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Tips for how to spectate the Flying Pig marathon
TL;DR
The Flying Pig marathon offers various tips for spectators to enhance their experience. Key advice includes choosing optimal viewing spots and understanding the race schedule.
Key points
- Tips for spectators at the Flying Pig marathon
- Optimal viewing spots for the race
- Understanding the race schedule
- Preparation advice for spectators
May 9, 1999:
Sommer Settell — 2:58:10
Elly Rono — 2:21:15
May 14, 2000:
Rebecca Gallagher — 2:49:31
Rudolf Jun — 2:23:04
May 6, 2001:
Rebecca Gallagher — 2:50:41
Rudolf Jun — 2:27:59
May 5, 2002:
Tatyana Pozdnyakova — 2:34:36 (Women's record)
Cornelio Velasco — 2:31:13
May 4, 2003:
Lisa Veneziano — 2:57:54
John Aerni — 2:27:44
May 2, 2004:
P.J. Ball — 3:05:52
Thomas Lentz — 2:38:07
May 1, 2005:
Alison Bedingfield — 3:03:40
Tim Rieger II — 2:30:24
May 7, 2006:
Norah Shire — 2:56:21
Cecil Franke — 2:20:26 (Men's record)
May 6, 2007:
Leah Peelman — 2:55:56
Isaac Barnes — 2:33:36
May 4, 2008:
Michelle Didion — 3:05:18
Andy Martin — 2:30:40
May 3, 2009:
Autumn Ray — 2:52:23
Sergio Reyes — 2:20:37
May 2, 2010:
Cynthia Arnold — 2:55:00
Brian List — 2:31:55
May 1, 2011:
Amy McDonaugh — 2:58:10
Kieran O’Connor — 2:28:02
May 6, 2012:
Rachel Bea — 2:54:38
Sergio Reyes — 2:22:04
May 5, 2013:
Rebecca Walter — 2:53:56
Sergio Reyes — 2:21:49
May 4, 2014:
Amy Robillard — 2:55:50
Sergio Reyes — 2:27:19
May 3, 2015:
Amy Robillard — 2:53:07
Adam Gloyeske — 2:32:53
May 1, 2016:
Anne Flower — 2:55:46
Sergio Reyes — 2:26:03
May 7, 2017:
Kerry Lee — 2:53:47
Jack Randall — 2:33:43
May 6, 2018:
Caitlin Keen — 2:46:39
Aaron Viets — 2:29:36
May 5, 2019:
Anne Flower — 2:49:17
Jack Randall — 2:28:58
May 1, 2022:
Zac Holtkamp — 2:27:18
May 1, 2022:
Grace McCarron — 2:50:00
May 7, 2023:
Jason Salyer — 2:27:10
May 7, 2023:
Caitlin Keen — 2:45:34
May 5, 2024:
Jason Salyer — 2:26:01
May 5, 2024:
Olivia Anger — 2:43:23
May 4, 2025:
Sean Ryan — 2:22:41
May 4, 2025:
Tori Parkinson — 2:40:06
1 / 29
Winners of Cincinnati's Flying Pig Marathon - 1999 to 2025
May 9, 1999:
Sommer Settell — 2:58:10
Elly Rono — 2:21:15
1 / 29
Winners of Cincinnati's Flying Pig Marathon - 1999 to 2025
May 9, 1999:
Sommer Settell — 2:58:10
Elly Rono — 2:21:15
2 / 29
Winners of Cincinnati's Flying Pig Marathon - 1999 to 2025
May 14, 2000:
Rebecca Gallagher — 2:49:31
Rudolf Jun — 2:23:04
3 / 29
Winners of Cincinnati's Flying Pig Marathon - 1999 to 2025
May 6, 2001:
Rebecca Gallagher — 2:50:41
Rudolf Jun — 2:27:59
4 / 29
Winners of Cincinnati's Flying Pig Marathon - 1999 to 2025
May 5, 2002:
Tatyana Pozdnyakova — 2:34:36 (Women's record)
Cornelio Velasco — 2:31:13
5 / 29
Winners of Cincinnati's Flying Pig Marathon - 1999 to 2025
May 4, 2003:
Lisa Veneziano — 2:57:54
John Aerni — 2:27:44
6 / 29
Winners of Cincinnati's Flying Pig Marathon - 1999 to 2025
May 2, 2004:
P.J. Ball — 3:05:52
Thomas Lentz — 2:38:07
7 / 29
Winners of Cincinnati's Flying Pig Marathon - 1999 to 2025
May 1, 2005:
Alison Bedingfield — 3:03:40
Tim Rieger II — 2:30:24
8 / 29
Winners of Cincinnati's Flying Pig Marathon - 1999 to 2025
May 7, 2006:
Norah Shire — 2:56:21
Cecil Franke — 2:20:26 (Men's record)
9 / 29
Winners of Cincinnati's Flying Pig Marathon - 1999 to 2025
May 6, 2007:
Leah Peelman — 2:55:56
Isaac Barnes — 2:33:36
10 / 29
Winners of Cincinnati's Flying Pig Marathon - 1999 to 2025
