Event and Race Reviews This is a growing collection of Race and Event Reviews. All of these reviews were written by our members and represent each author's experiences and opinions only. Back to Events Listing
Towpath Marathon
(Cuyahoga Valley National Park, Ohio)
Author: dgrant
Date: 2005-07-27
I ran this small marathon in fall of 2004. It is one of those little, organic events that seems to be put on by a local run club. It is a point-to-point race through a river valley park south of Cleveland. It gets its name from the fact that the racecourse is literally the old four-foot-wide canal towpath.
The surface is mostly crushed stone. It basically seemed like an old sidewalk that hadn't been resurfaced in 100 years. It was actually quite knee-friendly. It is very much a flat, fast course, and since it is run through a forested park, there is lots of shade to stay cool.
The organization is very minimalist. There isn't really a conventional expo, just a packet pick-up. The aid stations were quite good but basic. There are very few fans, but that is expected of a race with fewer than 500 runners.
I would probably only recommend this race to somebody who was in this area, or somebody who wants absolutely nothing more than a very fast course to BQ. Unfortunately this is a race that seems like it could cease to exist from year to year, because of the very low registration and the lack of a major sponsor. Also, Ohio seems to be saturated with marathon events.
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