Ottawa Fall Colours

Love this race! Super friendly,beautiful fall colours, friendly organizers,great course. Excellent parking this year, great family atmosphere.

Love this race! Super friendly,quaint, gorgeous run in the country. Even did roll call at the early marathon start. Awesome last long run before NYC marathon 3 weeks later. Will definitely do again. Post race massage hit the spot!

Pros: Beautiful fall colours, friendly organizers, relaxed family atmosphere, good chili post-race.

Cons: Very small race (75 marathoners, 250 half-mar., but lots of shorter races), limited resources, no baggage check, roads aren't closed to traffic (but they're slow and light), very few spectators.

Other: I was in town for Thanksgiving and decided to run this marathon at the very last moment. It's VERY expensive to register this way. I didn't really get my $170 worth but for a one-time, small-race experience, I was fine with it.

One logistic advice -- on the morning of the race, cars lined up for over 1km on east-bound Old Montreal Road to get into the parking lot of the race site, the Cumberland Heritage Village Museum (because everyone's coming from Ottawa in the west). If you approach instead from the east (going westbound), there's no line-up. This will save you at least 15-20 min.

I was looking for a new PB so I decided to choose a local race in cooler temperatures with fewer crowds. The course offers some challenging inclines through some pretty country scenery in the fall. Great race for first-timers.

Qualified for Boston at the Fall Colours Marathon, loved the event! GREAT scenic course that's not over-crowded. So happy to find a Boston Qualifier so close to home, and at a perfect time of year!

Loved the Fall Colours Marathon, great course, will definitely do it again!