San Francisco Marathon

San Francisco Marathon

San Francisco Marathon

( 79 reviews )
94% of reviewers recommend this race
  • San Francisco,
    California,
    United States
  • July
  • 3 miles/5K, 13.1 miles/Half Marathon, 26.2 miles/Marathon, 50 miles
  • Road Race
  • Event Website

Removed User

2018
"Has anyone mentioned that it's hilly?"
Overall
T-Shirts/SWAG
Aid Stations
Course Scenery
Expo Quality
Elevation Difficulty
Parking/Access
Race Management
Removed User's thoughts:

Oh gosh! Where to start! This was my first marathon and my first race in San Francisco, so here goes:

PROS:
- The race start is well organized and didn't feel all that crowded. The lineup didn't take forever and you didn't stand for ever waiting on your wave.
- There was a lot to see and do at the expo but I'm glad I went on Friday - the crowds on Saturday looked crazy!
- The first 10 miles of the course are EXCELLENT. You start at the embarcadero, run along the waterfront (including fisherman's wharf) and past Crissy Field. Views of the bridge start around this time and this is where the hills begin! The run across the bridge was fine (I wasn't sure what to expect with the course change and using the sidewalks but it was totally fine!). Crossing under the bridge on the dirt path was SO PRETTY. Unexpected and really nice!
- The free shirt is nice and I'd actually wear it. The medal is nice too.
- There were a ton of aid stations in the back half of the course, which I really appreciated. Plenty of "unofficial" stations too manned by little kids and other groups. It kept me looking forward to something during the 17-25 mi stretch.
- So far the photos that on course photographers took look good. They had photographers fairly regularly on the entire course.
- Crowd support overall was good - the themed aid stations were fun and the biofreeze stations were definitely the most energized.

CONS:
- I'd never run a race where there are 4 races all happening on the same course at staggered times. For the first 10 miles it was mostly just marathoners so it was nice to just settle in and follow the pack, but by mile 11 or 12 the "first half" runners showed up and started mixing in. It was ok, just a little more crowded and a lot of feeling like you're to go from running with others at a solid pace to having hundreds of fast HM'ers blow past you! Then for the same to happen again once the "second half" started up. As another reviewer mentioned, you're also encountering a lot of walkers who are walking the HM courses and aren't perhaps as courteous to runners through water stops, etc.
- They promoted these electronic message stations at mile 19ish and mile 25ish... but they didn't really work all that well. The mat was supposed to trigger your messages to appear as you approached the message board. However when numerous runners cross the mat one after another it took a minute to pop up all the messages. It seemed really delayed. I only saw one of mine at one message station, and that was when it was about at my shoulder as I was running by. They need either the mat farther away or more screens. Cool idea though!
- GU was only available at 2 stations and then it was only chews and waffles. Getting either of those things open was a pain and there was a TON of dropped items for the next mile on the course. By the 2nd GU station someone had opened up a ton of them and you just reached and grabbed a handful which was genius. High five to that person!
- The last 2-3 miles are kind of the ugliest! haha. The road for most of mile 25 was in terrible condition and there wasn't much support or anything to look at. Wish they'd come up with a new route (keep it flat though!) for the last few miles.
- Communication from the race management was iffy to be honest. Very few emails to registrants. During the week before the race several emails came out, but I guess I was expecting more consistent updates, etc.
- There wasn't much on offer in the finisher's chute. Everyone got a banana, a KIND bar, a room temp bottle of water, and a chocolate milk (and a reusable bag to put it all in). At many of the RNR races they give you so much food you can barely carry it all! For a race this size, I was expecting a few more fresh options, some NUUN or Gatorade (granted, they did have the nuun tabs available in the festival area), and COLD water.
- I mentioned that the photos are nice - and they are - but the finish line pics are terrible. I guess I was wanting one that would be closer up. Instead the camera is very zoomed-out and I'm a very small part of it along with a lot of other runners.(No idea how much I could zoom in if I bought the full resolution pic)
- This was totally expected but finding even a semi-affordable hotel (or AirBNB) anywhere near the expo or the race start was impossible. I wound up spending a fortune and was still a mile away from both of those things. A doable walk for sure but it was straight up from the race finish and it took me a while to make it! That said, it was nice not to worry about getting to/from the race.

**Would I do it again?**
Maybe. Some of it was run on a pretty course but once you got past the bridge it mostly looked like any other city park and city neighborhoods. I think if I was to run another "destination race" I'd look a lot more carefully at the course scenery and also choose a hotel as close to the action as possible. It was an expensive race (and once you tack on the flight, hotel, etc it was VERY expensive). I guess for all that I wanted a knock-your-socks-off course and experience... while this was OK it wasn't amazing, you know?

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