The Bottom Feeders: My 10 Least Favorite Marathons

Not one of mine...Odessa marathon...look at that scenery! Sorry LSP!

I'd like to say that every marathon experience has been great in its own special way, and for the most part this is true, but I hate to admit it, I didn't exactly love all of them equally! When making my list of my 10 least favorite marathons I tried to be objective and keep my own personal experiences out of it and judge fairly. So here they are, starting with number 10 and ending with my all time least favorite marathon....

#10. White Rock Marathon, 1993 version.
Technically, the White Rock marathon no longer exists, as it is now called the Dallas marathon. The course has changed considerably since 1993, with the biggest change being that it no longer runs entirely around White Rock lake. As the Dallas marathon continues to make changes to incorporate newer neighborhoods and less of the Lakewood and White Rock Lake areas I will be more inclined to run it once again. To be fair, my main reason for considering this marathon one of my least favorites is mostly subjective. This is where I train! By the time the marathon approaches I am so sick of White Rock Lake and Lakewood! In 1993 I was at the halfway point of the marathon and could see the downtown skyline across the lake. Yes, the finish line was in that horizon. The distance between me and the finish line was all too familiar. I knew exactly where I was and what was around every single corner. Boring! Some people find comfort in familiarity. I guess I don't fall into that category.

 I just ran the Dallas Rock and Roll Half marathon and really enjoyed it, mainly because we ran through the newer neighborhoods of Dallas, including Oak Cliff's Bishop Arts District and the Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge. We also ventured into Kessler Park, a neighborhood I hadn't ran in since the good old days of the "Kessler Classic 10K".  These areas would be great to run in a full marathon someday.

#9. San Diego Rock and Roll, 1998, the first ever Rock and Roll...
They were overwhelmed with over 25,000 runners signed up for their inaugural event. Their water stops were a disaster, and most of their live bands didn't even show up on the course. The course itself, which has changed since then, wasn't the greatest that San Diego has to offer, and even included a make-shift plywood bridge late in the race. We had a great time, regardless, but I'm still not convinced this race is the best it could be. I'm from San Diego, so in my opinion it doesn't accurately capture the soul of the city as I know it.

#8. Vancouver Canada, 2005 version.
This is a beautiful place, but the race organizers get an F for this one. The water stops were few and far between, and in more recent versions of the course they have stopped runners to allow cars to pass at various points, utilizing chip mats to subtract standing times. Seriously? By all means. travel to Vancouver and enjoy its beauty, but don't bother with this race.

#7. Baltimore, Maryland.
If you are running the full marathon be prepared to be ignored and trampled upon by the half marathoners at this event they call a "running festival". The half marathon starts at the exact time the bulk of the full marathoners run by, merging into one another after about 200 yards of fencing. Yeah. It's a pretty course, but the marathon is just an after thought. Be prepared to search for a full marathon medal at the finish, and if you happen to need medical attention you will be out of luck!

At least we were able to find the beer trucks...

#6. San Antonio, 1998 (before Rock and Roll)
It's hard to be objective when your major complaint is that it is almost always too warm and humid in San Antonio for a marathon. The marathon itself wasn't terrible, but there were glitches with mile markers and water stops. It was a pretty small crowd, which isn't the case now, so maybe it's a better experience overall.

#5. Houston
Organizationally, this marathon is top notch. I just didn't find the course interesting and had way too much concrete.

Close my eyes and make it go away!

#4. Santa Barbara
This marathon had a short life, which doesn't surprise me. I ran their inaugural, which was pretty bad, considering what they had to work with. The first half circled remote areas inland around Goleta before heading towards Santa Barbara. The saving grace for the course was the final mile, coming off the ridge; mountains, on the left, ocean on the right, and palm trees lining the street to the finish. They never improved on the course, so it died off I guess.

13 miles and still nowhere near the beach. But saw the goats...TWICE

#3. Tulsa's Route 66 marathon
What I said about Houston applies to this marathon as well. It was one of the most boring courses I have ever ran with way too much concrete. Organizationally it was awesome though.

It wasn't all bad

#2. Eugene Oregon, 2008 version
I was really disappointed in this one. It was one of the smallest marathons I'd run, but I knew it would be small. I expected too much, I think. The year I ran it, the famous Hayward Field was closed off to the runners, and our finish line was in the parking lot of the Autzen Stadium. The course zig zagged through the town of Eugene and along somewhat boring bike paths around town. There was no charm to this one, but Eugene is a fun town.

Seriously, where the hell are my sunglasses?

The last mile into the parking lot. Can you feel the excitement?

...And now for the absolute worst marathon I have ever ran...

#1. The Las Vegas marathon, 1995 version.
I don't think this marathon will ever lose its position as my least favorite marathon EVER. I don't think it can get any worse than being dropped off in the desert and having to run along an abandoned highway for 26 miles, seeing your hotel in the horizon, never moving, forcing you to look down and stare at a yellow line in the road instead. The single turn on the course was about 200 yards from the finish, leaving one half of my body sunburned. At the finish line I had stale popcorn and water from a dixie cup that crumpled in my hand. Over time the crappy finisher's medal has oxidized to where you can't even read what it says. I think it's fitting.

