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Greater St. Louis Marathon Reviews
Greater St. Louis Marathon
4.0 Stars from
13 Runners
Rolling hills but great crowds and sights
By jb about 2024
Review
The expo, parking, and corral start were all easy, and user-friendly. It had many of the amenities of a major city marathon but was more doable with only 1000 marathoners and 3000 half marathoners. Great crowds and fun atmosphere. It was a bit humid and there were rolling hills, but water/aid stations every mile after the half. Very organized and well-run.
5 /
5 Stars
Views of City but at a Hilly Cost
By JW about 2024
Review
I liked the fact that it was a route that tried to show you all the sights of the city. However it was the hilliest and hard to every get a rhythm. There were almost no port a johns on the course. At most 2 ever 2 miles and then there were lines for them until the 1/2 Marathons and 10K runners were finally off the course. There's no bushes to run to - just fyi. I saw many women run behind dumpsters if they could find them. Such a joke. Volunteers and water stations were all well maintained except for mile 23ish they had given up by that point. All others were great and helpful.
Race Tips
Better run hills and lots of them. 1000ft of elevation gain on my Garmin. Bottom line not enough port o johns at the start or on the course.
Plenty of hotels on Market street that is the best way to go to easy way to the race. I only had to walk a .5 mile from the Fairfield Inn
3 /
5 Stars
Rolling hills, flat second half
By Dan B about 2022
Review
Running through various neighborhoods was neat. Rolling hills for the first half, but more down than up. The second half was an out and back, which proved to be neat because you got to see a lot of runners who are both slower and faster. Plenty of water stops. Could use a few more port-o-lets.
Race Tips
Decent crowds, but nothing at all like Chicago, etc. Spring weather is unpredictable, but typically on the cooler side. No need to carry water. Start conservatively as most of the rolling hills are early. The end is flat and will give you a good opportunity to push.
It is a point to point race. If you have transportation, that's easier than taking a bus to the start or finish. Gear check was free for all runners and was very quick and easy.
5 /
5 Stars
Stingy
By SW about 2021
Review
Of the 30 marathons I ran in 27 states plus the District of Columbia, there was the first and the only marathon where there was no energy bar/fruit/food of any kind along the route - there were only water (and some Gatorade) stations . The finisher's bag include one 12-ounce bottle of water, one can of beer, a mug, and a one-bite-size pie.
The course has changed over the years, but in 2018 we started and finished at the arch and the course was great and entertaining. We ran by Busch Stadium, AB brewery, tower grove and forest park. It was a little hilly but not bad. The race was very well organized and there were lots of spectators!
Race Tips
Train for hills! It's always in early April so the weather is unpredictable.
The bag drop was a little crazy and so were the port a potties - as most races are. I lived in St. Louis at the time so ubered there and it was a mess because of all the street closures so be prepared if you will be doing the same.
5 /
5 Stars
Half Marathon
By JST about 2018
Review
The runners and volunteers were very friendly. People alone the way were very encouraging and fun. I enjoyed seeing Jackie J. kersee greeting everyone before the race. What I didn't like was the pavement was a little uneven , there were holes in some areas. One of our marathoners/ racer (I am not sure which race she was in) fell and I don't think she finished the race. Also the port potties were disgusting, but I don't think anything can be done about, some people just don't care.
Race Tips
I suggest that you run your race. get with a group that is running or walking your pace and try to keep up with them. If you fall a little behind it's okay as long as you can see them in front of you.
I enjoyed the shuttle although I didn't ride the shuttle after the race. It was very organized and a great option if you don't want to drive and find parking.
5 /
5 Stars
By Dena D. about 2017
Review
St. Louis turns out to be a nice city with lots of touristy things to do. The race has a few hills, over bridges and such. The start corrals were fine--helped to start out at an easy pace. It was cold at the start but warmed up and turned out to be a nice day. My marathon time was a bit slower than I hoped but it was warm and a bit hilly. I'm sure you could still BQ on this course if you're close and focus on that. Finish line was nice--loved the frozen custard pies!!! Nice things to eat at the finish and very nice volunteers. The city seems to embrace the race, which is nice. The beautiful park was great for the finish!
There was a Hard Rock Cafe that allowed to order food to go which was nice.
