This is my third marathon and I loved running Madison! I BQ'ed and improved my time about 20 minutes (not sure if its because its a fast course, or if I just amped up my training that much). The course is absolutely gorgeous - I would say it's prettier than Twin Cities. The hills were killer around mile 18, but hey, that's part of running a marathon; if it were all flat, it would be boring (I run in FL with no hills, and hate it).

Few suggestions: more porta-potties at the start. I didn't have an issue, but many people around me were complaining. One more water stop between mile 22 and 26 would be helpful, since most of that part of the race is in the sun. Gatorade at the finish would be great; I think its cute to have the WI food (wahoo, cheese!) too, but I was in desperate need of bananas and Gatorade.

The traffic didn't affect me much, since I just had someone drop me off, and it didn't seem to be an issue for people who got to the race early.

Oh, and showers at the finish are a GREAT idea. Perfect for cleaning up and heading over to the brat festival!

I would definitely recommend this marathon.

1) Race organizers need to double the number of porta-potties at the start/finish.
2) Some of the volunteers at the expo were clueless about runner village amenities, etc.
3) Provide water at the start/finish area. I asked several race volunteers pre-race where I could find water and all I got in response was, "I don't know." I did get a bottle of water in the finisher's corral after the race, but then there seemed to be none available in the runner's village. This was a major problem area that needs fixing.
4) After-race food consisted of chocolate milk (very refreshing) and pretzels. Real food beyond pretzels would be a great improvement.
5) The course was nice except, for when the streets were only half shut down, and you had to run alongside a city bus spewing its exhaust in your face and breathing exhaust fumes. That was absolutely TERRIBLE.
6) The aid stations were plentiful, and the volunteers that staffed them were awesome.
7) Having the name of the participant on the race bib was a nice touch, especially because it let you have your name called by the race fans along the course.
8) Nice finisher's medal, but no year was printed on the medal.
9) The shirt was okay, but having a big, rubberized decal of the marathon logo on the front defeats the purpose of a tech shirt.

The Mad City Marathon has potential. Add more porta-potties at the start; doubling the existing number would be a good beginning. Get the parking under control. We sat in line for over 30 minutes. There were numerous runners running down the interstate to get to the start on time. I was with half-marathon participants, and every one of them started 12 minutes late. I, fortunately, was running the full, and had used the facilities at the Holiday Inn Express (thanks to them) while we inched along in traffic, so I wasn't late for my start and didn't have to stand in the long porta-lines. Fix those two major problems and this will be a great overall experience.

The course was very nice with great scenery. Even the hills weren't that bad and I'm from Florida (the flat part).

This was my 10th marathon, and we selected Madison so that we would have an excuse to see Camp Randall Stadium and celebrate the finish of the marathon by being part of the Madison Brat Fest!

The Good:
* Challenging but fair course. The elevation chart is accurate; I knew where the hills were and they were as advertised.
* Madison. A very good city, lots of nice lakes to run around, and a very scenic course. Good city to spend a long weekend in.

The bad:
* Finishing area needs work. They had "volunteers" that were regulating the number of bottled waters I could have, and they served chocolate milk and a small cup of pretzels. That was it. Cell-Com in Green Bay had bagels, bananas, cookies, beer, and all were very plentiful. Also, you finish in a parking lot, completely exposed to sun and more heat. I finished in the top 75, and while waiting for my friend to finish, they tried to keep me from a second bottle of water, did not supply any solid food to graze on, and made we wait in the sun. Not good.
* Traffic control. I had cyclists passing me on either side during different parts of the course. I think that, for one day, we can afford to tell the bikers to wait until later while runners take to the streets and trails. It's just not safe.

Overall: I would recommend this race and run it again. Madison is a solid city; and the course is pretty, scenic, challenging and fair. The few drawbacks are easily correctable, and even if they are not corrected, they are not horrible.

We had fantastic weather for the marathon (started in the high-50s with clouds, and ended sunny in the low-70s). The course was nearly all flat. The crowds were fun and the rest stations beyond fully staffed and supplied. But oh, what does a guy (or gal) have to do for a mid-run bathroom break?

I counted maybe 20 port-a-johns before the race, split on opposite ends of the huge Alliant Energy Center (thankfully the nearby hotel kindly let enterprising runners in). This was for both the (approximately) 2,000 marathoners AND the roughly 4,000 halfers. And there was no more than one port-a-john per mile. If you've run a major, urban marathon, you're probably used to seeing guys at underpasses, behind walls, etc. in the first few miles. None were to be found until mile 6-7 here. I ended up with an 8-minute differential between watch and chip-time just from standing in line!

