1. God's Country Marathon - http://www.godscountrymarathon.com
2. Pike's Peak Marathon - http://www.pikespeakmarathon.org/
3. Steamtown Marathon - http://www.steamtownmarathon.com/
4. Kennett Square Run - http://www.kennettrun.net/
5. Ironman Lake Placid - http://www.ironmanusa.com/
So, that the list and here is the reasoning behind it.
The God's Country Race is very unique, it is the only 'real' race that I have run where you can have your own sag wagon throughout the entire race! Most, if not all, long races are run on public roads and highways, winding around the city or through the hills, but usually the roads are open only to runners. In some races, like the Philly Marathon, your friends might be able to catch a view of you from 3 or 4 different spots as you loop around, but in the God's Country Marathon it is possible for your 'sag' team to actually follow you throughout the entire race! My wife will leapfrog down the road as I run, one year she was driving the motor home and the kids had come along (with the dogs), so every couple miles I would hear them coming up behind me (kids hanging out of windows, dogs barking, horn honking) it was great.
Pike's Peak is an adventure more than a race, it is the pinnacle of running/hiking in my book. The best suggestion that I can give to someone considering this race is to find as many hills as you can and run them over and over. The first half of the race you are thinking "when can I stop running uphill?", the last half of the race "I wish I could stop running downhill!". Twice now I have fallen on the way down, the last time I left a little piece of my nose at the top. As hard as the race is to run, there is no better satisfaction then being able to actually 'see' where you ran, you can stand at the bottom and look up, all that long way to the top.
Steamtown is an easy one to explain, it is flat or slightly downhill the entire way, a runners dream course. Also, an excellent place to qualify for Boston.
The Kennett Square run is local to where I live and has an excellent turn out, my kids will run it with me. We will see friends and people we know, it is just a great day to spend outdoors.
Last is the Ironman, not because I like it least, but because it was without a doubt - the hardest race I have ever done. While I did enjoy this event, I am not sure if it was worth the time that I had to devote to training. It was very difficult to find the time necessary to train, it is hard enough to find the time to train for a marathon, but add to that two more disciplines that are just as hard and require the same amount of time. Because of all that, the thrill of crossing the finish line was made that much better because of the work involved.
These are my favorites, there are hundreds of Marathons to run in wonderful, scenic places and I would enjoy hearing about them. See you out there.