My reminder to do my homework on choosing marathons!

Marathon #16: The San Francisco Marathon, 2005

Favorite bridge in the world

Until I ran the Big Sur marathon two years later the San Francisco marathon was my favorite marathon and is still one of my fondest marathon memories. The funny thing is I signed up for the San Francisco marathon on a whim when I saw the medal at the Vancouver expo. I was already signed up for the Chicago marathon in the fall, so I was really taking a chance, but the medal! Combine that with the opportunity to run across the Golden Gate bridge, my favorite bridge in the world (yes world), whoa. Kristen Smith signed up, and Selma signed up for a half. Back then you could sign up to either run the first half or the second half of the full marathon.She signed up for the first half, which included the bridge. We were going to have a great girl's trip!

Selma, me and Kristin, pre-iPhone camera days!

I have some childhood memories associated with San Francisco. In the early 70's we lived in Oakland and Alameda, but my parents never brought us into  the city. I always assumed it was really far away. One time my uncle visited us and took my sister and I into town and to Fisherman's wharf, where we ate Dungeness crabs and sourdough bread from a sidewalk stand. To me this was "exotic" and wonderful. The city itself was so vastly different from the military housing neighborhood we lived in, or the suburbia of Oakland. So much adventurous potential: Chinatown, Alcatraz, and of course that majestic orange bridge...As an adult I was a bit miffed at my parents when I realized how close to San Francisco we really were, but back then people with kids didn't go places, or at least that's my mother's story...

The course would start and finish along the Embarcadero, where the famous fisherman's wharf is, along with those outdoor sidewalk stands that still exist today. We would run along the waterfront, through Fort Mason, up and over the Golden Gate Bridge, turn around, cross the bridge again, then head out to Golden Gate Park. The Half marathoners would start or finish in the park, as the full marathoners would continue through the park, exiting onto Haight street. We would run through the famous Haight-Ashbury district, popular from the 60's hippie culture, then head towards the south beach marina and the ballpark for the San Francisco Giants. We would finish along the wharf, just past the ball park. I was very excited about this tour of San Francisco!

Kristen and I were very cool about this race. Mentally, we were 100% determined to enjoy the run no matter our pace, since we were both coming off other marathons (me, Vancouver, her, Boston), and this course would be extremely hilly. We would both be running Chicago in a few months, so this was entirely for fun. It's one thing to say you're going to be cool, but we were there. Even in the morning's chaos, which was a ridiculous 5 minute wave start mess, we were calm. Maybe because we actually started at something like 5:20 AM in the dark! We quickly lost each other and were off on our own, along the Embarcadero, lit up with neon signs. Once we hit Fort Mason and entered the bay area it was noticeably darker, combined with a very thick fog. It was a bit eerie, especially when the occasional fog horn would blow. It grew lighter as we got closer to the bridge, and in the distance I could see the "ants" climbing up the hill to the bridge, our most significant climb of the race. The reality that I was about to climb up to and run on my favorite bridge in the world hit me and I got very emotional. It was one of those moments that I continue to have in other marathons that's hard to describe. It's mostly gratitude, being in the present, being at peace, thanking God that I am there and able to be a part of it. They are fleeting moments, so I take them in as much as I can, then get on to business. And as for reality, well the reality of running along the bridge truly ended up being the thing I liked least about the marathon! They only sectioned off one lane of the road to accommodate both directions of runners, which made for a lot of elbowing and jockeying around slower runners. Every quarter mile or so there were large metal grids that were wet and slick. They were too wide to jump over, and as I cautiously ran over them I could feel my feet slide. The biggest disappointment of all though, was the fact that the bridge was entirely ensconced in fog. All I saw were giant orange cables rising up into the fog! Sadly enough I was very happy to get off that bridge of madness and onward to serene moments once again.

There were glimpses of the Pacific Ocean as we ran along Lincoln Boulevard towards Golden Gate Park, which were stunning. We ran through the Golden Gate Park in its entirety, seeing all of the sights in there, such as the Rose Garden and the Japanese Tea Garden. As we exited the park Ghirardelli chocolate sponsors were handing out chocolate covered raisins. We hit Haight street, which was really cool, but quieter then expected until I realized it was only about 8:00 AM!

As we headed back towards the bay side I found myself picking up the pace, as the last 10K was downhill to flat. It was surreal how good I was feeling, as it was something I had not really experienced before. Later I looked at my splits and noticed it had been my fastest last 10K in a marathon! When I crossed the line Kristin was standing there with a big smile on her face. She had just ran her fastest marathon! My finishing time was 3:51 AGAIN, just like Vancouver!

a happy finish, but aren't they all?

It's actually a coaster, but I wouldn't dare

I compared today's map to the course I ran and it looks almost exactly the same, along with the options to run either the first or second half of the course for a half marathon. Also, there's a picture of runners going across the bridge with a full lane utilized now. I'd love to go back and run a half marathon, but will have a really hard time deciding which half! At any rate, I am always up for going to San Francisco, as it is truly one of my favorite cities.