Wicked Fast Marathon & Half Marathon Poconos (fka Jack & Jill Poconos)
Lehighton, PA
- Marathon, Half Marathon
- Trail (Unpaved)
- Official race website
Like its sister race, Jack and Jill Washington, cruise down a ‘harder’ packed trail with a -1% consistent net drop starting Lehigh Gorge State Park, hugging the Lehigh River, down the D & L trail, finishing just above Jim Thorpe. This WICKED-FAST course is destined to be an East Coast … MORE
Local Historical Weather (Sep 12):
| 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | |
| H (°F) | 78 | 79 | 80 | 77 | 78 |
| L (°F) | 53 | 53 | 59 | 64 | 58 |
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good course to PR
This race took a bit of planning, and I enjoyed my time in the area. I don't regret choosing this race to cross off PA, but I wouldn't do it … MORE
This race took a bit of planning, and I enjoyed my time in the area. I don’t regret choosing this race to cross off PA, but I wouldn’t do it again. The course is very pretty and it’s a peaceful run, but there’s definitely room for improvement in the race production. We flew into Philly and spent a few hours there before driving to Lehigh to get bib/shirt at a sporting good store which was the finish line of race. The shirt is nice, and the medal is okay. There was no expo. You park in a big field behind finish line and walk to the buses for shuttle to starting line. The first problem is the approximately 6 porta-potties they had were at the finish line which was pretty far from the buses. It would have made more sense to have at least 3 or 4 where people were gathering for the buses. I had to run back to the buses only to find the last bus did not have enough room for about 8-10 runners. So we waited about 20 minutes for a bus to finally pick us up. Once we got to start, there were no porta-potties. They had a small bathroom that was disgusting. the smell was enough to make you sick. The line was obviously long so had to run to start line. Everything felt rushed due to the problem with the bus and lack of porta-potties. The actual running portion of the race was so nice that it made up for any prior issues, but they definitely need to tweak some things for future races. Enjoyed the town of Jim Thorpe after the race and then had a good time in Philly before flying out the next day, so all in all it was an enjoyable short trip to PA.
Never received finisher medal
The marathon itself was amazing: beautiful, shaded and net-downhill. As a Slow AF runner I was ecstatic to finish in 5:30, a full hour ahead of the cut-off time. In … MORE
The marathon itself was amazing: beautiful, shaded and net-downhill. As a Slow AF runner I was ecstatic to finish in 5:30, a full hour ahead of the cut-off time.
In fact, my happiness with my time led to me not even realizing st first that there was no medal at the finish(!)
The next day, I went to their site to peek photos of the race and saw there many photos of finishers being given a medal. Perhaps the person had taken a quick break at the 5:30 mark? I gave the organziers the benefit of the doubt and sent a request to have my medal mailed if they hadn’t run out of them.
And this began my futile effort to receive the medal I had paid for and earned. Initally, the organzier, Lee Ann asked for my address and I provided it on 10/14. I waited ~3 weeks and, having not received it, I sent another email asking for an ETA. Twenty days later, Lee Ann responded (Nov 20 email): ” I have put an order in to ship you a medal, but right now there are boxes and boxes, and we will ship it out as soon as we load our next race and can get to the medals. Sorry for the delay and we appreciate your patience with this matter.” Sounds hopeful, right? Wrong. Not wanting to be a pain (but still absolutely wanting my medal) I waited until January 31st to send yet another follow up email, to which the reply was radio silence. Now here it is, closing in on 7 months.
It’s a shame because the course was a pleasure to run, yet getting blown off by the organizer like this gives me no choice but to not recommend this race.
Lovely course
Having done other downhill races such as Mount Charleston, Utah Valley, and Pocatello— I was hopeful this one would be less quad busting. I barely noticed the downhill, except for … MORE
Having done other downhill races such as Mount Charleston, Utah Valley, and Pocatello— I was hopeful this one would be less quad busting.
I barely noticed the downhill, except for the fact that Miles 10 to 20 just flew by. My quads the day after the race are not as trashed us after the western downhill courses. The footing on the Canal path was excellent, and the dirt/gravel nature of it was easy on the joints.
At the start, there were plenty of porta potties while we were waiting after our bus ride. Thankfully, there was also a water fountain I could use to fill up my handheld water bottle.
I would recommend bringing a handheld water bottle, especially for the back of the Packers because it gets hot towards the end or at least it did in 2025. The water station situation was irregular. I would say again comparing to Utah Valley, which water stations exactly every 2 miles, this race seemed a little haphazard. The volunteers were helpful filling up my handheld.
As I mentioned, the course was lovely. It reminded me of the New England Green River marathon in that there was a river right by it and shade. The last few miles were flatter and hotter, but the trees were still there just a little more sparse. the after party was in a sunny area. There was only like half a mile that was not on the D and L path.
There was a little out and back miles one to three, so we got to see other runners. We were all feeling good at that point and then it was all downhill starting at mile three.
I really enjoyed this race and it’s an easy drive from Northern Virginia.
Perfect path, scenery, weather and race!
If I imagined what the perfect marathon course for me would be, this is it. Slightly descending, covered on a wide trail with a canopy of trees, the river just … MORE
If I imagined what the perfect marathon course for me would be, this is it. Slightly descending, covered on a wide trail with a canopy of trees, the river just below, in 65 degree weather.
I did not do well because I am running too many marathons consecutively, but if I wanted to PR, I would take time off and prep for this one.
Perfect.