Not surprisingly, there is very little "crowd" support. Until the last 1/2 mile in town, you may see more cows/horses than people, but that is part of the attraction. The starting area is like a big club run, with everyone mingling and trying to stay warm until the start. Very casual. The course profile looks like a lot of downhill, but it rolls, so don't expect long stretches of relief. Steamboat in June can be truly beautiful, and the marathon can make for an enjoyable addition to a vacation.

Steamboat is a great and challenging race. The race was well organized and the course was beautiful. Lucky for this flat-lander, there were a lot of declines to cruise down. The volunteers were great and still out and energetic. The last 6 miles were very hot, so THANKS to the volunteer who wrapped ice in my bandana during the last few miles! After drinking what seemed to be gallons of Gatorade, I finished in six hours. A big thanks to everyone! By the way, when they say the cut-off time is six hours, they mean it. There was no food left and the finish line and tents were just about down. This time I didn't care; I found shade and took a nap.

I included this race as part of my Colorado vacation. It was a little tougher than I thought. Even after spending a week at 8K ft and climbing to 12, 13 and 14k ft twice I found myself breathing really hard just to maintain a moderate pace on that hilly course.
As the others have mentioned, the event was well organized, I just wished there had been a few more water stations to compensate for the warm and dry weather.

I ran the half marathon, so I only got to enjoy the last half of the course. The scenery was fantastic and the runners were all very friendly. We made this part of our summer vacation and I would suggest that for anyone. I am hoping to make this an annual race!

Steamboat Springs!! What an amazing little town in the summer. The course was just magnificant and it almost made me want to run slower so it would last longer! I didn't even mind the hills.... Thank you to the race staff for such a great experience. Just wish there was a medal at the end!! How about adding a small race expo? That would be nice, too.

Like others have said previously: the altitude has a big affect the low-landers like myself. Even with a gentle easy pace, I noticed myself breathing hard (like I was pushing myself). This year was also hot and sunny. I got sun-burned bad so don't forget the sun block!

I was impressed with how well organized the race was. I see often on smaller races poor organization, but they did well and still kept that small-town touch to it.

This is a great race to couple with a vacation. If I lived close I would make it an annual event.

WOW! Scenic, beautiful course - one of my favorites of all races... but watch out for those rolling hills! Certainly not a PR course, but don't let that stop you from running this great race. Small field of runners offers you the opportunity to enjoy the views in silence; not many spectators - so you have plenty of "alone time." GREAT ORGANIZATION, small-town feel, challenging but beautiful course, friendly volunteers... deep awards by local artists is a GREAT TOUCH! RUN THIS RACE IN 2007!!!

RESPECT... is what this race demands from us normal marathoners. This baby has to go down as one of the most scenic race experiences on the planet, but altitude, hills, and weather will sting the unwary. This is a race dominated by Colorado and other Rocky Mountain marathoners, and no wonder... those of us from the flatlands don't have the same backyards to play in, so preparing for low O2 and all the ups and downs can be a challenge. On top of everything, the weather can vary wildly from year to year... blazing hot one year, snowing the next. The scenic allure of this event sucked me in the fist time, but I didn't prepare well... crashed and burned, worst time ever, altitude sickness, the whole works!! With a score to settle, I went back again, but prepared... armed for battle, I returned a much better time and experience. A third visit returned even better. Bottom line, I love the challenge and beauty of this event... I'll be heading back for a fourth event soon.

I thought the course was beautiful! I loved the weather! I do not need a lot of spectators so the quiet countryside was fine for me. The spectators that were there were great and so were the volunteers at the water stations. I would have liked some more info before the race. I went back to Christy Sports twice for questions to be answered that were not in the literature. My only problem with this course was that there was not enough O2 in the air for me. I felt the air difference in Denver already just walking (5,000 ft) so the 8000-6700ft. With rolling hills t/o was brutal? the whole way. From start (yes, that hill at 8000 ft that I walked) to the end? I could not breathe! And that was from start to finish! It was a walk/run marathon for me resulting in my worst time out of 7 marathons. I have never seen so many walkers in a marathon! I guess it was all us low-landers! I am just glad I finished! The good part about having to run so slowly is that my body had very few aches/pains or injuries after.

I ran the half and would recommend it over the full, mostly due to the high altitude heat. I think steamboat is a great 'destination' and a pretty cute town and I would recommend this over a number of other races but would not state that it was epic or stellar, only noteworthy. The course is nice and rolling but the marathon is tough. The long awaited towels at the finish were dry instead of wet and cold... bummer. Schwag could also be improved upon - there was none.