May 4, 2008:
Michelle Didion — 3:05:18
Andy Martin — 2:30:40
11 / 29
Winners of Cincinnati's Flying Pig Marathon - 1999 to 2025
May 3, 2009:
Autumn Ray — 2:52:23
Sergio Reyes — 2:20:37
12 / 29
Winners of Cincinnati's Flying Pig Marathon - 1999 to 2025
May 2, 2010:
Cynthia Arnold — 2:55:00
Brian List — 2:31:55
13 / 29
Winners of Cincinnati's Flying Pig Marathon - 1999 to 2025
May 1, 2011:
Amy McDonaugh — 2:58:10
Kieran O’Connor — 2:28:02
14 / 29
Winners of Cincinnati's Flying Pig Marathon - 1999 to 2025
May 6, 2012:
Rachel Bea — 2:54:38
Sergio Reyes — 2:22:04
15 / 29
Winners of Cincinnati's Flying Pig Marathon - 1999 to 2025
May 5, 2013:
Rebecca Walter — 2:53:56
Sergio Reyes — 2:21:49
16 / 29
Winners of Cincinnati's Flying Pig Marathon - 1999 to 2025
May 4, 2014:
Amy Robillard — 2:55:50
Sergio Reyes — 2:27:19
17 / 29
Winners of Cincinnati's Flying Pig Marathon - 1999 to 2025
May 3, 2015:
Amy Robillard — 2:53:07
Adam Gloyeske — 2:32:53
18 / 29
Winners of Cincinnati's Flying Pig Marathon - 1999 to 2025
May 1, 2016:
Anne Flower — 2:55:46
Sergio Reyes — 2:26:03
19 / 29
Winners of Cincinnati's Flying Pig Marathon - 1999 to 2025
May 7, 2017:
Kerry Lee — 2:53:47
Jack Randall — 2:33:43
20 / 29
Winners of Cincinnati's Flying Pig Marathon - 1999 to 2025
May 6, 2018:
Caitlin Keen — 2:46:39
Aaron Viets — 2:29:36
21 / 29
Winners of Cincinnati's Flying Pig Marathon - 1999 to 2025
May 5, 2019:
Anne Flower — 2:49:17
Jack Randall — 2:28:58
22 / 29
Winners of Cincinnati's Flying Pig Marathon - 1999 to 2025
May 1, 2022:
Zac Holtkamp — 2:27:18
23 / 29
Winners of Cincinnati's Flying Pig Marathon - 1999 to 2025
May 1, 2022:
Grace McCarron — 2:50:00
24 / 29
Winners of Cincinnati's Flying Pig Marathon - 1999 to 2025
May 7, 2023:
Jason Salyer — 2:27:10
25 / 29
Winners of Cincinnati's Flying Pig Marathon - 1999 to 2025
May 7, 2023:
Caitlin Keen — 2:45:34
26 / 29
Winners of Cincinnati's Flying Pig Marathon - 1999 to 2025
May 5, 2024:
Jason Salyer — 2:26:01
27 / 29
Winners of Cincinnati's Flying Pig Marathon - 1999 to 2025
May 5, 2024:
Olivia Anger — 2:43:23
28 / 29
Winners of Cincinnati's Flying Pig Marathon - 1999 to 2025
May 4, 2025:
Sean Ryan — 2:22:41
29 / 29
Winners of Cincinnati's Flying Pig Marathon - 1999 to 2025
May 4, 2025:
Tori Parkinson — 2:40:06
Marathon spectating is its own sport. Seeing a runner multiple times on the course requires meticulous planning, orienteering and usually a little running.
But it can be done. Julia Muntel has done it for several years now. She's figured out how to see a half-marathoner at eight spots (nine if you count the entrance and exit to the Eden Park overlook) to cheer on a friend at the Flying Pig Marathon.
She wouldn't divulge all her secrets but she had several tips for people hoping to spot a friend or family member this weekend.
How to see a Flying Pig runner multiple times
2026 Flying Pig Full Marathon course
1. Study the course map and the road closures. Figure out where you want to go and how to get there. Muntel has run the course several times and knows it well. She drives and will park in a spot where she won't be blocked in. She also wears running shoes so she can quickly get from her car to the course and back.
2. Pick spots that aren't crowded. Lots of people gather on Seventh Street, at the entrance to Eden Park, in Hyde Park and Mariemont squares and at the finish line.
