OK, so this was marathon #14, 13 on roads. The weather is not the responsibility of the organizers, so I won't complain about the heat - just roll the dice (it was very cold earlier in the week).

My complaint is that this is NOT really a marathon. It is a half marathon, where they tack on an additional 13.1 if you want to run a full. All runners start together, and the half is huge - approximately 15,000 runners...while there can't be more than a couple of thousand marathoners.

The course is OK - really nice to run through Forest Park, Clayton, and University City. It is so cool to run toward the Arch for the last couple of miles. Unfortunately, a lot of the last few miles is on concrete, which is REALLY tough on the legs, especially late in the race.

However, the reason that I'm complaining about the race - more than anything - bad food at the end of the race. All that was offered was a bag of chips, VERY green bananas, and granola bars. Come on folks, we've GOT to do better than that. Where was the pizza? Bagels? Cookies? Anything?

So, I won't be going back to St. Louis again for this race....

EXPO
Ran out of t-shirts in my size and ran out of bags (nothing to put my vendor items in). It may have been due to an inexperienced/unconcerned table volunteer, but one expects better. Had to get safety pins for my race bib back at the hotel! The usual good assortment of vendor booths, but very few freebies. Expo was held at Chaifetz Arena at St. Louis Univ., but race entrants still charged $5 to park in the garage - otherwise, you're on the street. No pre-race pasta dinner.

RACE
Pretty ugly course. A lot of it was downtown, and while St. Louis has a lot to offer, it doesn't have the most attractive urban landscape. Race start had a huge speaker blasting rock music, but it was too close and too loud, and a lot of us nearby had to plug our ears. The last 5-6 miles was a straight line into the city, with crappy pavement, as well as hills - just one long grind. Crowd support was tepid. The course ran through 2 colleges, but there was only one very small, very exuberant group of co-eds at SLU. Most colleges offer pretty good support, but not here. MEDICAL PERSONNEL WAS PATHETIC. I didn't see a medical tent till mile 15, and most of it was vaseline. On hot, humid days like this, medical staff is real important. Excellent traffic control.

VOLUNTEERS
Fantastic, as usual. They made an otherwise beastly race a lot better. Thank you!!

FINISH AREA
This was a redemption of sorts. Big, open-spaced finish area (unlike a lot of races, where runners are sent down crowded chutes). Lots of goodies, including free beer, and a massage tent. HUGE finisher's medal.

I hate to be negative, but except for the friendly volunteers and finish area, this was one of the least enjoyable city marathons I've run.

This race was brutally hot and they did stop the race for some runners, who then had to run the half. There was not a cloud in the sky and there is very little shade on the course, so the last 10K was very difficult. The course has some hills, which may have been OK without the heat, but the combination of heat and hills was rough. That being said, there was plenty of water and lots of volunteers. The course was generally enjoyable: the brewery, the park and a few of the neighborhoods are nice, but a lot of the course is just concrete. There are a lot of areas where spectators are limited, but where there are spectators they are very enthusiastic.

My only organizational complaint is the shuttle system to and from the expo: after waiting for a bus (large van) which was mobbed by the people waiting for it (envision 200 people trying to crowd into the last life raft on the Titanic) I jumped into a cab with a few other runners. Overall, a fun race despite the heat.

I'm from Florida so I knew going into this marathon it would be hilly. But combine that with the heat, humidity, and wind, and it turned into a brutal day. I was able to complete the course but it was my 2nd worse finish. Only Colorado where I couldn't breathe was worse.
I support the race director shutting down the course. I saw all the people dropping like flies out there. Only because I'm from the land of heat and humidity was I able to finish by mostly walking the last 6.2 miles.
The aid stations were awesome. They did everything they could to help us stay cool and hydrated!
My only complaint was the finish line, which was taken down as I approached (5:46) and the ammenities. There was no beer and there was no band as promised. There were only a few people left to provide support and all they had was bananas, water, and Gatorade. The race director can not control the weather. The finish line and after party he can and it was very disappointing after the long hard race.
I would recommend the marathon for it's great hilly course, but not for the finish line ammenities.
I stayed at the Marriott Residence Inn and it's a great location, midway between the expo and the start/finish, so you can walk to both.

Look at where folks are from as you read their comments. Those talking about the course being very hilly are all from the north. If you want to know what a hilly marathon is really like, sign up for the City of Oaks in Raleigh, NC.

I personally think the marathon is a good one (it was my 17th; I've run Chicago, Richmond, Disney World, and City of Oaks, to name a few). It is smaller, so yes, spectator support will be lower. However, those who were out were great! And the volunteers were great! I think the very first water stop was a little crowded, but as the race went on, I had no problems getting through them. Plenty of porta-potties at the start and also along the course. I did not mind the hills nor the uphill at the end. I actually liked that I could see the finish line about a 1/2-mile out (I ran faster and prayed that we weren't going to make a turn away from it).

And read the handbook they passed out at the expo. There is a paragraph in there about having to adjust or even cancel the race because of weather events. Yes, it is disappointing the race had to be adjusted when and how it was, but the paragraph says right there, the race officials reserve the right to make those types of decisions and you've agreed to that when you sign up for the race.

