It's a competitor group race. That should say all you need to know.

/thread

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I did it this year. Great race, there is a hill you go up that is ridiculous�.but short. It's when you are coming out of the trail in the park. Other than that, it felt more downhill overall than uphill (aka�good course to go fast on). I stayed at the downtown and it was an easy warm up jog (or walk) to the start. Well run race, getting transportation back to the starting area afterwards was so-so. We called a cab, but I think there were buses. Registration at the armory was pretty inconvenient (cab there, and back). It did sell out, but I do not remember when�thinking it may have been 4-5 months out.

It did not sell out last year. I was a volunteer at packet pickup. We were given instructions to send people who wanted to register, during packet pickup, to a table where they can sign up.

Public transportation (i.e., the subway/Metro) will put you next to the start line and the finish line.

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My marathon PR is "under three, high twos. I had a two hour and fifty-something."

The Armory is right next to the subway. You didn't have to take a cab. The vast majority of people took the subway to packet pickup. The Marine Corps Marathon uses the same Armory for packet pickup. Again, the vast majority of people that run that race take the subway to packet pickup. You step off the subway escalator and your are literally right next to the Armory.

Edit: "getting transportation back to the starting area afterwards was so-so." Are you freaken kidding me? The start area is right next to all the Smithsonian Museums and the Washington Monument. It is the mecca of all tourist activities in DC. Not sure where you were trying to get to, but there are 5 different metro/subway lines that skirt that area, two of which puts you right at the Smithsonians.

Damn tourist! ;)

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My marathon PR is "under three, high twos. I had a two hour and fifty-something."

Wish I would have known about the subway, but didn't�yep�a tourist. Regarding getting transportation back to the start�I was referring to the buses at the finish line. I did not use one so I am not sure how convenient (wait times) they were.

Have raced it several times (home town race). No, registration was down in 2014 from 2013, so I think a sell out unlikely. The course is generally flat and fast. The hill out of Rock Creek park is steep and short as others have mentioned. Look on the course map for where you turn right on North Capitol Street (around the mile 9 mark) it is downhill 97% of the way from there to home, giving you a speed boost right about where you need it the most. All the Competitor Group crap is easily ignored if you want to, but it does make the race a bit pricey (but not compared to the costs of travel in DC, which can get really pricey).

If you're on the fence I would say go for it. One of the things I never take for granted about my hometown is that DC really is a good place to hold a road race.

Good half-marathon, but they start the marathon at the same time and it's obvious it's an after thought. After all the half-marathon people separate for full marathon people, the course gets SPARSE - very few bands and race support beyond 13.1. I guess they think cause there's less people doing it, less people will care. I was just so disappointed. Some tables actually ran out of cups after the half-marathon point.

Wait...are you telling me...competitor group half asses something and is probably only doing it to make money and really doesn't give a damn about the user experience...well i'll be damned, see the first post in this thread from...guess who...

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I live in suburban Maryland and agree that packet pickup was a pain in the ass, but that because it was in DC during rush hour and I live far enough our that I had to drive. I raced in 2013 and was able to register in February. I think registration was still open until a few days before the race, but I may be wrong - I wasn't watching it.

The course, as most have said, is a net downhill, with some short steep hills and one very steep bastard coming off Rock Creek Parkway and onto Calvert Street around mid-way though. I haven't run the Marathon course, but I've heard the it gets a little lonely. My only complaint was that even though I seeded myself relatively aggressively, I was still held up for the first mile or two. There are a number of tight turns before mile 2 that got SUPER crowded. Once I got to the out and back over the bridge there was plenty of space.

The one think I love about racing in DC is that I can almost always find a decent hotel for a reasonable price within walking distance of the start. This was 20-25k people and there were still plenty of options.

John

Do you mean that packet pick up is the day before the race? That would be a royal pain in the ass. I live in Baltimore, so a Friday pick up means I'll have to get a hotel room.

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Brian
“Eat and Drink, spin the legs and you’re going to effin push (today).” A Howe

Yup - in the DC armory by RFK Stadium. I live up in Frederick, so I had to go around the beltway to get there. Coming from Baltimore you can shoot down 95 and the BW Parkway, so you're going against traffic most of the time. Biggest pain was that it closed at some ludicrously early time like 6pm. It was a PAIN to get there by 6 and I made it right as they were closing. There are other options for packet pickup the week before, but nothing day-of. To be fair, this race has 20k runners, so day-of packet pickup would be pretty difficult.

John

Have ran this race twice. Never had many issues with packet pickup or race day travel (I live in Baltimore). There are some Metro stations a couple stops from the finish but still out of the race congestion. And I usually duck out of work early on Thursday to get my packet.
Two big problems that I have with the race but still for some reason go back. The lines for the bathrooms before the race are RIDICULOUS!! This year, I ended up just starting the race and running 6-7 miles before using the bathroom, and in 2013 I just waited in the bathroom line after the race started. Went from Corral 2 to like Corral 16, they also put the porta-potties in the start, I actually saw one or two people get hit by the porta-potty doors as they were trying to run past. Second thing is the aid stations after you hit 13.1. For me, they don't have enough after this point. I don't think I need more fluid than any other person but I was dragggingg because of the lack of stations for the end of the course.
It does get very sparse after 13.1. I almost thought I went the wrong direction in 2013 because there was 0 people around me for the first straight away. That is not fault to the race though, just who signs up and where I am in regards to other runners at that point.
Race swag was good for me. Liked both the shirt and medal.