Spectators cheer for runners during the 27th annual Flying Pig Marathon, Sunday, May 4, 2025, in Downtown Cincinnati.
Spots that aren't as crowded but still accessible:
- Before runners cross the Clay Wade Bailey Bridge in Covington.
- For the half-marathon: along Martin Luther King Drive and the northern section of Gilbert Avenue in Walnut Hills and along Eggleston Avenue in Downtown.
- For the full: Madison Avenue near O'Bryonville, Mariemont outside of the square and Eastern Avenue and Riverside Drive in Columbia Tusculum.
3. Figure out when your runner will be at those points. Muntel figures out at what time the person she's cheering for will be at which point in the course by using their estimated pace. When she's at a spot, she'll look for pace leader signs or ask runners who are looking at their watch how fast they're going. The Flying Pig organizers offer a handy chart with estimated times runners will reach each mile marker for the half and full.
Maps of the half-marathon and marathon with mile markers are available on the Flying Pig website. If your runner turns on location sharing through their phone or the race app, you'll be able to see if they're ahead or behind of their anticipated pace.
4. Make big signs and wear something easy to spot. The easiest signs to see while running the course are large and high in the air – tape it to a broomstick handle or yardstick. Muntel sometimes wears a pumpkin costume, a tradition that started a few years back while spectating the Queen Bee half-marathon.
5. Remember why you're there. There's a lot of logistical planning involved in seeing someone at multiple points, but participants have spent several months or more training for the event.
"My philosophy is if you're going to go cheer for somebody who's put in that amount of time, you have to put a little effort into it also," Muntel said.
Muntel often gets to "know" the runners around the people she's cheering for because they keep seeing her. She cheers for them, too, and they are happy to see her even if they didn't know her before race day. (Full disclosure: I was one of those people last year and saw Muntel at least six times on the half-marathon course.)
"That's what the Pig can do," she said. "It's this big sense of community. There's something special about runners."
Want to cheer in a crowd?
The race has several "party zones" throughout the course:
- Fountain Square, Vine Street side: mile 5 for both races.
- Eggleston/Reedy: mile 12 of the half-marathon.
- Clark Point Park: mile 10 of the marathon.
- Hyde Park Square: mile 11 of the marathon.
- East End on Delta Avenue: mile 21 of the marathon.
Emily Trego of Columbus, Ohio, cheers on marathoners near the final mile of the Flying Pig Marathon, May 5, 2019.
Want to spectate but also have a seat, get a bite to eat?
Many businesses along the course have planned early hours or special events during the Pig.
Here are a few:
- Ovation Pedestrian Bridge (between mile 1 and 2) over Third Street, Newport.
- Esoteric Brewing (between mile 9-10 of the half-marathon course): 918 E. McMillan St., Walnut Hills.
- Streetside Brewery (between mile 20-21): 4003 Eastern Ave., Columbia Tusculum.
- Fulton Yards Coffeehouse and Spirits (between mile 21-22): 3301 Riverside Drive, East End.
- Moerlein Lager House has a view of the finish line and opens at 6 a.m. on marathon day: 115 Joe Nuxhall Way.
Spectator etiquette and tips
Flying Pig organizers and runners had these tips for spectators:
- Do not stand in the street, especially in the earlier miles when participants are crowded together.
- Make a funny sign, cheer on individual runners (many have their names on their bibs) and don't be afraid to be silly.
- If a runner doesn't smile back or talk to you, don't take it personally – they might be concentrating or tired, but that doesn't mean your support isn't appreciated.
- Don't spray water or project anything onto the course unless participants ask for it – not everyone likes bubbles in their face or wants to be sprayed down with a hose (although if it's hot, a mid-race shower is a nice thing to offer).
- If you see a runner or walker who looks like they need medical attention, note their bib number and notify a course monitor or water station volunteer, or if serious help is needed, a police officer.
- Prepare for the weather, which could mean wearing layers or bringing an umbrella. In 2023, storms plagued the early hours of the race but broke into warm sunshine by midday.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Where to watch the Flying Pig Marathon
Q&A
What are the best viewing spots for the Flying Pig marathon?
Popular viewing spots include the starting line, finish line, and key points along the route where runners pass.
What time does the Flying Pig marathon start?
The Flying Pig marathon typically starts in the early morning, but specific times can vary each year.
How can spectators prepare for the Flying Pig marathon?
Spectators can prepare by checking the race schedule, planning their route, and arriving early to secure good viewing positions.
Are there any restrictions for spectators at the Flying Pig marathon?
Yes, spectators should be aware of any local regulations or restrictions regarding crowd sizes and access points along the marathon route.
