Fall Marathons: Small versus Large Field

what is your motivation?are you a stubborn guy,get beaten take is on the chin and use it as fuel for the fire to run faster?or are you ranking orientated easily deflated?look at your strengths and weaknesses tailor it to your psychological makeup.if you are gungho and results mess you up inside,maybe a gradual progression is better.?

Richmond definitely faster than Baltimore. Don't know much about Detroit. I've got to believe that a big field increases the number of people running your pace - always helpful to have people to chase in the closing miles.

I'm a bit slower than you (low 2:40s), but I prefer smaller or medium size fields. The big city marathons have simply gotten too big for my taste. I don't want to have to deal with mass starts, corrals, being crammed like sardines, and not being able to run race pace early on because of the crowds. I want as few logistical complications as possible so all my mental energies can be directed to the race.

The obvious trade off is the possibility of being stranded in "no man's land" late in the race with no one around you to run with or draft off of. This is mitigated by the fact that I do all my training alone, including 20+ mile runs, so I'm completely comfortable pushing to my limits while by myself.

I am right around your pace, and am considering my fall options as well. My opinion: it doesn't really take any competition to run fast, but a little can certainly help. My PR was run in the most thin field of any marathon I have run though, and frankly, the excitement of running "to place" in a mediocre field gets me more riled up than fighting for 175th at boston/chicago/ny. Plus, the smaller field was kind of nice logistically (easy bag drop, bathrooms, etc.) which kind of put me at ease to focus on the race.

That being said, a couple west coast suggestions would be Portland (3000?, 10th place 2:33), Victoria BC (2500?, 10th place 2:34), or Cal International (5000+, 35th place 2:34).

26 miles is 26 miles

if it's crowded get near the front

I like the smaller marathons/races, less hoopla & distractions

okay!!!: I'm a bit slower than you (low 2:40s), but I prefer smaller or medium size fields. The big city marathons have simply gotten too big for my taste. I don't want to have to deal with mass starts, corrals, being crammed like sardines, and not being able to run race pace early on because of the crowds.

I don't question your preference, and agree that prerace space & time logistics can be a drag for mega-races. And small races can be charming and personal, in addition to hassle-free. etc etc.

But I don't understand how someone who runs 2:42 has an issue running race pace. At NYCM in years past I've had no problem running ~3:00 pace from very early on. What races are populous enough with a narrow enough start to impede the pace of 2:xx runners for more than say the initial 400 meters? Is there a problem with seeding, where you start behind slower folks?