OTQ marathons

[April G]

I have been curious about the new rules on what marathons can be used for an OTQ.  I see that most blogger OTQ hopefuls will be traveling to large, well-known marathons that meet the requirements.  I wondered if there were small, not very well known marathons that could also work.  For example, there is a little tiny marathon in rural Kansas that appears to meet all the requirements--the Eisenhower Marathon--it is USATF certified and sanctioned, is out and back with only 41 meters difference between its highest and lowest point, and utilizes chip timing.  Do marathons like this qualify or am I missing something?  I do understand that marathons like this do not draw much competition to help push the pace for an OTQ hopeful.

[Sasha Pachev]

They do. The reason an OTQ hopeful would go to a bigger one is that a little marathon with no prize money would almost certainly mean that you will be running alone. However, if you can find a guy that is capable of comfortably running 2:47 to pace you, this small marathon would be perfect.

[Kory Wheatley]

It's hard to get the best out of your ability when there's no competition that meets your pace.  Smaller marathon's just don't have the competition, but it doesn't me it's impossible to do your best.

[Jon Allen]

Another advantage of the big name marathons is that they know what they are doing.  Sometimes, the small marathons are small for a reason, even if you can't see it on their website (i.e. run on dirt road, bad weather, hilly, poor aid stations (I have seen small races where the volunteers aren't ready for the first runners), no traffic control, no port-o-potties, etc).  I figure that if you want to really make a push for OTQ, give yourself the best chance you can.  If you want to run a small race, just do your research first to make sure it will help you in all ways you need.

[Paul Petersen]

Also, the amenities to elites and wanna-be elites for larger (richer) marathons are usually better. For example, private porta-potties (no lines), elite aid stations, elite staging (usually indoors), shuttle to/from the hotel (which is usually comped), so no worries about driving and parking. I could go on. This all equals less stress, and being able to focus more on the race preparation. I tell ya, being able to stretch out indoors out of the cold, use the bathroom as many times as you want, and then be escorted to the front of the starting line is REALLY nice.

These amenities are generally available to most runners who have a prayer at qualifying, so it's not like you have to be a superstar or anything. For example, at the Indy Mini, any male under 1:14 for the half got this kind of treatment (don't remember the standard for women). I think 1:10 was the standard for free hotel, which is very generous. At the Chicago Marathon, there is a "Top 100" program that offers separated staging and other amenities for anyone who's broken 2:30 or so. Stuff like this is pretty common.

And that is before the actual competition, which you already mentioned is *usually* much better in bigger races (not to say you can't get great comp at a small or medium-sized race).