You won't find a better race director! Essentially no fans on the course but that was no surprise. The volunteers were all outstanding. The three-loop course was great. I enjoyed repeating the same route knowing what was coming. Flat course. Would do it again.

I was dreading running 8.5 out-and-backs; however, I ended up liking the course, as it allowed you always to know where you were in relation to the other runners. It also allowed you to interact with EVERY runner on the course quite frequently, which is awesome.

The aid stations were well stocked with Gatorade, water, and friendly volunteers. The restroom out near the turnaround was well placed; however, a second one would have been nice.

For anyone who wants actually to watch a marathon, this is by far the best course. A runner's family could literally watch the entire race with very little movement.

My only suggestion is to make the turnarounds a bit wider/more gradual. Incorporating 16 turnarounds of 180 degrees can lead to hip injuries (I found out the hard way). All in all, a great experience, and actually a great course/race for a PR.

Registration: I pretty much walked in Sunday morning, paid, and ran out just in time for the start. Wonderful!

Race: Well, although that term doesn't represent what I do at these events, I can make it to the end of them one way or another. There was a great mix of styles and times, which says a lot about the course. Coming from flat Florida, I appreciated the same terrain. Mostly training in a 1.3-mile loop park, I felt at home going out-and-in 1.5 miles (each way) and would highly recommend this to anyone who trains in loops. For such a short way, there was a lot of variety! Houses, businesses, railroad tracks and "country."

Staff: All very nice! To me, the loop counters sitting casually added to the hometown feel, and seeing the aid people and turn-around guy every so often helped me "bond" with the race.

Aid stations: Didn't need more, as we could put our own goodies by the trees at the start and just grab something when we passed by. The water towards the turn-around was ICE cold, and the Popsicles at the finish line were perfect. I found we could have all the Gatorade and water we wanted coming and going, so I'm not sure why someone posted differently. And the best thing of all: We got to use the high school restrooms by the start line!!

Extras: I love the medal and t-shirt (next time it'd be nice if they mentioned "Michigan," as someone posted there were people from out-of-state). The very nice certificate arrived within a week. Two things that made this event EXTRA excellent were A) the superintendent of schools was at the finish line and B) it was put on video and e-mailed to us!
Sometimes these smaller ones just get it right!

Ps. I hope any changes won't detract from the small-town feel and flat course!

Overall, I enjoyed this marathon! I enjoyed the following: The cost to run the marathon was $40 until race day, when the price went to $50. Parking was free! The time of year: There are not a lot of marathons in the summer, so it was nice to be able to run a marathon in the summer. There were people from like 14 different states, Canada, and even someone from Japan. It was nice getting to know other people. The race was not chip-timed, so being able to listen to my MP3 player was awesome!

The looping course was unique. Most marathons are not back and forth 8+ times, so it was fun trying something new. It would have been nice if the volunteers let people knew what lap they were on without asking. I asked on my last lap just to make sure, and one of the volunteers acknowledged indeed I was on my last lap. It's easy to get distracted and forget what lap you are on while running.

I didn't care for the water and Gatorade setup: There were to hydration areas where water and Gatorade were offered. The two hydration stations were about a mile and a half apart - which is fine by me. What I didn't care for was that both hydration stations only had one volunteer handing out hydration, so if you dropped your drink, or if someone was in front of you, you would either have to stop and wait, or go to the next hydration station. Also, you were practically limited to either Gatorade OR water, as in one hand was water, and the other hand, Gatorade.

One thing worth noting is I went to the race website, and there is no mention of the price of the marathon jumping from $40 to $50 on race day. I called the race director the day before, and found this out by chance.

This is a basic, no-frills marathon, but in many ways, it is more enjoyable than larger-scale marathons.

This was a very nice race. The course was very flat and the weather was beautiful. If you want to run a fast time, this may be a good one to try.

Before getting there, I was worried about running so many loops (they are 5K loops so the marathon ran 8 full loops and one mini-loop), but there were enough turns to NOT make it mind-numbing. Other runners mentioned that they lost count of the loops and it would have been nice if the people marking the number of loops you ran would tell you if you were on your last loop (I did keep up with my loops but it would have been nice).

There were two water and sports drink stations that you passed, and that was plenty. They also had a porta-john strategically located at the 2K/3K-mark (thank you!).

Craig, the race coordinator, and his wife had the race well organized, and they did have the roads blocked off for most traffic (local authorities and volunteers were in place for the minimally limited traffic). I enjoyed the run very much.

Good luck in the future!!

My first time running this race and I had a wonderful time. I arrived to pick up my packet and met the race director and his wife right off. Later that evening a large group of us went to dinner together and I was able to meet a number of my fellow runners, which made the race very personal because now I feel like part of a larger family. With eight 5K loops, I was able to meet many of the other runners as we passed each other, which again made this race much more personal than other races that I've run with much larger fields. Highly trained volunteers worked the water stops and kept track of how many loops each person completed - excellent!!! A great, small marathon without all the hoopla of a larger race and an abundance of VERY friendly people. All the spectators were at the starting area; it's a small town, so I didn't expect a huge turn out. that's why I gave them a 2, but the ones that were there did give a cheer as we passed them. All in all, great job!!!

These guys are just simply a great group of warm, welcoming people. A good race at a time of the year to help fill your schedule. Flat and predictable but can be used as a warm-up for the end-of-the-year schedule.

Looping 5K eight times was a little bit too much, but a nice thing about it was I knew exactly where I was and how far I had to run. The staffs were very friendly and helpful. One of the volunteers even got me a banana while I was running. Not much food left for slow marathon runners like me. Please save some for slow runners. Please add a sprinkler at the end of the loop for next year. You cannot imagine how much that helps on a hot day. Need music on the course. There was none this year. Thank you very much to the organization, the volunteers, and everyone who helped to make the race happen.

If you like to run on flat, fast course and enjoy a little slice of Americana with the nicest people anywhere, this is your race. Whiners need not apply.

I know hell is hot...but is it humid? I had to pick this one in the middle of an unusual heat wave. Great small inexpensive race. Can't say much for the course except it's flat and you ain't gonna get lost. Volunteers were excellent. Kudos to the three little girls who cheered from their living window for hours.