Laura G's Staging Area

When I heard about this race, I thought that there was no way it could be as great as everyone says. I am sure it would be great, but it would be like other marathons. I was definitely wrong.

This has got to be the most beautiful marathon course in the United States. From the start line where you are surrounded by trees to when you eventually get to see the ocean for most of the race, every view was stunning. This race is also just as difficult as people say. There are hills. At first they’re very lovely and you feel your confidence increasing with every little one you run up. Then you spot the over 2 mile climb from a distance and you realize the magnitude of what you are in for. But the best thing is, it all feels manageable. They’re not unduly steep, just and inevitable climb to the top. However, after you complete the climb to Hurricane Point about half-way through the race, your legs will be tired. Even small hills feel like big ones then! The other difficult part of the race is the camber of the road, especially as you get to the later miles (18+), you are working different muscles and it can make them hurt or seize up in interesting ways. This eases towards the very end, but it can make the ‘hitting the wall’ miles very difficult to get through.

Because you are on highway 1, there’s not many people cheering you on, but that made the experience almost zen-like. It was you (and other runners) and the beautiful scenery. There is entertainment on the course, the most famous being the drummers and pianist. The aid stations are plentiful, but I feel like there should have been a lot more towards the end when everyone is suffering the most. I did not like the Precision fuel electrolyte solution on the course. I know this sounds weird, but one of the things that had the most impact on me were the volunteers handing out the huge strawberries. I nearly cried when I ate mine because it was so sweet and so desperately needed at that point. Another nice touch is the mile signs are all unique and special with funny artwork. I really felt like I was part of something special.

I finished in my goal time, but this race requires a lot out of you psychologically to get through the pain and fatigue (even compared to other marathons I’ve run). But even after all of that, I immediately thought that I would run it again given the chance.

My only complaint was my corral (corral B) was so crowded! You are bussed up there very early and you have over an hour to wait before the start, but the enclosed space was so small that you could barely sit down. The lines for the portapotties went outside of the corral. It was very uncomfortable.

The course was surprisingly good. You get to see a little bit of downtown Chattanooga (in the pre-dawn) and running over the Tennessee River never gets old. I really liked running along south Chickamunga creek. The rain made the course a little difficult and slippery, especially when running on wooden planks. The hills are plentiful, but they are gradual. The mile markers are small and I missed quite a few. My Garmin ended up at 27 miles and the race wasn’t big enough for that to be accounted for by weaving around people.

It’s a smaller race, so it doesn’t have some of the perks of larger races. Packet pickup is outside with a few tents set up with some merchandise. I wasn’t too impressed with the course finish. There was water and bananas, which is fine for a shorter race, but I usually want something more after a marathon.