Take the train (Amtrack) if you can, the station was so close to hotels and downtown, then just uber
2 /
5 Stars
By KS about 2017
Review
Great Wave Start. Awesome starting and finishing location by the arch. Enjoyed running across the MLK and Eads bridge. Forest Park was also quite nice. All of the aid stations were well stocked. I did not like the gels they provided and wish they would have considered offering pieces of banana or some other fruit as an alternative. Still a great race. I have run 8 eight marathons between Sept. 2016 and mid-April 2017. This one ranks 3/8 with Big Cottonwood and the RnR New Orleans ranking higher.
Race Tips
The marathon relay, half marathon and 7k all start at the same time. The beginning of the race is a little crowded at first as a result but, thins out as you progress.
They indicated that parking would be limited near the start line and pushed shuttling or the lightrail. In a pinch it is no problem to park near the start line. I parked at 6th and Washington in a garage that was $5. the same amount that I would have paid for the shuttle service to Union Station.
5 /
5 Stars
By RJC about 2017
Review
New course for 2017 as start and finish were at revitalized Gateway Arch grounds on the riverfront. Runners go over Martin Luther King Bridge into East St. Louis then over the Eads Bridge back into downtown St. Louis for the first couple of miles. Pass Busch Stadium at mile 5, Anheuser-Busch Brewery at mile 7, Tower Grove Park miles 13-14, Missouri Botanical Gardens at mile 15, Forest Park miles 17-20 and then through downtown back to the riverfront for the finish. Crowd support was pretty thin throughout the entire race but those who came out cheered loud.
Pros: Race started at 7am which was nice because St. Louis weather can be very unpredictable this time of year. Full marathoners only had to run 3 miles in Forest Park compared to 6 miles in year's past. Volunteer support was second to none as they had plenty of people handing out water, gels, etc at the aid stations and were very encouraging along the way. Very nice finisher medal and long sleeve quarter zip shirts for marathon and half marathon. Post-race race food was good with Ted Drewes ice cream sandwiches, Pasta House toasted ravioli and Crown Candy chocolate. Parking is limited around Laclede's Landing and Arch grounds so the GO! race organizers offered a shuttle service from Union Station close to the start for $5 which was very convenient.
Cons: Still a pretty hilly course overall. Only had about 20 porta potty's for 16,000 runners so this needs major improvement for 2018. This race is still very much catered toward half marathoners as 4,500+ finished compared to 1,100+ in the full marathon. In my opinion there were not enough pace groups for the full. They had advertised a 3:15 pace group a week before the race but later removed. This meant that the fastest pace group was 3:30 which for a marathon is on the slower end. Most bigger city marathons have a 3:00 or 3:05 pace group because of Boston Marathon qualifying standards. Race organizers must not think there are enough serious marathoners who sign up based on the course profile.
I signed up for this race since I am from St. Louis and wanted to cross Missouri off my marathon state list. Overall a good experience for my first GO! St. Louis Marathon but improvements definitely need to be made to draw more marathoners to this race in the future.
4 /
5 Stars
By Chris M about 2016
Review
The race is well supported. The half-marathon is much larger than the full-probably 4x as many runners. The first half is completely with the half marathon, so it really thins out for the marathon. The support on the course is excellent, there are plenty of well staffed aid stations and 3 gel tables.
Race Tips
The course is not flat. It is almost always rolling, and there are some significant hills that were quite tough in the second half. Mile 24 to 25.5 are basically a long moderate climb which at that point in the race can slow your pace significantly and is psychologically difficult. After that it is down hill to right before the finish.
There is plenty of parking near the start. I parked at Union Station about half a mile from the start. Paid in advance on the web-$5.50.
4 /
5 Stars
By JCW about 2016
Review
Rolling hills makes it a challenging race. There are a lot of flat races out there and this is not one of them, but the hill grades are not terrible either. Several long moderate incline hills (~3% grade). The support is pretty good, trip through forest park gives you lots to look at. There are several turn around points, which I didn't care for.
Race Tips
There are not many flat spots, you are either going up or down between 1-3% most of the course. Most of the race is on roads, plenty of width. There are four different races going on at the same time - a 7k, half, relay and full. Helps the spectator base but also makes pacing a little more challenging because people are moving at different paces throughout the race.
Stay downtown if possible. The parking is not terrible, but there are several hotels close by and they are very accommodating to the runners. Drury Inn offered early breakfast and late check outs for example.
4 /
5 Stars
By DA about 2013
Review
It was a nice sized race, not too big. The first half was the most enjoyable and challenging. After you split from the half marathoners there aren't many spectators or sights. Good post race.
Race Tips
No shade outside a few miles between 14 and 21. The first half hills are the toughest. After mile 16 it is pretty easy.