The overabundance of GU was nice for energy, though after so much, I never want to taste the stuff again. I counted at least four handouts along the route.

The route itself was pleasant; it was a real treat running through the arboretum, and wisely placed early in the race, when "get-done-itis" hadn't set in. The finish along the lake was nice. I wish the bike path had been blocked off for just us marathoners, but it was never crowded and everyone was friendly. While the route wasn't terribly exciting (like San Fran or Chicago), it was very tranquil and fun (think beach-side parks and mansions, college neighborhoods, etc.).

This being their first year starting at the Alliant Center, I'll be lenient in my remarks on funneling traffic in in-time for the start. A later start (7:30 for the marathon, 7:00 for the half) probably helped, but a 10-minute drive on the GPS took much longer due to backups onto highways and traffic cops who sat in cars instead of directing traffic. I'll take it over having to ride a shuttle any day though.

So, a few logistical flaws but overall a fun marathon.

Having been in and around Madison for many years, I almost forgot how beautiful our city is. This marathon showcases the beauty well. It travels along the shoreline of 4 different lakes, through the beautiful UW Arboretum and passes the state capitol a couple of times, all the while offering exceptional views. Don't be fooled, though; the course is tough. There are hills in the Arboretum, and running up Langdon Street on fraternity row and throughout the Maple Bluff area makes this a very challenging course. The long hill at mile 17 had me thinking of the first Newton Hill at Boston. Organization was good. The finisher medal and technical shirt were nice. The last few miles could have used a little marshaling as a lot of non participants were using the course at that point. Other than that, a nice event, with nice weather that shed a really positive light on our wonderful city.

This was my second marathon and it had exceeded my expectations. Here are my opinions:

Expo: Easy to get to, with plenty of parking. I had no trouble at all getting my bib and chip. It looked like there were plenty of vendors there as well (didn't look around - my husband was in the vehicle waiting for me).

Start Line: As with any other marathon, it definitely could use more porta-potties. Get there early - at least an hour before your start time. The start line wasn't too congested because the half-marathon started at a different location and time.

Course: Not as hilly as I expected. Some little hills, but nothing that will knock you out. Aid stations were plentiful, and spectators were very encouraging in certain areas of the course. Medical personnel were on the course as well. The volunteers were excellent, calling you by your name as they handed you water/Gatorade. Thank you all!

Finish line: Lots of spectators and great recovery area. I loved the chocolate milk right after you crossed the finish line! The medal was nice; it had a place to engrave your time. There were different medals for full and half-marathoners. Massages were available for full marathoners. Every tent was labeled well.

Overall: I really enjoyed it. I was happy with my time (a PR); I was hoping to BQ, but started out too fast and faded at the end. I would run this race again and recommend it to anyone thinking of running a marathon in Wisconsin. No problems whatsoever. Good job, Madison!

I ran the 2009 Madison Marathon over Memorial Day Weekend. I found that the course was terrific; it had some hills and the tour hit all of the highlights of Madison. Although the spectators were sparse, they were enthusiastic.

My only issues were that there were not nearly enough port-a potties to handle 7,000 runners at the start. I think I counted about 30 in total, which led to a frantic search for more bathrooms. The parking wasn't the greatest if you didn't get there early to avoid the traffic. Finally there were none of the traditional refreshments marathoners are used to. So, in my opinion, the organization needs to do a lot of work to improve the overall experience, but as I said, I loved the course, and once you get to running, who cares about all of that other stuff?

I had a very difficult time finding the expo. In fact, my shoe found a nice pile of horse manure before I found the expo. I was not very happy. But, race-day was much better for me. I found the start line fairly easily, and had one of my best races (time-wise). The sections through the zoo and the arboretum were absolutely awesome. Sorry, half-ers; you REALLY missed out. The course was well marked and staffed, and the view of Capital Square was quite nice. My suggestions for improvement would be:
1. Put more signs out for the expo
2. Get more police to help with traffic to/from the expo and race!!!
3. Have more water at the end of the race. It was hot and sunny... after mile 20, we need water every mile.

Thanks for a great time. I really did appreciate all of the GU that was out on the course, and enjoyed the showers at the end.

I would definitely consider running the race again... if I can talk myself into running those hills again.

Whoever was in charge of traffic control prior to race was ill-prepared. And how about traffic control on the course? There was a woman driving in the runners' lane, following runners, honking her horn for runners to get out of her way. Water stations were good and volunteers at them were even better. Of all of the streets in Madison, they decided to find the monster hill on mile 18? I did not believe that the new course was improved from previous years, as promised. This was my 5th MCM and it will be my last until I hear improvements have been made since the 2009 running.