All in all, I liked the race and would recommend it to others.

P.S. I would agree that maybe they could start the half and full at different times. It was crowded running with 15,000 halfers during the first 9-10 miles of the race.

P.P.S. And the race seemed spectator-friendly, as I was able to see my family at miles 1, 5, 10, 16, 19, 23, and the finish. I was not running that slowly either (except when the heat got to me and I sat down for a break between 20-21 miles).

I have never been more angry than I was when I reached mile 9 and was told I had to finish with the halfers. This race obviously caters to the half marathon. I spent money on airfare, hotel, and lots of other things to prepare to do the State of Missouri. We sign waivers for every marathon. I am a 5:15 marathoner and there were many past the time who finished the race. I was under 2 hours at the cut off but it took me 18 minutes to get to the start. I train in the heat, in California. It was not too hot for me. I didn't even go to the finish; for what? I just walked back to my hotel. It left a bad impression of the entire city and the entire trip. I will do Missouri, as I am trying to do all 50 states, but I WILL NOT go back to ST. LOUIS. I also emailed the event afterward explaining my frustration and of course got NO RESPONSE (yet, anyway).

My favorite venue thus far after 10 major events all over the country. I was a little concerned that St. Louis had recently been classified as the most dangerous city in America. I found it to be clean and friendly people. Great route of your city. You should be proud of a fantastic event. A must-do in my opinion. The weather and hills were a challenge indeed but the views of the city made it worth the effort.

Some of these things go really well and others are more of a struggle! :-) The 2011 Go! was a struggle for me due to the high temps and humidity, but overall I think it is a good race.

Pros:
Travel - easy to get to STL and get around town on the Metrolink. We stayed at the Marriott and that was walking distance to the start/finish.
Reusable bag was great - high quality.
Course - really pretty, well marked, but it is hilly (not Waco hilly), so do your hill work and you will be fine.
Easy to spectate - my husband and two little ones saw me at the start, 6, 13, 20 and the finish.
Great volunteers! There were plenty of people at every aid station cheering and taking great care of us!!!!!
Water stops - GREAT water stops every mile or two. Had hoses hooked up to the hydrants to spray us - really helped us stay cool.

Cons:
Expo shuttle - we had to wait 45 minutes to get the shuttle back to the hotel. It was free and I appreciate that, but we were out in the hot sun with our two little ones.
Race shirt - does not say, "Finisher" on it.
BEER!!! - how does Bud run out of beer IN St. Louis after we just ran through their place???
Music - when I finished, the music stage was being packed up. Silly. There were tons of people coming across the line, who had struggled on a hot, hot day all to be greeted by no beer and no music. Worst post-race I have been to in 22 marathons.

The marathon isn't responsible for the heat, but for the most part they did a good job making sure aid stations were stocked and people were tended too. I have never seen so many people down; starting at mile 8 there was a guy getting an IV on the side of the road. There were people going down all over the place. I feel bad for the people who got turned back, but I felt worse for the people waiting for ambulances in the street.

This was a good, well organized race with GREAT volunteers on a hilly course, but the post-race area needs a lot of improvement and the shirt should say, "Finisher" on it.

First of all, I was really dragging for the race - injury, heat and the hills - but I managed to stay ahead of the heat cut-off and finished the full. I can say that the course support (water/GU/medical) worked hard and there were adequate course provisions. Medical reaction was swift for the runners who went down due to the heat. Excellent volunteer support.

For the race in general, I was a little disappointed. The "highlights" of the course - A-B Brewery, Forest Park, Washington University - were lifeless. It was some of the outlying neighborhood pockets that were the "life of the party" and carried the event. Elsewhere, nary a spectator, music or anyone (other than volunteers). Rather a letdown for a big city. Miles 20-24 covered a long stretch of boring, shadeless asphalt. I really think the course could have been more interesting.

Finally, if we have to run around the silent Budweiser corporate offices (because they are a sponsor), I would expect a better post-race beer situation.

I finished the full marathon, granted almost an hour slower than I normally would have. I am not going to debate the heat issues, all I know is it was 88 degrees when we got back to the hotel at about 1 o'clock. I feel I was prepared training wise because, I had a PRd a Half Marathon 2 weeks before. Of course that was on the Chicago Lake Front and it was about 25 degrees.
When I finished everything was being taken down or already down. I didnt like being locked in that finish shoot and having to walk another 1/4 mile to get some water and a banana. As mentioned before the Michelob Stage was long gone.
The course is really hilly, but in decent weather I would have enjoyed that challenge. I would like to compliment the volunteers that stayed out on the course! The young kids were still enthusiastic even nearing 5 hours and several volunteers were asking me if I was alright. Which tells you what I looked like?
I will not run this race again. However, I would do a St.Louis Marathon held in the fall that is considered the main event. They should just make this the St.Louis 1/2 Marathon and perhaps have a 10k to go with it. I am proud to have been among the 1900 that finished!