Philadelphia Marathon Reviews & Race Reports
90 reviews from runners who've completed this race
Reviews & Race Reports
Course Challenges — The course features rolling hills, especially between miles 10 and 20, which caught many off guard. A few runners noted that the wind was particularly brutal on the out-and-back section along Kelly Drive, making pacing difficult.
Crowd Support — The crowd energy is a highlight, especially in South Philly and along the downtown stretch. Spectators were out in force, cheering loudly and even offering refreshments, which helped many push through tough moments.
Nutrition and Hydration — Pay attention to your fueling strategy. Several runners struggled with cramps and stomach issues after not managing their gels and hydration well, especially in the second half of the race. Make sure to practice your nutrition plan during training to avoid surprises on race day.
Struggled with hills after training on flat routes
Miles 10-13 are moderately hilly and over the course of this period I could feel my quads getting beat up and my stride tightening. I trained on very flat routes, and I think part of my problem was getting beat up by the elevation changes. When I got to Kelly drive for the long out-and-back to Manayunk I knew that I was going to be in survival mode.
Debut marathon, executed race plan perfectly, hit goal time.
I was super happy to make it to the turnaround because it meant I had executed the first 3 steps of my plan as I had hoped. Nothing had gone wrong, I was perfectly teed up to see what I had left for the straight shot down Kelly Drive to the finish line - the real challenge. A combination of the downhill coming out of Manayunk and seeing my friend again did cause me to get a little overly excited and drop a 5:20 21st mile.
Overcame early gel mishap to achieve sub-3 finish
The Philadelphia Marathon was honestly perfect. The weather was amazing, the crowd support was off the charts, the course was fun, and the atmosphere was wonderful. Having my family with me and running in memory of my mom made the entire experience that much more special. This was probably peak marathon experience for me; it's hard to imagine something topping it.
Perfect weather and aggressive negative split strategy paid off
Weather was absolutely perfect: started out ~35 F and got up to ~45 F by the time I finished, partially cloudy, very little wind. I run super hot so absolutely love this temp. Around 19 I popped out of the pack on the downhill of a roller and to get some space for a fluid station and decided it was time to just let it go and see what I had left. Legs were definitely hurting but no cramps and it felt like what I had trained for so I focused on staying with or passing people and shut my brain off.
Felt fresh in super shoes, thanks to the Manayunk crowd boost
Weather: High 30s, so I wore shorts, long sleeve, hat, and socks as gloves (ditched hat/gloves mid-race). First race in super shoes (AlphaFly)—game changer! Legs stayed fresh and I think this was a major reason why. Took gels with water every 30 min and electrolytes at stations where I wasn't taking a gel.