Aspen Valley Marathon Reviews

  Beautiful and fast marathon!

By JD about 2024

Review

I personally love running this marathon and the finish area atmosphere was so fun!

I ran the half marathon, I found that the race was well organized. Shuttles worked perfectly and dropped us off at the start of the half. The race started on time and the course was well marked.

Food options for athletes this year were great. They offered us fruit, cookies, sandwiches and a variety of drinks.

This is an absolutely STUNNING race to run (this is my second time), sometimes it's hard not to get distracted by how beautiful the scenery is.

I found that the staff at the start were super involved and talked to everyone, everyone was super excited and we cheered on the first marathoners that went past us.

Race Tips

Be aware that altitude is real! I struggled at the beginning but was able to find my pace eventually. The fact that the race is mostly downhill helps A LOT!

Logistical Tips (Hotels, Restaurants, Parking, Discounts, etc.)

If you are someone that struggles with altitude allow yourself an extra day or two to acclimate. That helped me this time. Buses and shuttles are great and easy to find.

  High Altitude marathon

By H B about 2024

Review

Chaos at the packet pickup. Short window of 3 hours to pickup night before. Not ready and only 4 volunteers and one apparently learning on the fly. So that was a bad start. Tank top way to small, medal kinda basic. After all that it's ok. I personally felt the altitude, just be warned. Nice course and scenic. Decent finish line experience. Pricey for what you get.

Race Tips

I found the altitude affected me. Its probably various degrees for other out of towners. I stayed near the finish and mornings shuttle worked well. Early start to beat the heat

Logistical Tips (Hotels, Restaurants, Parking, Discounts, etc.)

Stayed at Basalt mountain inn 5 minutes from finish

  Would definitely do again!

By SB about 2023

Review

I had the best time running the Aspen Valley Marathon. The organization was phenomenal and the course was beautiful. The after-party was also so much fun. I can't wait to do this race again.

Race Tips

Dress wisely because mornings are cold but it warms up a lot.

  Fast Course

By BH about 2019

Review

This was a low key, smaller race. The course itself was very fast and the gradual downhill easily negated any effect of the altitude. I ran this race in 2019 and the last 6 miles were sunny but really not hot - and I'm saying that as someone who is usually very heat sensitive. Beware mile 24 though - I actually went off course 0.5 miles because the course was poorly marked. Every single aid station had honey stinger gels, and some had waffles and fruits. There was a very nice salad at the end with tons of veggie, protein and fruit options.

  

By Kate about 2014

Review

Beautiful course, nice gradual downhill for the first 20 miles.

Race Tips

Be prepared for the last 6 miles - it is no longer downhill and it is very exposed, so it can get hot - especially as the day gets later.

Logistical Tips (Hotels, Restaurants, Parking, Discounts, etc.)

Small, low-key race, not really too many logistics to worry about.