For years, the Steamtown Marathon has been a popular fall destination race for runners seeking PRs and BQs. The marathon course features a full net elevation drop of 970 feet.
The course may be downhill and fast, but runners should be cautious about going out too fast in the early downhill miles. Also, there are three hills in the last 3 miles that can be difficult if the early miles were too aggressive and fatigued your quads.
The Steamtown Marathon was the 94th largest marathon in the U.S. last year and was the 84th largest in 2023.
Last year 18.6% of finishers qualified for the Boston Marathon and 18.2% of runners qualified for Boston in 2023.
This gives the Steamtown Marathon the 60th highest percentage of Boston Marathon qualifiers in the U.S. last year and the 67th highest percentage in 2023.
Its Course Score of 100.98 ranks it as the 27th fastest marathon course in the U.S. and the 3rd fastest course in Pennsylvania.
The typical race time temperature and humidity levels are within the ideal range for optimal marathon performance. This, coupled with the Course Score, gives the Steamtown Marathon a PR Score of 100.98. This PR Score ranks it as the 22nd fastest marathon in the U.S. and the 1st fastest in Pennsylvania.
Learn more about PR Scores and Course Scores on the FAQ page.
Steamtown Marathon Elevation Chart
Max Elevation: 1697 feet (517m) Min Elevation: 712 feet (217m)
After running Boston and CIM I cannot emphasize enough how amazing it is to be able to chill inside before the race. (And also have a drop bag so you can stay warm in sweats until go time.) The aid stations are solid although only two gel stations was a little sparse (bring your own as the first is passed ten miles) and I didn't know if there was gel till in was right on top of the kids holding them.
Course itself is awesome for 22 miles. Some rollers but no big deal and for the most part all gentle down. The trail portion was no problem, I actually liked it. At 22 there is a zig zag that no one warned about that kills momentum especially if you're in high stack shoes.
The hill at 23 is just as bad as everyone says. Hard to take advantage of the down after it so the race is pretty much a fight the last 5k.
That said, overall experience amazing at this race. Absolutely train on ups and down alike. Course is a 10/10 through 22 then maybe 4/10 but still an 8/9 overall.
Not sure if I'd do again but I would consider it.
Also, got a cheap(ish) hotel 10 min from bus drop the night before the race. Packet pickup took a minute. The logistics surrounding the race itself are top notch.
Race Tips
The best performance I saw were definitely people holding back early. Two HUGE mistakes I witnessed were not running tangents, forget the camber it's not that bad, run the tangents, and attacking the earlier hills. I had a pack leave me at about 9 when the hills started. Aside from a couple very shrewd runners, I got them all back. Your pace should absolutely slow a little the second ten miles.
Bring your gear with you to the start and have it at the drop bag at the finish so you aren't without anything you need immediately post race. It was pouring shortly after I finished and was so happy I had full sweats and rain jacket as soon as I finished.
Shane P's review of 2024 Steamtown Marathon.
5 /
5 Stars
Review
Loved the course beauty, organization and fast downhill. Scranton was charming and EVERYONE was sooo nice. Post race amenities were great.
Race Tips
Not really a complaint because a race should be a challenge but the uphills in the last 3-4 miles was really tough when leg muscles were shredded for fast downhill pace. Be advised! If I do this race again, I will focus more and speed and strength training more like 2-3 months out instead of one which I usually do. I did qualify for Boston, NY and Chicago with this one so it is really good for that but the day after my legs are more sore than any race I have ever run in the post-race recovery.
A shuttle to the ANZ hotel, would have been great. I zombie walked 1.5 miles shivering to it. By the way, the ANZ hotel, as a value hotel, was fantastic! Super friendly staff and allowed ALL runners a late checkout to 1300. I actually checked out at like 1330 when the hotel manager insisted that I take a long hot shower before my drive back to Virginia.
Sisyphus 's review of 2024 Steamtown Marathon.
4 /
5 Stars
Review
After running Boston and CIM I cannot emphasize enough how amazing it is to be able to chill inside before the race. (And also have a drop bag so you can stay warm in sweats until go time.) The aid stations are solid although only two gel stations was a little sparse (bring your own as the first is passed ten miles) and I didn't know if there was gel till in was right on top of the kids holding them.
Course itself is awesome for 22 miles. Some rollers but no big deal and for the most part all gentle down. The trail portion was no problem, I actually liked it. At 22 there is a zig zag that no one warned about that kills momentum especially if you're in high stack shoes.
The hill at 23 is just as bad as everyone says. Hard to take advantage of the down after it so the race is pretty much a fight the last 5k.
That said, overall experience amazing at this race. Absolutely train on ups and down alike. Course is a 10/10 through 22 then maybe 4/10 but still an 8/9 overall.
Not sure if I'd do again but I would consider it.
Also, got a cheap(ish) hotel 10 min from bus drop the night before the race. Packet pickup took a minute. The logistics surrounding the race itself are top notch.
Race Tips
The best performance I saw were definitely people holding back early. Two HUGE mistakes I witnessed were not running tangents, forget the camber it's not that bad, run the tangents, and attacking the earlier hills. I had a pack leave me at about 9 when the hills started. Aside from a couple very shrewd runners, I got them all back. Your pace should absolutely slow a little the second ten miles.
Bring your gear with you to the start and have it at the drop bag at the finish so you aren't without anything you need immediately post race. It was pouring shortly after I finished and was so happy I had full sweats and rain jacket as soon as I finished.
MM's review of 2024 Steamtown Marathon.
3 /
5 Stars
Review
This marathon is advertised as downhill, but there are a lot of hills, especially in the second half. It rained the most of race so the trail section was muddy and slippery. I lost momentum there, and struggled the rest of the race because of the hills (did I mention hills?). Also there were many turns that seemed kind of unnecessary. Great volunteers, and being able to stay indoor before the start was great.
Stayed near the finish. The buses to the start area were great.
RTM's review of 2019 Steamtown Marathon.
5 /
5 Stars
Review
RUN THIS RACE
Everything about the race is as good as it gets. Organization, hospitality, course, volunteers, you name it. The community really gets behind the race and it leads the front page of the newspaper before and after the race.
Steamtown is my favorite marathon after Boston and this was my 15th overall.
The start is awesome as you are greeted by the students and cheerleaders from Forest City HS. You get to stay with inside the HS to keep warm in prior to the race, sit down etc...That’s a big bonus since it makes the pre-race wait so much easier.
Crowd support is solid through must of the course that is on roads. The crowd going up the hill at 24 definitely helps you out. The spectator support in the town of Carbondale around mile 9 is great.
The course is fast and really nice. It's pretty running along the river and the downhill grade is perfect except for a few tiny portions.
Finish line is great with more variety of food then you could possibly want or need. Parking is free and easy around the finish line so it's easy to get to the busses in the morning and to retrieve your car at the end.
Post race party at night is a nice touch. It's in a cool old Masonic temple with free drinks and food for EVERYONE, not just racers so bring your family and friends.
The only cons are it's kinda tough to get to Scranton if you can’t drive. The course has a very steep downhill near at about 1 mile but it's only for one block. There is also about a half mile section in mile 19 that is an unpaved trail that I thought was kinda rocky and didn't particularly enjoy. Other than that it was perfect all around.
Race Tips
The hill at 24 is real but it's manageable. I didn't look at my mile splits after mile 2 and just ran easy on how I felt and I ended up negative splitting the course by about 2.5 minutes. There was zero wait for busses, we literally just showed up and got on one and off we went.
