heard this race referred to as "flat," and while it isn't the hilliest race I've done, there were certainly hills. The course had some changes because of construction. Elevation corrections on Strava and Garmin showed 650 feet and 998 feet of gain, respectively, so I'm not sure exactly how many feet I climbed, but it was not as flat as what I am used to at home in Salisbury, Maryland.

Until Mile 8, the course seemed flat. I enjoyed running through the city. There were then a few loops in park areas. The toughest part of the course was an out-and-back from approximately miles 16-25, and then the course continues on the same road to the finish line. There seemed to be a gradual incline going up toward the turnaround, and the scenery didn't change much on the out-and-back until we turned around in Manayunk.

There were so many aid stations, and while I stopped at all of them, I probably would have been OK with not doing so. There were tons of volunteers working these aid stations, and they were enthusiastic and helpful.

The expo did not have a ton of vendors, which doesn't really matter to me, but I really liked that there were some speaker sessions/meet-and-greets, so I gave it a "5" rating. I was able to hear from Meb Keflezighi, Aliphine Tuliamuk and Bart Yasso, and then meet each of them afterward and get photos with each. Meb and Aliphine signed my bib.

The medal is really nice and is gold with a ringing Liberty Bell. The other swag was a long-sleeve tech shirt. It's nice, but nothing out of the ordinary.

I thought this race was managed really well, particularly since it was the first edition since the pandemic began. I felt I had all the info I needed via email, it was super quick to get my bib and shirt, there were security checks, and everything seemed to run smoothly. I did have to wait in line for security before the race began, and there didn't seem to be enough people doing the security checks, but it did not impact how I felt about the race. The race was also interactive on social media and was able to bring in pro runners, as noted above.

I didn't rate Parking/Access because I stayed in an Airbnb that was about a mile away and walked to the start.

Read my full recap here: https://sherunsbytheseashore.com/2021/11/25/the-philadelphia-marathon-was-a-great-return-to-big-city-marathons/

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