Great job by Mercedes and all of those individuals who helped pull off the event! Small but adequate expo, well marked course, plenty of fully stocked aid stations, excited volunteers, good medal, excellent shirts (pre and post race ) ones you can actually wear!! No stupid, obnoxious sayings or colors (THANK YOU - other shirt designers please take a look at theirs) great post race party. 3/4 of course is industrial/business. 1/4 is beautiful neighborhood/views. Some hills. No spectators. Perfect weather.

Wow! For a first time event, these folks got just about everything right. The expo was held in the ballroom of the Sheraton Birmingham, which was the host hotel. Medium sized, but for a first time event, exceeded expectations. Packet pickup was smooth, no lines or waiting at all. Long sleeved shirt for entry. Packet contained many goodies including a pair of gloves. Free beer at the expo, always a plus. Starting line 1/2 block from the hotel. Championchip timing, with split-mats at 10k, 15k, 25k,and 30k. Split updates posted on the computer for family to track. Course was very well controlled. Police were the friendliest of any marathon I hve run.(10) Aid stations with water and Powerade every mile, over-staffed with the friendliest, most enthusiastic volunteers you could want. Spectators were sparse, but very into this event. Many had set up their own aid stations in their front yards. Lots of food(gummi bears, M&M's, Now or Laters, cookies, hard candies, oranges, bananas, Twizzlers,etc, on and on) as well as fluids offered up by the locals. Oh yeah, the race also offered up 5 gel stations. I lost count after 11 bands on the course, and every high school cheerleading team in Birm. must have been out as well. The course was not easy. Many hills, but the scenery was nice except for some of the early downtown miles. Generous 7 hour time limit. Name and hometown announced at finish. Great finishers Medal, and a Dri-Release mock turtle-neck finishers shirt as well! Post race party was also top-notch. Two live bands, Dreamland BBQ, Dominos pizza, Arby's roast beef sandwiches, doughnut, fruit, bagels and all the other usual stuff. And all the beer you wanted! Local media did a great job with coverage. Local TV broadcast the whole race! All in all a wonderful experience.

The Mercedes Marathon was a first-class event all the way around. Although this was the first year, you sure couldn't tell from the outstanding organization. The course was certainly challenging as well as being beautifully scenic. It was quite obvious that the folks who put this race on knew what they were doing. It's sure to be a must-run marathon for a long time to come.

The spectators and the volunteers were great - the city really supported the Marathon. Would definitely run this one again.

The water stops were at each mile and included fruit, candy, vaseline, and ibuprofin which was needed. The time clocks were very visible and the portolets were frequent which was greatly appreciated. Bottom line, this race was planned and executed perfectly. This was my first marathon and because of the difficult hills it will make my next one much easier! Can't wait to do it next year!

This was my first marathon and the inaugural Mercedes Marathon. Although this was my initial marathon experience, I have run many 5, 10 and 15K races. It was well organized, including plenty of port-a-potties at the start. The course was fairly nice, about a 600 foot elevation gain between 7-10 miles, otherwise mainly flat. I was very impressed by the community support. I don't think I ran for more than 1/2 mile at the longest stretch where there were no spectators. Everone was very encouraging and enthusiastic! The weather can vary widly in northern Alabama at this time of year, but the conditions were nearly perfect, 52 degrees at start time, and it actually cooled off a little during the mid morning. A veteran of several marathons desciribed the post race party as the best she had experienced.

This was a spectacular marathon! It was incredibly well organized & supported by the locals. There was water & powerade every mile & many water stations had additional goodies for the runners. Full marathoners received a long sleeve cotton t-shirt and a long sleeve cool max shirt. A great course, a bit hilly, but it went through some beautiful parts of the city. The race organizers should be very proud of themselves for such an excellent first marathon. The first RNR in San Diego didn't come off this well. I would highly recommend the Mercedes Marathon to anyone.

The inaugural running of the Mercedes Marathon in Birmingham was so incredible. This was my 11th marathon and now one of my favorites. It was so well supported and organized. Fans were abundant along the course as well as plenty of goodies to eat! There are a couple of nasty, nasty hills, but please don't let this stop you from running this race. It is truly a world class event!