Posting from Runner's World re: Philly
Ashley Loper
Philly last year.
-Ashley
I'm reposting this from the other thread since a lot of you are
wondering about Philly.
I ran Philadelphia last year -- the year of the bad reviews - and it's
a decent race but not an awesome one and not anything like what you'd
get in New York.
The course is a really nice tour of the city. It's mostly flat, but
there are some gentle hills that can be a little tough on your legs in
the later miles. There is only one real hill, around mile 9 or 10. (I
think I was especially sensitive to any elevation changes since I ran
both NYC and Philly.) A large part of the race is an out an back along
the river drives which can get windy and cold and a little lonely
since it's hard for the spectators to get out there.
There are fans along the way but they can feel sparse although the
folks who come out are all enthusiastic. Some sections - like early on
in Center City and then later in Manayunk are really awesome with
crowd support.
Water stations on the course were just fine. All fully stocked, even
for slowpokes like me.
Last year the organization was terrible. The baggage drop-off/claim
was non-existant, the mile markers were missing or not placed
correctly, and the post-race food was gone before even fast runners
were finished. They did have chicken broth, which was nice, and it was
easy to buy some soft pretzels, but the supplied food was very lame.
The medal is OK and the t-shirt was really nice (long sleeved tech
shirt).
There is a different sponsor this year and they've changed some things
and they'll be keeping the course open for longer and they are really
promoting it for walkers - Prevention magazine has marked it as a
walker friendly event, which it never was in years past.
I think I'm going to run the half this year but I was planning on
running it again if I didn't get into New York.
A lot of you have mentioned overcrowding -- I didn't notice that much,
although the start was a little unorganized. That might be really a
problem for fast people who are trying to BQ or something but for
regular runners I think it's not that different from most races. There
are no corrals, just pace signs, and it's all on the honor system.
The good thing is that the race begins by running down the Ben
Franklin parkway -- which is very wide and roomy. It doesn't get too
congested until a mile or two into the race when you get into the Old
City like near Independence Hall and the streets are narrow and in
some places cobbled. I think if you properly seed yourself though,
it's not a big issue.
The issues with the half versus the full that I saw were confusing
mile markers (but that was true all thru the race) and some
misdirection of the half runners where they had to turn off to finish.
Tim McNabb
much better.
Ashley Loper
I thought it was a good post, so we can plan for the trip better.
ie..food, water, which I can have at the finish for you guys since I
am only doing the 1/2.
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