Atlantic City Marathon

I enjoyed this race more than I expected. Everything was well organized, the course was well marked (you should still study the map ahead of time), plenty of police officers at key street crossing points and medics on bicycles throughout the course. It was a warm day with a touch of humidity, but I never encountered a water station that had no water or Gatorade (I finished in 4:33). The finish line was disappointing. I didn't see the two ladies giving out medals (or they missed me) and I had to go back and take a medal off their table myself. Food was hard to find (it's not right after the finish line). If it wasn't for the short line at the massage tables, I would have spent less than 5 minutes in the finish area, and most of that would have been spent looking for the medals and food. Not many marathons in New Jersey to choose from, but it's got enough unique traits that I would recommend it to others.

As a previous reviewer wrote, you can arrive 15 minutes prior to the start and you'll be fine (that's cutting it a bit close for me). Hills are at 1.2, 2.1 (exiting the tunnel), and 3.4. All flat after that. Running through the connector tunnel was an unexpected cool part. I had no problem running on the boardwalk, either with nails sticking up or with people walking around. Very little crowd support from mile 10 thru about 17.5 I noticed an uptick in people when making the turn into the out and back around 18, but don't expect wall-to-wall people by any stretch. Those who were out were great. The spectator friendly weather certainly helped.

Logistically, this might have been the easiest of the 20 marathons I've run once I got to AC. I spent more time figuring out how to get to AC from my home in Boston (Acela to PHI and then NJ Transit to AC) than I did on race day planning. Once at the AC train station, I took a FREE Jitney shuttle to Bally's and arrived at the expo 10 minutes before it opened on the first day. I stayed at a one-room condo I found on AirBnB in the Atlantic Palace building right on the Boardwalk just a half mile from the Start/Finish. Appropriately it was on the 26th floor!

Overall my least favorite marathon of the five that I've run. Starting corral was pretty small, 2024 finisher field was under 1,000. Heat was pretty rough, plan for a slow down if it's not chilly at the start. Crowd support isn't all that great, although the groups that are there are good.

The last portion of the course through the neighborhoods are pretty monotonous, took a ton of mental effort to keep pushing through that area. The finish was very anticlimactic. Course support could use some work. Volunteers had both gatorade and water at times which made it difficult to get what you needed at some stops.

This course is very flat. The boardwalk can be dangerous, there are screws sticking out that can catch shoes. I didn't have to worry about anything else on course, parts of it are live and regular people are just wandering around the boardwalk. By the finish on the full the actual racers are so thinned out that it's a non issue. Start to maybe mile 2 was only a little crowded and then it thinned out rapidly. Easy to catch tangents.

The Claridge Hotel is atrocious. Elevators did not work for the majority of my stay so I had to climb 17 flights the evening prior to the race and then descend those prior to the start, not a huge deal but for 250 bucks a night I expect things to work. Also the city is filthy, absolutely lives up to its reputation of being a scummy place. Parking at Bally's or Claridge garage was super convenient and only cost about $20.

We had perfect weather in 2024 which always helps but I think this race would have been great even if the weather was less than ideal. With all the hotels right on the boardwalk it is easy to find accommodations, packet pickup was easy the day before in a ballroom in the casino. Before the race runners stood inside the casino to keep warm and use REAL bathrooms. Less of the course was on the boardwalk than I expected looking at the map (the boardwalk ends and we ran one block in on a street parallel to the ocean. This was a good thing since the boardwalk was a bit uncertain in places. There were lots of water stops and great volunteers. Less crowd support than you would expect given the area but a very pleasant run along the seashore. The only "hills" were overpasses and underpasses/tunnels in the first section before the boardwalk and were easy especially with fresh legs. I'm too old for PRs, but if you are not, this would be a great place to get it done. Only issue i could foresee another year is wind which is always a risk for these coastal runs, the good news there is you go both directions so if you had a headwind, you would also get a tailwind.

I didn't see post race food - not sure how I missed it, I saw others with bagels and bananas in the elevator later so it was there. I got medal, water and powerade at finish but then I was just out on the boardwalk with the public. Not a problem as there are many food choices on the boardwalk and in the casino.

There are no surprises in this race. Even pacing seemed to work fine as there were no big hills or weather impediments. Do watch the boards closely while you are running on the boardwalk. There were areas that were new and great, others had loose boards. I caught my toe once and nearly fell but it was around a water stop so I looked up from my feet to grab a cup and must have missed one poking up. I saw a few other runners stumble but no falls. I am not particularly sensitive to cant, but if you are there are places where it is pretty sharp. Usually there is some portion of the boardwalk that is pretty flat, however, you just might have to share it with the general public and do a bit more swerving.

No need to come extra early. Plenty of parking in hotels parking structures close by. If you stay in the hotel you can literally come down 15 minutes before it starts and be fine.

The finish line was okay, bagels and bananas, gatorade and water. The medals were very nice, one of my favorite in the 54 marathons I've run. Volunteers were very nice and tried to encourage us. Finisher shirts were nice 1/4 zip and different for half and full which was nice. Unlike many races, they didn't seem to just cater to the half marathoners--a welcome change.

There are quite a few miles on the boardwalk. Most people didn't seem to mind but I tripped twice while walking it the day before the race, due to screws poking up. I had to be very careful running it. Unlike other years, it was not windy, which was nice. It did get a bit warm though.

Resorts hotel looked nice and the restaurant 'Breadsticks' was good. I stayed at Ballys and I don't recommend! The only bonus was the close proximity but any other hotel on the boardwalk would probably be better. It was just old and all the people that worked there were cranky.

I ran in the AC Marathon for the first time in 2018. It was only my second marathon overall, so I can't compare it to any big/major events. I found the ACM to be well organized, easy to get to, and fairly enjoyable. That it's not a huge hassle to get to the starting line (just walk up), and that you can stay warm in the casino next door made it stress free on race day.

It's very flat. The biggest hills are the highway overpass ramps that you cross. Early on, the route goes along the highway and behind a couple of marina district casinos, which is pretty boring ("ohh, an employee parking lot! yay..."). But at this point the pack hasn't separated out too much, so at least you're with other runners. After that, it's mostly residential areas plus the boardwalk. Sadly, a lot of the time you can't see the ocean from the boardwalk, thanks to the protective sand dunes blocking the view.

Half marathoners start at the same time as the full marathoners. After the halfers split off, it gets a little lonely, as by then the marathon runners have spread out, and it's past the casino areas so there aren't even any tourists. After this point, I mostly saw people walking their dogs, and few very (but enthusiastic) people specifically cheering runners. Crowd support is sparse but the aid volunteers were great.

Many of the streets on the marathon course are not fully closed to traffic but have the shoulders blocked off for runners and intersections controlled by police to allow runners through. Be mindful the coastal winds could be strong.

The race start/finish line and finishing area is right next to Bally's and casinos on the boardwalk. It's very easy to get to, so you could stay at most any hotel in the area (though within walking distance would be advisable). I stayed at Resorts which is further up the boardwalk, and it only took about 10 minutes to walk there.

Because it's a smallish race, there's just one starting corral and you don't have to arrive super early. The bag check was a small area nearby -- I had absolutely no delays. There aren't any special security perimeters go to through. A big plus is that you can hang out and prep inside of Bally's, staying warm and using the restrooms, while you wait for the starting event.

Good: Organization, food/water, entertainment, flat course.

Bad: Windy, double loop at southern end, can be monotonous, gear check line was LONG It's not a large race, and it is a very friendly setting.

Casinos provide discounted parking.