There has been a lot of talk about Downtown Portland in the news lately. This is not a political post, but it’s fair to say that some people think our city is a scary place. Thankfully, this did not dampen the spirits of runners this year, and the Portland you’ve heard about in the media was not present on the 2025 Portland Marathon course on Sunday, October 5th. This event has always been all about celebrating all the best parts of Portland, and the race certainly did not disappoint this year.
I’ve done well over 100 half marathons in my lifetime, but somehow, I’ve never done the Portland Half Marathon. I’ve run the full course three times (once on the old course in 2006, and twice since Brooksee took over) and I’ve always found it to be a great representation of the Rose City. I wanted to know if the half course translated in the same way, and this year I found myself coaching a group of 11 runners for the event, so it was the perfect opportunity to lace up and get out there myself.
In addition to the fun that comes with the race, our running team was invited to do the Marathon Team Series (MTS,) and our group was eager to see what that was all about. The Portland Marathon already affords runners a lot of awesome amenities, but the MTS offered even more perks for an add-on fee. It’s always great to have options and it really does motivate you to do your best!!
The MTS offered us the opportunity to meet up at Lululemon downtown the day before the race for a 30-minute shakeout run, followed by refreshments, shopping at a 25% discount, and a raffle. It really pumped us up for the race and we got a preview of the excitement downtown. After the Lulu event, we headed to the race expo at the Oregon Convention Center.
The Portland Marathon/Half Marathon/10k doesn’t allow race morning packet pickup. If I’m being honest, I’m sometimes a bit resentful of races that make you go out of your way to make a separate trip prior to race day for your bib. However, the expo for the Portland Marathon is a top-notch event that really gets you amped up for the race. It’s kind of a big deal and there are a lot of people at the expo but it’s one of the most well-organized pre-race events I’ve been to.
You can even get your pre-race beer garden stamp so you don’t have to worry about getting it after the race. There are so many booths and freebies that it’s a runner’s paradise. (Note that if you aren’t a runner, you might want to skip the expo.) I came home with a lot of swag including a nice black Nike race shirt. Portland always brings quality race gear.
The morning of the race, we had the best weather you can ask for. Many carpooled and there was no hassle getting downtown thanks to all the parking garages near the waterfront. It was dark, but the sun was just coming up and it was warmer than I expected.
Thanks to MTS, we had a hospitality suite at the Marriott as well as a tent on the waterfront, and it was actually a really laid back morning considering we were about to run a big event. I will caution all first-time runners to this race to get there early because there are a lot of people milling around near the race start and you don’t really want to feel rushed on race day.
When we got near the start line, we weren’t as close as we thought, so we had a long way to go before we crossed the timing mat. Thankfully, your race doesn’t start until that timing chip goes off, so there’s no need to stress over it.
Once we got moving, we all felt like rockstars. I can’t think of many other times in life where you will have hundreds of people cheering for you on all sides. The sun was coming up and everyone was excited. We cruised for quite awhile on that high.
There are lots of aid stations along the course, and they had water and Skratch Labs electrolyte drink every couple of miles. This is my personal electrolyte of choice, so YAY FOR ME! They also had GU at some stations, but I learned from a previous marathon that my body doesn’t handle that as well in my 40’s as it did in my 30’s, so that was a hard pass. There was beer out there too, as well as pickles, oranges, and even pancakes.
There was lots of on course entertainment and once you hit the neighborhoods, they are such a welcome sight. This is where you’ll get that “real Portland” feel and I love that the different neighborhoods all compete for their take on the title of Best in Show. You also get to cross two bridges and there’s plenty of waterfront to enjoy too.
The signs were entertaining and there are people cheering for you absolutely everywhere. Portland is a running city, and it’s never more evident than when you see the people out in droves, screaming and ringing their bells, and dancing around you to boogie-worthy music. This is PDX!!
Yes, there are some hills. The biggest one was around mile 10, which is not an ideal spot for half marathoners. But this is also where we live, and it’s not unusual to have to trek up some hills in the Pacific NW. I will say most of the course feels relatively flat in comparison to other races I have done, but maybe you should ask someone who doesn’t love trail running as much as I do.
When we finally found ourselves back on the waterfront with a mile left to go in the race, I was ready to see the finish chute. It was eerily calm that last mile, but once we could see the finish line, everything lit up. I finished strong and broke into an easy walk to get my gorgeous medal. After that, I was on a quest for the chocolate milk and other treats.
I’m not going to sugarcoat that the finish line festivities were overwhelming. I don’t typically get claustrophobic, but there was a huge sea of people at the end. (I read later that there were thousands more participants this year vs last year, and now this makes a lot of sense!) I suddenly felt maybe I didn’t have enough electrolytes in my system and felt a bit lightheaded in the crowd.
But I just kept moving and eventually made my way back to the MTS tent. There was food there and I started to feel normal again. For those that wanted it, PDX offered runners free beer and Voodoo Donuts (talk about PDX style!) Not to mention, the day was a stellar weather afternoon.
This city is not broken. This city is alive with people who care. I heard stories of people falling down, and every one of them had people there to help them back up. This is the Portland that I live in. I told my running friend that if a visitor to our city wanted to know if the Portland Half Marathon (or Full Marathon for that matter) was a good race for out-of-towners, I wouldn’t hesitate in saying “absolutely.” 
There’s a reason why people want to do this race. I feel fortunate to be one of them.